Ssangyong Korando review

The diesel auto powertrain has the sort of torquey lug you'd need for towing a trailer. But as speed rises the acceleration tails off: the comparatively small 1.6-litre size comes home to roost as a lack of power, and it faces all the usual SUV forms of resistance from the all-wheel-drive and aero drag. Counting from zero to 62mph demands a dozen elephants.

The six-speed auto is smooth and attentive. And while the engine might be chattery around town, it subdues as you gently approach main-road speeds.

You might want to try out the turbo petrol alternative, which has 20 per cent more power at 163bhp. At launch time there were none on UK roads so it's an open question at the moment.

The suspension is fully independent but feels lumpy at low speeds. Guess that'll make people coming out of trad 4x4s feel somewhat at home, although to be fair it's a lot smoother than those sorts of vehicle. And there's a point to this firmness, as the springs are calibrated for carrying and towing heavy loads. The body, made largely of high-strength steel, always feels reassuringly rigid.

But beyond town speed you find decent damping control, a deep-breathing suppleness over big bumps (if not small), and satisfactory directional stability while the wheels are being disturbed. Naturally the bigger wheel size sends notably more jiggle into the mix.

Weighty and progressive steering also helps the impression of stability, and while cornering is solid there are no surprises beyond a fairly rapid arrival of understeer when you yank the FWD one into a sudden corner.

But plenty of crossovers – Kia Sportage, Vauxhall Mokka X – suffer similar ailments and still sell like crazy.

It trucks along agreeably at a cruise, the only real disturbance being noise from the off-road-biased tyres. Lane-keeping assistance keeps an eye out, and so does forward collision warning and auto-braking, and traffic sign recognition, but there's no long-distance radar so the cruise control is the non-adaptive kind. Still, it's a strong bundle of aids on a value car.