MG RX8 review: a genuine seven-seat, part-time-4WD alternative to a Fortuner, for less
3.5/5MotorsSouq Editorial Team
The RX8 is the honest budget alternative to a Fortuner or Pajero Sport for a Bahraini family that needs seven real seats and does not need a diesel or a body-on-frame off-road pedigree: it is quicker, better equipped, and backed by a longer warranty for less money. Choose the all-wheel-drive grade if you cross into the Saudi desert regularly, keep the servicing current at an authorised centre, and go in accepting that resale will not match the Toyota it is undercutting.
Pros
- Genuinely usable seven-seat cabin, larger overall than a Fortuner
- 220 hp turbo four is noticeably quicker off the line than rival diesels and NA V6s
- Six-year/200,000 km warranty roughly doubles Toyota's or Mitsubishi's cover
- AWD grade adds real sand and gravel capability for Saudi desert trips
- 202 mm ground clearance shrugs off Bahrain's speed bumps
Cons
- Realistic fuel consumption of 10 L/100 km or more with three rows loaded and AC working
- Shorter proven-durability record than the Fortuner or Pajero Sport it undercuts
- Monocoque crossover platform, not a true ladder-frame off-roader
- Third-row boot space of 217 litres is tight with all seats in use
The RX8 launched across the Middle East in September 2019 as MG's first seven-seat SUV in the region, and the formula has held up: a 2.0-litre turbo four making around 220 hp and 360 Nm through a 6-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive on the entry grade and all-wheel drive further up, in a body that is genuinely large — 4,923 mm long, taller and wider than a Fortuner.
Space, power and how it feels on the road
Seven adults fit with usable third-row space rather than the token perches some rivals offer, and 202 mm of ground clearance keeps the underbody clear of Bahrain's speed bumps without needing to be driven around them. The turbo four is noticeably stronger off the line than the naturally aspirated V6 in a base Pajero Sport or the diesel four in a Fortuner, which matters more in daily Manama traffic than it does on the causeway.
What that extra performance costs is thirst — a realistic 10 L/100 km or more in mixed use once the air conditioning is fighting a Bahraini summer for three rows of occupants — and the AWD grade adds genuine sand and gravel capability for family trips into Saudi, though this is a monocoque crossover rather than a true ladder-frame off-roader.
Ownership in Bahrain
The six-year, 200,000 km warranty is the strongest argument in the RX8's favour against a Fortuner or Pajero Sport, both of which offer roughly half that cover here. The trade-off is a shorter track record: Toyota and Mitsubishi have decades of proven Gulf durability behind their seven-seat SUVs, and the RX8's turbo-and-AWD drivetrain has not yet had the same length of time to prove itself on Bahrain's roads.