MG has a long and interesting history.

Morris Garages was founded in 1924 and rode the crest of the wave of the golden days of motoring with its open top British sports cars that epitomised an innocent age.

That continued in the post-war era and into the 1950s and 1960s with models like the MGA, MGB and Midget.

Then came the darker days of British Leyland, strikes and three-day weeks.

Quality dipped somewhat and hot hatches from the likes of VW in the late 1970s started to eat into sales.

There was a renaissance of sorts in the 1980s and 1990s, but they were but rebadged Rover models for the most part.

The early 2000s saw the last generation of the truly British MGs in the form of the ZR, ZS and ZT, some of which had some proper sporty credentials, before the infamous collapse of Rover consigned them to history.

But then came the Chinese, with SAIC Motor resurrecting the MG badge.

It’s gone down a different route, offering value as its selling point and, so far, steering clear of the traditional sports cars, with the MG3 hatch and the GS and ZS SUVs.

And it looks to be working – keep an eye out around Falmouth and Penryn in particular and you’ll see a good number of MGs on the road courtesy of Falmouth Garages.

The MG3 is now in its second generation, having first launched in 2012.

The big change to the latest version is that lovely front grille, which is far more befitting of the brand’s heritage and really brings the look of the car up.

Value is still key and there are three models.

Explore starts at just £9,495 and for that money you still get a USB connection, Bluetooth, hill hold and electric windows among the standard kit.

Spend a bit more ¬- £11,395 – and Excite spec adds air con, leather trim, alloys, parking sensors, an 8in colour touch screen system with Apple CarPlay, digital radio and more.

Top end Exclusive costs £12,795 and gives you sports seats, cruise control and a reversing camera on top of what you get already.

That’s a very decent kit list for the price of entry-level models on a lot of this car’s rivals.

Power comes from a 1.5 petrol with 106ps, which is good for 42 to the gallon.

It’s a willing unit that likes to work hard and it’s nippy enough for a little car like this. I managed pretty close to that claimed MPG figure, too.

The drive in general is responsive and comfortable. You can have some fun with it.

Interior quality is decent, too, with good rear space and a useful boot. The touch screen system has all of the functions you’d expect from pricier cars and works well.

The MG3 is a really tempting prospect in this crowded sector, offering excellent value and some alluring monthly deals, too.

If you want to stand out from the norm and be smug about your bank balance at the same time, the MG3 is well worth checking out.