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Dimensons & Outlines
Engine
2.2 OM DE22
Performance (manual gearbox)
Performance (automatic gearbox)
Expenses
Virtual Adviser's™ opinion
Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by diesel engines and utilizing the 5-door suv body style within the same 'SUV' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (rear for the SSangYong and front in the case of the KIA). The first one has a SSangYong-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 178hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 200hp engine designed by Hyundai.
SafetyThe fact that the KIA got tested by the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), while the other contender didn't, puts it sky-high safety-wise, in my eyes at least. Still, apart from the official crash test results there are other things we need to be aware of. Both vehicles belong to the suv segment, which is generally a very good thing safety-wise, but that fact doesn't break the tie between the two cars. Furthermore, when it comes to weight, a factor that most people underestimate, Rexton offers a considerable difference of 13% more metal.
ReliabilityI don't like generalizing things when it comes to reliability, although it does seem that KIA does have a slight advantage, when all the models are taken into account. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of SSangYong with an average rating of 4.4, and models under the KIA badge with 4.6 out of 5. Independent research findings rank Rexton as average reliability-wise, and Sorento is more or less at the same level.Above it all, drivers of cars with the same engine as Rexton rank it on average as 4.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 5.0 out of 5.
Performance & Fuel economySSangYong is a bit more agile, reaching 100km/h in 0.4 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 192 kilometers per hour, 2km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy things look pretty much the same for both cars, averaging around 6.7 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (42 mpg), in combined cycle.
Verdict
KIA appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Sorento beats the other contender by far, making it the best choice without even considering other things. From there things take a different direction, with SSangYong offering somewhat better performance, just enough to call it quicker. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... All together, there's not much more to say, in this case I wouldn't even consider anything but KIA. Anyway, that's the most objective conclusion I could've came up with and it's based solely on the information found on this website. Aspects such as design, practicality, brand value and driving experience are there for you to measure them out. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.