Estate 2.0 ELX4 Auto 5dr SUV

Don't believe the UK reviews, fantastic car!

The Korando has a lot of plus points, which you don't necessarily appreciate until you try one. If you read only the UK motoring press reviews you'd think it was an awful bit of kit. Well it's not, it's a tremendous car!

It has huge space inside, it's beautifully designed outside, it's well screwed together and has a high quality interior in every area that matters. It also has little smart touches that I hadn't expected but that make it a little easier to use here and there, such as a fully flat floor for the middle rear seat and an area to store the luggage cover under the boot floor when using the full space with the rear seats down. A lot of thought has gone into how people will use the car. It also feels like it'll run and run and run with proper maintenance and regular servicing.

There are things that take a little getting used to. Firstly, the diesel engine IS noisy. Honestly, it is. That said, it's nowhere near as bad as the reviewers say it is. Like any car it's all in how you drive it and this engine / gearbox combination likes a relaxed style. Once up to speed, it's not much different from a 2 litre diesel BMW. Hard acceleration means noise, but then if you are looking to floor the throttle all the time why would you look at an SUV at all?

That said, the engine is also very powerful, and reasonably economical. I vary on a tank between 30 on almost all short runs and 39 on mixed, majority motorway (measuring fuel filled and mileage). For a near 2 tonne SUV with 4 wheel drive I'm quite happy with that. The autobox is OK and very smooth, but unusually geared around 50mph which takes a bit of getting used to (revs drop a little more than you might expect during change up at 50mph or so). Sweet spot for economy is about 55mph, which you need to consider to make the most of the 57 litre fuel tank on longer runs. Bigger fuel tank please SsangYong!

The other main criticism levied at the car is the steering. It could be better (this is no Ferrari), but to say it's totally numb is a gross overstatement. It's perfectly adequate and works well enough on and off road, but this is an area they can improve on in future no doubt.

This is the first car I have owned that I am proud to be in, which is strange as it's a budget brand! No-one knows what it is, but everyone loves it when they see it and several people have gone to the dealer for test drives since seeing mine.

Thoroughly recommended, trust the owner reviews. The UK press don't seem to like the Korando much but their owners rate them very highly, and for good reason.

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