SsangYong Korando 2019 Review – International

The new Korando raises eyebrows in a "wow, that's interesting" fashion, as opposed to a "Make it stop! It’s hurting my eyeballs" kind of way.

We’re not convinced the new Korando is a class-leader in any meaningful way but what our test of almost finished (80 per cent) pre-production vehicles demonstrated is that SsangYong is ready to play with the adults now.

No longer does the SsangYong Korando feel like an oddity, significantly closing the gap with family favourites like the Mazda CX-5 and Hyundai Tucson.

In total three model grades will be offered when 2019 Korando drops in August 2019. The top-spec will be AWD, most likely diesel-only and priced above $40,000, while there will be an entry-level front-drive manual model priced from around $28,000.

A six-speed automatic transmission from Japanese supplier Aisin will be the mainstay of the Korando fleet and it offered smooth shifts under normal conditions in this test.

Along with sharp drive-away pricing, SsangYong will back the Korando with solid aftersales support, including as a seven-year warranty and capped-price servicing.

But the SUV is more than just a Kia-chaser on paper. Indeed, convincing ride and handling, a perky new 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine and contemporary design inside and out are unlikely to give you post-purchase regret.

With an expected five-star ANCAP safety rating (all models will get autonomous emergency braking, lane keeping assist, high-beam headlight assist, seven airbags and driver attention alert), SsangYong justifiably has high hopes for the 2019 Korando SUV.

There will be seven colours to choose from, three alloy wheel sizes (17-, 18- and 19-inch) and three interior upholstery options: fabric, combination fabric and leather. The latter can be ordered in brown as well as black.

One of the drawcard features, expected on mid- and top-spec variants, is a luscious 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster with customisable settings to get the party started.

It's a gorgeous display and at the touch of a button on the steering wheel you can replace the speedo and rev counter with a giant map replicating the (also pretty) 8.0-inch central infotainment touch- screen. Only the Volkswagen Tiguan and Skoda Karoq offer something similar in this segment now.

The chunky sports steering wheel on up-spec models has intuitive buttons on its face and SsangYong has done a good job fitting comfortable under-thigh seat cushioning for the seats (front and rear).

Extendable sun-visors ideal for blocking late-arvo sun through the side window are a neat touch too.

Top-shelf model grades will get schmick heated and cooled front seats, radar cruise control and the piece de resistance, 3D Infinity LED mood lighting in the doors and dash.

I kid you not, these gizmos have to be seen to be believed and are certainly a class first, if not an industry first. I'm still trying to figure out how the semi-holographic endlessness works. It's very tricky.

That said, the SsangYong Korando is also missing a few key ingredients.

For example, there's no wireless phone charger and nor are there any rear-seat air-vents. There's only one USB up front and none in the back – but there is a 220V socket which almost makes up for it. Only top-spec models get a full-size spare as well; the rest make do with space-savers.

Testing kicked off at the 3.2km Pocheon Raceway, a new closed circuit about 90 minutes north of Seoul and within spitting distance of the demilitarised zone, or DMZ. The menu comprised the two engine types destined for Australia in August and neither left a sour aftertaste in our mouth.

Firstly, an updated version of the brand's 1.6-litre turbo-diesel (100kW/324Nm) and secondly an all-new 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine (120kW/280Nm).

The latter is expected to be the more popular choice and I can see why. It's a belter.

The new 1.5-litre four-pot (120kW/280Nm) showed a very clean pair of heels and was a more engaging engine than the diesel thanks to its eagerness to rev and overall pace. Not only will it be more affordable than the diesel, it has far better throttle response and delivers more usable torque across the rev range.

With 280Nm on tap between 1500 and 4500rpm, it out-powers Hyundai and Kia's 1.6-litre turbo-petrol (265Nm) engines and on the road and track it felt swift. You may even win a few traffic light duels with this little tacker.

It's the engine's pace that really made it entertaining, accelerating out of corners with enthusiasm and easily pushing to 140km/h on one of the straights.

Indeed, the engine felt bigger and stronger than a tiny 1497cc unit and was happy to rev out to 5500rpm without getting raspy or breathless.

There are three engine modes – normal, eco, sport – and on the highway the engine ticked over at 1900rpm at 100km/h in sixth gear and was impressively quiet.

If the petrol engine is dynamic, then the turbo-diesel is diligent.

It's not a particularly potent turbo-mill and being able to push the engine to its limit on the racetrack highlighted its lack of endeavor above 3000rpm.

The diesel performed better on the road in regular conditions, loping along at 1800rpm at 100km/h on the freeway, where it can be very fuel-efficient.

The six-speed automatic transmission (supplied by Japan-based Aisin) pairs well with both engines, affording relatively prompt and smooth shifts.

In 'manual' mode the gearbox was hesitant to downshift and wouldn't hold gears when revving out, instead automatically selecting the next gear. Hardly manual if you ask me.

Although the new 1.6-litre turbo-diesel engine's power and torque outputs are way down on its predecessor's lusty 2.0-litre diesel (132kW/400Nm), the new Korando is lighter by around 100kg, which means it can still hustle along when required.

It also has a 2000kg (braked) towing capacity, which gives it a point of difference in the medium SUV segment.

The most impressive aspect of the diesel were its NVH levels. It could be one of the quietest Asian turbo-diesel engines in its class, inside and out. I actually mistook the diesel for the petrol engine at one stage when the vehicles were idling in pit lane.

Ride comfort was impressive too, the Korando negotiating small amplitude bumps and patchwork road repairs easily, the multi-link suspension soaking up pretty much everything that came its way. Which was quite a lot, because we got lost at one stage and ended up crisscrossing our way through some rather ramshackle villages near the North Korean border.

The SUV had no issues dealing with seriously chopped up, broken roads and a couple of times I intentionally slammed it into some deep potholes to test its response. You know what? It managed the big hits surprisingly well.

Perhaps the only quibble with ride and handling was that it took a little while to settle when darting over a handful of speed humps briskly.

On the closed circuit the cars handled as expected. There was reasonable body roll when bombing though corners at full whack and the vehicles understeered heavily when provoked.

At the limit of adhesion, the steering was as lifeless as a zombie accountant, but then no one in their right mind would take one of these to a racetrack and drive them in this manner.

The Korando’s dynamics we far more impressive in the real world, where the Korean SUV offered enough body control to keep you confident in corners and, together with a tight turning circle and ultra-light steering, it was a good urban explorer.

It should also be noted that our pre-production test cars had Korean-spec suspension, where Aussie cars will get a European suspension tune. There may even be Aussie suspension calibrations down the track, a la Kia and Hyundai protocol.

We had a brief stint with the Korando on some dirt but it was too mild and short-lived to make a definitive call on its off-road prowess. All-wheel drive models feature a locking centre diff but it wasn't necessary on this test.

The adaptive cruise control makes use of radar and camera sensors to great effect and the lane-keeping assistant was very proactive, capable of staying not only in its lane car on highway but also reliably guiding it round gentle corners.

We saw what SsangYong is capable of doing in design terms with the new Rexton large SUV and the new Korando takes things up a notch with a more fashionable fit-out.

The model grades on test were top-spec, so there was leather all the way, plus an electrically-adjustable driver's seat, dual-zone climate control, the big 10.2-inch virtual cockpit and a flush-fit 8.0-inch infotainment touch-screen.

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility are part of the Korando package so you can stream, map and talk-to-text.

Seat comfort was very good overall, the head restraints were nice and soft and, although the tilt and reach adjustment for the steering wheel isn't amazing, finding an ideal seating position was easier than predicting the outcome of the next Australian federal election.

The gear shifter has an upmarket look, taking inspiration from the trendy unit in the Peugeot 3008. In fact, there are a lot of similarities with the interior of this car and the Peugeot 3008. That's a good thing, given how lavish the Pug's cockpit is.

The heating and cooling rotary dials have a quality feel to them – in fact, the touchy-feely haptics are pretty good across the board – and most controls are sensibly laid out.

As mentioned earlier, the 3D Infinity mood lighting embedded in the doors and dashboard is a party trick almost as good as that lady who flips her eyelids inside out and it has 34 colours for good measure.

Measuring 4450mm long, the Korando is slightly longer than the Nissan QASHQAI (4394mm) but shorter than the Hyundai Tucson (4480mm) and Mazda CX-5 (4550mm).

However, it's a stocky unit and at 1870mm wide and has more width than many of its rivals. What this means for interior space is that front-seat occupants get plenty of elbow room. There's also a sliding arm rest up front with a reasonably-sized storage cubby underneath.

Rear-seat space is pretty good -- far better than the Nissan QASHQAI I hopped into a day after the test. Leg room for all occupants is more than adequate for tall-ish types (six-foot) and you'd get four adults in this thing, no drama. Five adults? It might be a squeeze-a-thon.

A powered tailgate, reversing camera, auto defogger and electronic park brake with auto-hold simplify many common driving operations and, like Skoda, SsangYong wants to be known for its thoughtful storage solutions too.

The Korando has a good-sized glovebox to kick things off, which can swallow a 10.5-inch iPad Pro tablet, while the door pockets hold 1.5-litre and 700ml bottles. The boot is claimed to offer 551 litres, which compares favourably with the Hyundai Tucson (488L) and Mazda CX-5 (442L).

Cargo space certainly feels copious when rummaging around and I liked the hidden underfloor compartment. The floor panels double as a pair of rigid dividers that stopped laptop bags rolling around. There are a couple of shopping bag hooks and a 12V socket in the boot.

The boot can swallow up to four golf bags and expands to 1248 litres with the rear seats folded down.

The overall ambience, fit-out, look and feel in the interior is rather impressive. There's nothing particularly shoddy about the cabin, although the lack of USB ports and no wireless phone charger (even as an option) is a shame.

Despite the SUVs on test being pilot prototypes that were still under development and using the Korean-market suspension tune, the take-out from this test is that SsangYong has done a very good job with its limited resources.

During our pre-production drive of the impressive new SsangYong Korando, we passed a phalanx of K2 Black Panther tanks.

If I had a dollar for every South Korean army tank that hogged the right lane of the highway on the outskirts of Seoul, I'd have enough cash to buy a jumbo tub of fermented chili cabbage…

Anyway, the tanks are built by Hyundai Rotem but the South Korean army favours rugged SsangYong vehicles for operational duties.

It got me thinking: SsangYong's brand reputation for reliability is not lost on big government fleet buyers but in the passenger car world you need (a lot) more than unbreakable machines with solid off-road chops to increase sales.

In order to appeal to an increasingly savvy and highly-informed customer, car companies must deliver an appealing design, cutting-edge technology, high-levels of safety, strong engine performance, solid efficiency and plenty of interior space.

The South Korean military is unlikely to be retro-fitting Korandos with high-calibre roof-mounted anti-aircraft guns (it would ruin the SUV's balanced handling) but after putting the new-generation medium SUV through its paces near the North Korean border, it's manifestly clear the company's products are improving.

The SsangYong brand was relaunched in Australia in late 2018 with the Tivoli, Rexton and Musso vehicles, but I reckon this is the car it should have launched with.

If early impressions are anything to go by, the new Korando could be a game-changing vehicle for SsangYong -- not just in Australia but globally.

How much does the 2019 SsangYong Korando cost?
Price: $28,000-$45,000 (estimated)
Engine: 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 120kW/280Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: TBC
CO2: TBC
Safety rating: TBC