MG Majestor First Impressions: Great Off-Roader, But Not For Everyone

If you are an SUV enthusiast and have always wished to own a big, sporty, and fun-to-drive SUV, the MG Majestor needs no introduction. It is the successor of the MG Gloster, and it was first showcased at the Bharat Mobility Global Expo in 2025. Now, in 2026, MG Motor India has revealed the Majestor in the D+ SUV segment and is offered either with a 4x2 or a 4x4 drivetrain with a single engine option, as well as several colour palettes to choose from. However, talking about its rivals, it will mainly compete with the Toyota Fortuner, Skoda Kodiaq, and other SUVs around its price.

Recently, I drove the MG Majestor on and off-road and had a short experience with the massive SUV. On my brief drive of around 100 km, I was able to highlight some key aspects of the Majestor.     

What’s Good

Performance

The MG Majestor is equipped with the same 2.0L twin-turbo diesel engine, which was offered in the Gloster. This engine produces 218 bhp and 478.5Nm of peak torque, paired with an eight-speed torque converter automatic gearbox.

Talking about its performance, it has ample grunt on offer. As soon as I started the vehicle, it had a very calm ignition, and I felt as if I was driving a turbo petrol SUV. The performance and the power delivery from the engine are very linear, and there is enough torque on offer. With the BS-6 Phase-II emission norms, I miss the diesel kick that was present earlier in the diesel engines. As MG offers multiple driving modes, the power delivery alters, and the difference was quite evident during my drive on the expressway.

Mostly, I drove the SUV either in the Eco or in the Sports mode, and the difference in the driving experience was evident. In the Eco mode, the power was smooth, and the upshifts happened under 2,000 RPM, and I did not even notice any upshifts happening. In no time, on a long highway stretch, I was cruising at 100-120 km/h speeds, and I enjoyed it.

As soon as I engaged the Sports mode, the difference in the engine was suddenly evident, as the SUV instantly downshifted to give more power. On hard acceleration, it held the gear to the red line and then upshifted. The low-end lag is well contained, and the mid-range is the juice point. However, I feel the power delivery is ample enough to pull a 3-tonne SUV.

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Moreover, there are paddle shifters as well, which made my short drive more engaging, and I was able to keep the SUV in manual mode for a long duration. It helped me to gain better fuel efficiency while I was cruising at 70-80 km/h speed in eight gear.

Off-Road Capabilities

Since MG positions the Majestor in the D+ segment SUV, the automaker says it is a capable off-roader as well. Regarding off-road software and technology, the Majestor is equipped with front, rear, and centre differential lock, multiple off-road modes, 2H, 4H, and Auto, and there is a CCO button as well.

While I took it on hardcore off-road tests, I tested the Majestor to its true potential. I engaged the Auto button, wherein the SUV automatically decides whether to engage 4H or 4L, and I engaged the Centre Diff Lock as well. It helped in transferring the torque from the engine in a 50:50 ratio to the front and rear axles, and the majority of the obstacles were cleared with that. To my surprise, I had done off-roading in Gloster as well, but this time I feel it is a big step-up compared to it.

While going on a steep incline, I engaged the CCO (Crawl Control Operation), and I released my foot from the throttle and brake. It climbed the obstacle effortlessly, and since it has a 27-degree approach angle, it did not touch the lower bumper while climbing. Additionally, MG offers a metal plate on the lower portion of the bumper to protect the core components.

As soon as I pressed the brakes, I overtook the control of the CCO, and while going down, the Hill Decent Control instantly kicks in and with minimal steering inputs, I came out easily. As it has a 23.5-degree departure angle, the rear portion of the SUV did not scrape with the ground while I was going down. So overall, I enjoyed going off-road on a fixed track, and I am eagerly waiting to take it to much more difficult terrain.

Design

The design of the MG Majestor is bold and sporty. It is big in dimensions, and looks huge from the outside. The front has a bold gloss black grille, and the ADAS radar is neatly integrated into it. It has a dual LED DRL setup and vertical projector LED headlamps.

While I got a chance to drive it in the dark, the throw of the headlights was pretty good, and I did not feel that the throw was less. However, while going off-road, you might get more light, but on highways and in city driving conditions, the throw of the headlights was enough. Overall, the front profile is intimidating, and it has good road presence as well.

Coming to the side, it is 5046mm long, 2016mm wide, and has a height of around 1870mm. Compared to luxury SUVs, it is longer than the Land Rover Defender and wider than the Toyota LC300. Since it has a ground clearance of more than 215mm, MG offers a dedicated side foot step for easier ingress and egress. Regarding tyres, the Majestor runs on 19-inch alloy wheels, and the design is continued from the Gloster. I feel the design could have been slightly better, and it comes equipped with H/T tyres from the factory. However, you can opt for A/T tyres as an accessory.

At the rear, the design is simple and has a clean profile. The LED tail lamps have a clean look, and the indicators get a dynamic swipe function. It has a large window area and includes a rear wiper and a washer. Instead of giving the MG logo, the automaker has written ‘Morris Garages’ boldly, and I feel it dulls the overall character. Lower down, ‘Majestor’ is badging is done in a similar way to ‘Gloster’.

The bumper is finished in plastic and has dual-function exhaust tips finished in chrome. Talking about boot space, it has a good amount of storage space on offer. The powered tailgate can be operated via the key, or you have a button to press under the rear-tail lamp, or you can wave your leg gesture underneath the car. I feel the leg gesture is quite helpful when your hands are occupied with luggage.

Features

The MG Majestor is a feature-rich offering in its segment. Some of the key features on offer are a panoramic sunroof, a 12.3-inch infotainment system, 10 driving modes, off-road modes, ambient lighting, connected car technology, voice commands, and more.

While I had a brief time with the car, I used some of the key features on offer. For starters, I used the 360-degree parking camera, multiple driving modes, panoramic sunroof, three-zone climate control, and others.

One thing to highlight is that MG has worked on the camera quality, and it is much improved compared to the Gloster. The 12.3-inch infotainment screen is slick to use and does not glare under direct sunlight. It gets controls for multiple settings, like climate control, off-road modes, steering modes, and others.

Since I am an intense music lover, the 12-speaker JBL audio setup offers good music output, and during my short highway drive, I really enjoyed listening to music.

Since you have a dark tone for the upholstery, the panoramic sunroof brings in a lot of light, and at night, the 64 colour ambient lighting subtly elevates the overall cabin experience.

MG has now ditched the semi-digital instrument cluster offered in the Gloster and now comes with a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster as well. The display is sharp and crisp and is very easy to read. There is a plethora of information available about your off-road diff locks, ADAS markings, and more. Moreover, MG has subtly offered a Simple view mode for the instrument cluster as well; however, I kept it in the regular mode itself.

If you are planning for the Majestor, then I would like to highlight the ADAS features in it. MG offers multiple Level-2 ADAS features like the adaptive cruise control, adaptive lane keep assist, blind spot detection, high-beam assist, rear-cross traffic alert, and others. While I was cruising on the expressway, I used the adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, and lane departure warning.

The adaptive cruise control worked effortlessly, and to activate that, there is a separate button on the steering wheel. Moreover, the lane keep assist is also engaged via that button by long pressing it. However, the blind spot detection is turned on by default, and I feel this feature should be given in budget cars as well.

For rear seat passengers, MG has given a nice thought to pamper them as well. For starters, there is a proper 150W power socket so that you can charge your laptop or, when you are at a campsite, run your appliances. Moreover, to keep your device charged, there are USB Type-A and Type-C ports, and these are neatly hidden in the centre console.

Ride Handling & Comfort

The suspensions of the MG Majestor are well-calibrated, and I feel they are slightly on the softer side. While I was going off-road, as the suspension tuning is done slightly on the softer side, it kept me comfortable, and the SUV did not jolt on different obstacles, and there was not much evident on the inside. Since I have also driven other competitive SUVs in the market, the suspension offered in the Majestor is slightly better, and I feel you do not have to get upgraded for intense off-road.

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When I took it on the main highway, my experience changed completely. Since I took it on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, the extremely smooth roads just elevated my overall cabin experience. 

The expansion joints did not filter inside, and the cushiony ride made me feel like I can munch miles without being tired. However, when I was cruising around 120km/h, the ride did become a bit bouncy, and it was pretty evident. However, in that situation as well, the SUV did maintain its line, and from the outside, the bounce view was something different.

Talking about the steering wheel, since it has an electronic power steering wheel, it is very light and easy to manuever. It is the same D-Cut steering wheel, and its design is carried forward from the Gloster, and it gives a commanding feel to hold. While I was doing off-road, it gave me good grip levels, and I appreciate the feedback on offer. 

However, when I was on the expressway, I felt it could have got slightly more engaging feel and feedback to make the drive more fun and engaging. Additionally, to give you a more spirited driving feel, MG offers three steering modes as well, named ‘EPS’ (Electronic Power Steering), wherein you can select from Comfort, Sports or Normal. Most of the time, I kept it in the Comfort mode, and I enjoyed driving in that.

What’s Bad

Features

Although MG has offered plenty of convenience and safety features in the Majestor, the automaker has removed multiple physical controls and positioned them into the 12.3-inch infotainment screen to access them. For example, while driving at night, when I wanted to adjust the headlight levelling, and I was searching for the physical control, I could not find it. I thought MG had omitted that feature. But later, I discovered that the settings for headlight levelling adjustment are integrated in the infotainment screen.

Apart from it, there were a few other controls, like the drive modes selector, panoramic sunroof controls, and other operations that were to be controlled via the infotainment screen, which I feel is quite cumbersome to operate while I was driving. Sometimes, it even required my attention, which distracted me from driving.

However, since it comes with 64 colours for the ambient lighting, I feel the ambient lighting could have been more prominent. The voice commands also worked effortlessly; however, they sometimes became a bit intrusive.

Fuel Efficiency

Since the MG Majestor is equipped with a 2.0L twin-turbo diesel engine and weighs almost 3 tonnes, I would not expect high fuel efficiency numbers.

 However, since I did a fuel efficiency test as well, using the traditional tank-to-tank method, after driving around 100 km, I got a real-world fuel efficiency of 8.7km/L. Moreover, I was not even expecting much, but I hope the 4X2 drivetrain option would return slightly more numbers.

Braking

The MG Majestor comes with all four disc brakes, ABS with EBD, traction control, electronic stability program, and other safety features. While I was going off-road, I found the brakes to be sure-footed, as it is a slow-paced event. However, when I was driving on the expressway and in the city, I felt the brakes could have a slightly sharper bite for greater confidence. 

The SUV did stop, and there was a nose-dive, but when I tried emergency braking in a controlled environment, I expect the automaker to upgrade the brakes in its future updates.

Should You Buy It?

Since the MG Majestor is priced at ₹49.99 lakh (expected ex-showroom), it comes with great off-road capability, a muscular design, and is loaded with safety and convenience features. It is one of the huge SUVs that has a good road presence compared to the Toyota Fortuner. Though the softer suspension and extensive use of electronics and screen-heavy controls can be a bit of an issue, it is a good-looking, sporty, and performance-oriented SUV at the price point.