MG S5 EV will be exported to South America from EPMB’s Melaka plant – LHD units heading there soon

The MG S5 EV will be exported to South America from Malaysia. The electric SUV by SAIC Motor is being assembled at EPMB’s Pegoh plant in Melaka, and the CKD roll-off happened in March this year.

At the roll-off ceremony, SAIC Motor Malaysia said that MG S5 EV production at the contract manufacturing hub for Chinese OEMs is expected to be between 120 and 180 units per month, with an estimated annual output of around 1,500 to 2,000 units in 2026. Then, the company said that it was considering left-hand-drive markets for the EV.

Now, we know that the destination for the Melaka-assembled LHD S5 EV is South America, and that exports to the continent will start soon. This was revealed by SAIC Motor Malaysia MD Emory Qi at an event celebrating the brand’s second anniversary in Malaysia yesterday night.

Launched last month, the CKD MG S5 EV has better specs than the CBU version that was launched in May 2025. For one, there’s extra power and torque – with 205 PS (151 kW) and 350 Nm of torque, the CKD S5 has 35 PS and 100 Nm more than before (was 170 PS/250 Nm). Power is sent to the rear wheels.

The S5 supports DC charging of up to 150 kW, which will juice the 62 kWh LFP battery (by CATL) from 10% to 80% SoC in around 26 minutes. While the battery size and type is unchanged, WLTP range is up – from 430 km to 446 km – due to motor-related improvements. The battery has an eight-year or 180,000 km warranty, on top of a separate eight-year or 160,000 km warranty for the motor control unit. The vehicle warranty is seven years or 150,000 km.

The range-topping Lux variant is the only CKD model offered for now (no more base Com) and it gets new features such as full leatherette seats (was a fabric-leather combo) plus ventilated (new) and powered front seats (front passenger was manual). Safety is complete, with MG’s ADAS ‘2.5’ pack that includes traffic jam assist and intelligent cruise control. The S5 is five-star rated by both Euro NCAP and ASEAN NCAP.

Smaller in size but better to drive than the Proton eMas 7, the MG S5 EV is priced at RM117,528 on-the-road without insurance. Full specs and pics here.

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