The honest workhorse

MG TRQ-L Review

- By CHRIS VAN HOVEN

In a market full of "lifestyle" trucks making big promises about rugged luxury, the MG TRQ-L feels surprisingly honest. It doesn't try to reinvent the wheel.

It looks like a pickup, drives like one, and feels built for people who actually need to move things. I had the keys for a few days, and honestly, that simplicity grew on me. It's not trying to be a family hauler or a status symbol. It's a tool. And sometimes, that's exactly what you need.

At the heart of the MG TRQ-L is a 2.0-liter turbo diesel. On paper, the numbers are standard, but on the road, it delivers usable power where it counts. There's strong low-end torque, so crawling through traffic or pulling away from a stop never feels strained. Is there turbo lag? Sure, a little bit at low RPM. But it settles quickly and doesn't really get in the way. Overtaking is easy enough once you're moving.

I was actually impressed by the transmission. The variant I drove had the eight-speed automatic, and it was smooth and predictable. It shifted cleanly throughout the rev range without those annoying little delays you sometimes feel in other trucks in the market today.