Well, these are two pretty similar cars we have here! It's only details that could potentially make the difference. Considering they both belong to the suv segment and utilize the same 5-door suv body style and the 4 x 4 wheel drive system, it all comes up to the specific diesel engine choice they offer. The first one has a Mercedes Benz-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 5-cylinder, 10-valves 163hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 6-cylinder, 24-valves 239hp engine designed by Hyundai.

Unfortunatelly, neither of the two vehicles was submitted to the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) testing. This makes it virtually impossible for me to pick one over the other and I'm generally against buying such cars as the safety should really always come first. 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. On the other hand, when it comes to weight, a factor that most people underestimate, ix55 offers a considerable difference of 13% more metal.

I don't like generalizing things when it comes to reliability, although it does seem that Hyundai as a brand displays somewhat better results, all the models observed together. That's the official data, while our visitors describe reliability of SSangYong with an average rating of 4.4, and models under the Hyundai badge with 4.5 out of 5. Independent research findings rank Rexton as average reliability-wise, and ix55 is more or less at the same level.We should definitely mention that owners of cars with the same powertrain as Rexton rank it on average as 4.4, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 5.0 out of 5.

Hyundai is undoubtly more agile, reaching 100km/h in 2.5 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 190 kilometers per hour, 13km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be Rexton, averaging around 8.6 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (33 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 9% difference compared to ix55.

Hyundai 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, ix55 offers significantly better overall protection, taking the lead here. It all continues in the same direction, with Hyundai being considerably quicker, thus putting more smile on driver's face. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... It's really tough to make a final decision here, but if I'd need to, I'd say Hyundai. Nevertheless, let's not forget that people have different preferences and needs, so what really counts is your personal feel. I'm only here to help. 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 more than 12.000 different ones in our database.