Ssangyong are back. The Korean company that brought us massive motors like the Rodius, Rexton, Korando and Tivol, some with Mercedes engines, are now known as KGM in Europe.
Yes Ssangyong are back and they have now joined the electric revolution with an electric version of their Korando, which is called the e-Motion.
The first pure-electric car from KGM is a five-seat mid-size SUV that has an overall length of just under 4.5-metres, and a height of 1.63-metres, making underground carparks easily accessible.
Electric cars are getting a bad press of late and there is no doubt that prospective buyers are thinking again about the big switch to electric cars. While the ranges are improving there are still major worries regarding the lack of public charge points and also residual values.
That’s all by way of information; this Korando e-motion is a fine car with a range of approximate range of 330km, when fully charged.
From talking to colleagues there are often small issues when charging electric cars. Sometime you may have to lift the charge cable so that there is no tension on the cable or there may be error and the cars stops charging. So it was reassuring with the e-Motion as you get a voice message confirming when charging has commenced.
Externally, the front of the car is not as bland as many other electric vehicles with the Ssangyong Dragon Wing logo dominating. That logo is also used on the boot where the name Korando is spelt out under the rear window.
I liked the high seated position and it’s a very comfortable car to drive and for passengers to travel in. I reckon it would be ideal for taxi drivers and large families.
On the dash the controls are easy to use and you get a good reversing camera. The seats are black, but a grey roofline coupled with small sunroof brightens up the interior décor.
The boot is a decent size, but like most electric cars no spare wheel is supplied. The official boot capacity is 550-litres. And if you leave down the back seats the luggage space will increase to 1,248 litres. There is also underfloor storage, boot dividers, tie-down hooks, shopping bag hooks and space for the tonneau cover when not in use.
The e-Motion is priced at €46,000 excluding Government EV incentives, where applicable. It has a five-year unlimited mileage warranty.
I think the jury is still out on the overall success of electric cars in Ireland, but if you are thinking of switching to electric I think the Korando e-Motion is worth a test drive. I don’t have a home charger, but found that the e-Motion charged fairly rapidly at an ESB public charging point.
The company which was formed in 1954, have had a few different distributors in Ireland over the years, but their Irish affairs are now handled by KGM, who are based in Montone Business Park, off the Nangor Road in Dublin 12.
Mark Creevey, Operations Manager in Ireland for KGM says that their new EVX which they plan to launch in a few weeks, will have an approximate range of 500km. He expects a lot of motorists who are currently driving their Rodius, will now switch to the EVX.
Also there will be another Nevo Electric Motor Show at the RDS on November 10.
