2007 SsangYong Actyon A200S 2.0 XDI turbo diesel

Summary:

Love it or hate it?

Faults:

Nothing at the moment.

General Comments:

Background:-

OK, here's the story, I was drawn to the look when I saw it from a magazine, and went for a test drive and bought one.

Looks:-

Many would say it is unbelievably ugly, but I am quite happy to say that I like the look of the car; it looks apart from any ordinary cars you see on the road, and the front looks great.

Interior:-

The dealer here offered leather upgrades for HKD4000 (app. USD500), which is a great deal given the quality, though the fit and finish is obviously not the best. Interestingly, it reminds me of the RX450h? However I must say the rear is, though tall, the leg room is not fantastic - expect just a tiny bit more than a BMW 3 series.

Performance:-

It's got enough power, and being a diesel it has great low down torque - though it does suffer from turbo lag on first gear under hard acceleration (found out on the test drive). But that didn't deter me, because being a pickup truck you don't expect it to outrun a Ferrari - though I feel that it is on par with my Range Rover 4.0.

Gearbox:-

A tad old fashioned - being 4 gears and no down slope locking like my BMW 3. I imagine that many would prefer a 5 or even 6 speeder, but is it necessary to have such a high number of gears? As long as the car has good torque band, even a 3 speed gear box is enough. This is the point I don't really understand; why people boast about 5 or 6 speed gearbox - it might be smoother, but definitely not necessary on this car, but may be so in a 1.5 litre car?

Would I recommend one?

Two way answer...

Yes, if you want a nice car with good fuel economy, as well as owning one or two more cars, since it is not practical enough to be a day to day car (too big!!)

No, you can buy a Honda Stepwagon for that money, but do you really like that ugly Stepwagon or a cliche and boring Rav-4???

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 26th July, 2007

8th Aug 2007, 06:36

The nasty interior makes me sick. All you can see is a bunch of flimsy plastic inside. The 2.0 XDi is noisy!

11th Aug 2007, 13:57

First of all, for a diesel engine, it is exceptionally quiet, though it may not have the fantastic sound of the 3.6 TDV8 of the Range Rover, but it certainly is far from noisy.

Secondly, the interior may be nasty, but with the leather upgrade it is certainly a lot better than many cars of its class.