Ssangyong Korando long-term test review: report 6

The new Ssangyong Korando is aiming to offer unbeatable value while still excelling at the family SUV brief. We have ours for four months to see if it has the ingredients to succeed...

Ssangyong Korando rear

The car Ssangyong Korando 1.6D Ultimate 

Run by Max Edleston, junior photographer

Why it’s here The new Korando aims to take on the family SUV class leaders with improvements to its engines, suspension and interior quality. Over the next four months, we'll find out if it can do just that

Needs to Be spacious enough to carry all of my photography gear plus any passengers, comfortable enough to travel all over the country in and connected enough to function as a mobile office


Mileage 9900 List price £31,995 Target Price £31,536 Price as tested £31,995 Test economy 43.1mpg Official economy 35.3mpg


17 February 2020 – Exciting economy

Let’s talk about fuel economy. In my Ssangyong Korando, filling up the tank costs around £60 each time, giving me a range of 410 miles. As someone who spends most of their time criss-crossing the UK’s motorway network between shoots, that range is a big bonus. And coupled with the fact that I can regularly achieve upwards of 40mpg on the motorway, I’m finding I can go for quite a while between fill-ups.

Ssangyong Korando instrument cluster

My Korando was tested under the newer, stricter WLTP economy tests, so the combined figure quoted in the sales brochure is 35.3mpg, with 40.1mpg possible on the motorway. With those figures in mind, then, my best test economy so far of 43.1mpg is especially good. And that’s not achieved by being particularly green-minded, either, but rather by driving in what I would consider to be a normal fashion. All of this is even more impressive when you remember that my Korando is a hefty family SUV with plenty of space and kit.

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