Ssangyong is slowly but surely stretching its legs in the UK car market, with its Tivoli and Korando models becoming ‘known names’ amongst car buyers – some car buyers, anyway.

The Rexton, sometimes confusingly referred to as the Rexton W Estate, is the South Korean brand’s four-wheel drive SUV, tackling the likes of the Hyundai Santa Fe, Kia Sorento and Mitsubishi Outlander.

Four-wheel drive SUVs are not what they used to be though. Look up the term ‘4WD SUV’ in a new car catalogue and the majority of models will be less gas-guzzling and instead, punchy, frugal and stylish.

So where does the Ssangyong Rexton sit in that catalogue?

Performance

The only engine on offer is a 176bhp 2.2-litre diesel, which is mated to a Mercedes-Benz E-Tronic automatic gearbox. This really is an engine that performs better – in terms of performance – at higher speeds.

Get up to 60 or 70mph on the motorway and the Rexton cruises along effortlessly, with the gearbox adequately accounting for changes in speed and the need to overtake. Its versatility ends there however.

At lower speeds the Rexton lacks attentiveness, which is to say its engine isn’t as responsive as we’d like and the gearbox struggles to handle sudden inputs or changes in speed. Its 400Nm of torque does come in handy for towing and when lugging its weight up slopes however.

Ride and Handling

Start throwing some corners and pot holes its way however and the Rexton has lots of body roll and a slightly jittery ride

Again, the Rexton feels most at home on the motorway. Its steering has decent weight to it, it’s suspension is supple and its raised ride height gives you extra confidence amongst traffic. Start throwing some corners and pot holes its way however and the Rexton has lots of body roll and a slightly jittery ride, accompanied by a hefty amount of engine and wind noise. Many large four-wheel drive SUVs have grown up enough for these factors not to be a problem, but the Rexton still very much feels like a utilitarian SUV, despite some of its luxury features. It’s off-roading capability is impressive though. The Rexton can handle itself, with a selectable 4x4 system offering the likes of a no-nonsense, torque-distributing low-range mode. The Rexton also has an impressive braked towing weight of three tones.

Interior and Equipment

The Rexton is based on Mercedes-Benz underpinnings, the M-Class to be exact.

The Rexton’s interior is a bit of a mixed bag. Initial impressions when jumping in the driver’s seat are that it’s two-tone leather upholstery, huge airy cabin and large centre console give off a sense of up-market luxury. But as you spend more time in the cabin and play around with some of its features, you start to learn how outdated, and sometimes awkward, its interior is. Before we start to pick fault though, the Rexton does have a lot of plush kit on offer, like DAB radio, sat-nav, parking sensors, cruise control, automatic air-con and adjustable heated memory seats. The seating position is fine, although the steering column doesn’t adjust for reach, but the steering-wheel mounted buttons require excessive clicking to do anything, there is no mpg readout and the storage slits in the doors can be difficult to use. The most frustrating thing is the infotainment system. This is the brain behind the media and Bluetooth functions, but it is incredibly difficult to use due to its numerous screens and counter intuitive set-up procedure with mobile devices. Thankfully its practicality is its saving grace, with tons of space in the back seats, a centre arm rest – which combines nicely with door-mounted arm rests, under seat storage and reclining seats. It’s worth noting that the flagship ELX model we tested only comes with five seats, whereas other Rexton models come with seven seats as standard. The boot offers a great rectangular loading surface of over 1,300 litres, ideal for large amounts of luggage or camping gear. Our model also had a removable rubber slip matt which stopped our camera kit from rolling around. The rear seats fold down, rather rapidly, for extra flexibility, but they do leave a large lip. However, you can flip the seats forward to get rid of that lip and free up more space – although this can be a fiddly process.

Cost

Price wise, the Rexton can be yours for £23,000, which undercuts its key rivals.

It’s hard to say exactly what mpg we were getting, due to the lack of an mpg readout, but its claimed average of 38mpg seems a little unrealistic. Judging by the fuel it used and our mileage, we’d say 25-30mpg is closer to the mark. Its CO2 is a little high to at 194g/km – something like the Kia Sorento 2.2-litre diesel sits around the 170g/km mark. Price wise, the Rexton can be yours for £23,000, which undercuts its key rivals. But if you want to capitalise on any of the Rexton’s luxury feel – with the range-topping ELX model, then you can pay upwards of £29,000.

Our Verdict

The Rexton feels a little behind the curve when compared to its rivals. It’s not necessarily a bad car in isolation, there are just other models that do what the Rexton can do and feel more modern and refined. Unfortunately, having interior flare, practicality and off-roading capability aren’t enough to draw 4WD SUV buyers in anymore, because with players including the Santa Fe, Sorento and Outlander, the SUV market is ultra-competitive.