Ssangyong 3 - Turismo 2.2 Litre ELX 4x4 Auto - The Titanic of MPV's, but there's no sinking feeling here.

One of the best kept secrets of the Ssangyong range is the Turismo, the basis of this car harks back to 2004 and the launch of the Rodius, a very unsightly car, and that's being kind, it was far from the prettiest car on the roads, and you will rarely see one these days, but it progressed and was updated and upgraded and in 2013 the car gained its biggest and best face lift.

To say that this car is enormous is an understatement, it seats seven very comfortably in the leather seats, and you still have room for luggage, shopping of a small dog, the outside of the car has been given various "slashes", lines and creases to break up the mass of metal, and to a degree this has succeeded, but the detailing around the rear wheel arch still needs something.

On the inside, however, this where there are some issues, overall it's very good, plenty of space, oodles of headroom, storage and legroom is also great, but because the car is so big, the dash board is also on the large side, and that means masses of hard scratchy plastics, which is a shame, if they managed to have, even the top section, in soft rubbery plastics, in a contrasting colour, that would make a mass of difference.

But one thing that can not be forgiven is the very old style warning section in front of the driver, the main dials are situated in the centre of the dash, rather than directly in front of the driver, instead, you get a window that has light after light after light, of warning indicators and gear box numbers, they are square and visible, unlike 99% of all new cars that have a black display, with unseen indicators that only appear when necessary, it reminds me of a 1980's Austin Maestro or cars of that era, that had all these on show.

Personally i am no fan of central dials, they make you take your eyes off the road for longer periods of time than if they were in front of you, or so it seems, but they are easy to read, and big enough for everyone to see, even if you are half a mile away on the back row of seating.

The seats, all of them, are very firm and keep you well planted, which is a godsend, as the uber soft suspension/damping does make this car wallow and roll, especially if you break too heavily or go around tight corners too quickly, this is the first time in many decades that i actually felt my stomach churn when we found ourselves at a corner which was sharper than expected, so the break was pushed as we rounded the corner, and the movement of the car really made me feel a tad unwell for about five minutes.

That said, this car, belies it's size and handles quite well, the 4x4 system give the car added grip and will keep out out of trouble should you do a little wayward, the design of the auto gearbox inside the car mimics the Tivoli and Korando, giving a family feel to the car, but that's all there is in common with the two SUV's. 

The auto box is a Mercedes-Benz 7 speed e-Tronic automatic transmission, so you can be assured that the gear changes are as seamless as possible, and the change up and down is handled with ease, swiftness and silence, however, i am not sure if it is the car, or the Turismo range as a whole, but we found that when you utilise manual gear changes, and go up a couple, from a low gear, the revs take some while to drop, and it is significantly noticeable, it is not quick like every other auto we have driven.

The new 2.2 Litre engine in this car pulls with ease, and considering the size and weight, does it without complaint, you can also take it as read that the fuel consumption will be hindered by its size and bulk, the manufactures claimed figures for the Turismo are 36.2/28.8/42.8 (combined, Urban, Extra urban). Not the best in the world, but far from the worst, maybe this can be looked at over time and engineering changes.

Unfortunately for us, the test car we had was the top of the range, and so the Co2 level is a mind blowing 205g/km, and this needs to be looked at, even the Range Rover with the 3.0 Litre V6 gets away with 182g/km and that's a bigger engine.

With an 80 litre fuel tank you should be able to achieve, based on manufacturer claims, 637.12 miles per tank full, however, once you get a family, and all its luggage in, that will drop to an urban figure of 506.88 miles, so quite a drop, but then that's to be expected in a car this size and for what it is designed for.

Equipment levels in the Turismo are also quite good, but as our car was top of the range, it is only to be expected, however, one thing that we feel that the car should have is an auto tailgate, it is so bit and heavy that the addition of it being auto controlled would be a big bonus to the car, but saying that you do get :-

• Leather steering wheel & gear knob
• Front seat warmers
• Leather seats
• Electric height adjustable driver's seat
• Remote key less entry
• Electric windows (front & rear)
• Seat back tables for second row seats
• Solar controlled glass
• Privacy glass: rear door, quarter & tailgate
• Electronic cruise control
• Electrically operated & heated door mirrors
• Heated lower front windscreen
• Rain sensitive wipers
• Rear parking sensors
• Automatic air conditioning to front & rear
• Air quality control system
• CD & RDS radio with iPod & Bluetooth connectivity
• Tyre pressure monitoring system
• Full size spare wheel

The Turismo is a perfect car for the family, it can take all you can throw at it, and with a luggage space of 875 Litre in it's smallest form you get lots of space for shopping and luggage, but put down the seats and you get a cavernous 3146 litre, yes, nearly four times more, and that's not to be sniffed at, at all.

CONCLUSION

Looks - 6/10

Fuel Consumption - 6/10

Equipment - 8/10

Comfort and equipment 8/10

On-Road capability - 7/10

Co2 levels - 4/10

Interior Space - 10/10

Total - 7/10 

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The Turismo is an odd car, the looks are subjective, but far better than they used to be, the interior has everything you could want, but the dash area is left lacking, it is the hard scratchy plastics that we found unlikeable, and the central dials was another negative, like the warning area in front of the driver.

If you can get past those couple of items, the car is OK, not the best, and not the worst, it does everything acceptably, the 4x4 system works well, the engine is sufficiently powerful enough to move you along happily, the massive plus point is the Mercedes derived gearbox, that is just so smooth and easy, it makes driving the car that bit better.

The range starts at a very VERY reasonable £19k and takes you up to an also very reasonably £25k, considering what you get for that £25k and you get a very well produced, car that comes with a 5 year limitless warranty, extra warranty on some consumables, like battery, break pads and clutch plates.

The only extras you might want to consider is another reasonable £500 for metallic paint, considering how much paint there must be on that car, its cheaper than some other brands met paint on supermini's, you can upgrade the audio/sat nav for a grand, but the standard one does it all anyway, so save that money and use it towards your fuel bill and road tax, because they are it's only negative points, the low MPG and high Co2.

But saying that this is a great car that will suit big families down to the ground.