MOTORS REVIEW: Ssangyong Korando

When Ssangyong wheeled out the glaring eyes and accusing pointy finger of Vinnie Jones to insist car buyers take notice of its new Korando it seemed obvious that it had something worth communicating.

Fluffy pink slippers look to detract from the Lock Stock star’s aggression, though, and he saves his key message for the final line “it’s big, it’s fancy and it’s got a weird name, but for £19,995, who’s bothered?”

Plenty will be.

At 4.45m in length and 1.87m wide, the Korando offers acres of interior space, impressive rear legroom and a boot of 551-litres.

A narrow, broad grille and headlight clusters are central to a stance that looks planted and purposeful on what is the most premium-looking and best-resolved SsangYong design seen to date.

There are four trim levels available (ELX, Ventura, Pioneer and Ultimate) with 17-inch alloys, cruise control, hill descent control, lane departure and lane keeping assist systems, traffic sign recognition, automated emergency braking and a DAB radio with Bluetooth connectivity all as standard on the base trim.

As tested here, in range-topping Ultimate guise, with the 163PS 1.5-litre GDITurbo petrol engine, two-wheel-drive and the six-speed automatic gearbox option, the price stands at £27,995, still putting you only in a smaller mid-range Seat Ateca or Peugeot 3008 alternative.

Factor in the seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty and it looks even more compelling.

Just as the name suggests, the Ultimate trim packs all but the kitchen sink.

What SsangYong refers to as its “Blaze cockpit” features 3D lighting strips within the dashboards and door cards which can be switched through 34 possible colours to create a distinctive ambient effect at night, a theme extended into the graphics of a 10.25-inch TFT instrument cluster.

As in modern Audis and BMWs the cluster can be tailored to the driver’s requirements, with the ability to prioritise the TomTom sat-nav systems display in full colour lid and even a heated leather steering wheel…

Alright, the trim quality isn’t a match for that seen on Volkswagen or Peugeot products, but the levels of kit offer are more than fair compensation for the money.

By no means does the Korando feel cheap or of poor quality.

While SsangYong is yet to feature WLTP-tested fuel economy figures for the 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine in the brochure and online material I saw, the trip computer indicated 33mpg at a steady motorway cruise, dipping into the high-20s around town.

With that in mind, the affordability of the Korando might be brought into question for customers planning on piling the miles onto their Korean SUV.

The 1.6-litre diesel engine option commands a price premium but serves up a 46.3mpg fuel economy claim on the WLTP combined test cycle.

The brand says a 12-second dash to 62mph and 120mph top speed are possible from the petrol unit tested here and it felt good for the fairly modest claim, the engine proving remarkably quiet and refined.

Ssangyong’s six-speed automatic gearbox is, perhaps, the reason for the rather tardy acceleration claims of a vehicle that boasts more power than anything else for this price in the class.

Its changes are smooth and precise when steady progress is required (most of the time), but can feel a little protracted when you attempt to dial in more pace in a hurry.

That apart, the Korando rides well, albeit disguising its size a little less convincingly than some rivals which are — for better or worse — more car like in their approach to the modern SUV formula.

Ssangyong is sticking with its opinion that SUVs should be multi-functional machines, the Korando capable of towing a 1,500kg braked trailer in petrol form and 2,000kg with the diesel engine.

Creating more of a headache than Vinnie Jones with his car door slamming antics in Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Ssangyong’s latest range addition offers a very aggressive spec sheet for the money and serves up family-sized accommodation.

It could deliver more sleepless nights than the notorious “Crazy Gang” member than his leering advert appearance for those who felt they had settled on one of the sector’s more established players.