SSANGYONG REXTON W REVIEW

List price from£21,995 Lease price from£389 The verdict4

At home on the farm, but not so much on the road, the SsangYong Rexton W is a big, rugged 4x4 that you can buy for the price of a little one

A long time ago, if you wanted a big 4x4, you had to put up with a rather agricultural driving experience, because most big 4x4s were built like trucks: as a chassis (that is, the bit which the suspension and engine are bolted to) first, with the body then attached on top. The advantage of this sort of construction was that it made the cars strong and tough for rough terrain, but the downside was that it made them bouncy and uncomfortable when driven normally, on the road. Nowadays, though, the majority of 4x4s are built like normal cars, with the body and chassis combined to form one unit. That means they’re much nicer to drive where the majority of people use them – on the road – but they are of course slightly less rugged than they used to be. However, the SsangYong Rexton W still uses the older form of construction, which makes it as tough as old boots, and helps give it a very high towing capacity. It’s also very cheap to buy and comes with seven seats. So, if you need a 4x4 that offers lots of space for a low price, the Rexton W might just fit the bill.

Space

Pretty good, although the boot is disappointing

If you’re looking for a 4x4 with seven seats, you’ll struggle to find one with as much space for its passengers for anywhere near the Rexton W's price. It’s true that the rearmost row is pretty cramped, but it offers more space than the same seats in the Nissan X-Trail, which costs more to buy. There’s also enough space for three adults to sit across the middle row in reasonable comfort. And front head and leg room are generous, even if elbow room is a bit tight due to the proximity of each door. There are a couple of neat touches in the boot, such as cubbies in the sides, and panels which flip down to bridge the gap between the second and third rows when both are folded down. However, the load space itself is disappointing. The third row of seats comes in the form of a bolt-in module which sits on top of the original boot floor and forms a new one, meaning the lip you have to load over is very high. It also means that the amount of boot space on offer isn’t as much as you might expect given how large the SsangYong Rexton W is on the outside. If you don’t need the extra seats, then, it’s worth considering ordering your Rexton W without them, which is an option.

Comfort

A sloppy, bumpy ride, and lots of noise

Given the SsangYong Rexton W’s old-fashioned underpinnings, it should come as no surprise that it drives much like an older 4x4. Which, on the road at least, is not a good thing. The ride is an undeniably curious mix of lolloping bounces, unnerving shimmies and jarring crunches, especially around town. Things get a little better once you’re up to speed on the motorway, but there’s still a constant jiggle from the suspension that never really goes away. Also, once you’re up to speed, you’ll have to contend with a lot of noise – both from the engine which, because it’s rather gutless, is constantly straining to haul the Rexton W along, and from the wind which buffets the car's bluff nose and upright windscreen. To make matters worse, the seats aren’t especially comfortable, although they’re a little more so than those you’ll find in a Hyundai ix35.

Dashboard layout

Feels cheaply made but robustly built, and easy enough to use

Give the Rexton W’s dashboard plastics a whack with your hand, and you’re liable to end up with a bruised hand. That’s because they’re surprisingly well screwed in, and one gets the feeling they won’t shake or rattle loose easily. What’s more, the design is reasonably clear and user-friendly, especially the large, easy-to-read dials, the chunky row of buttons along the top of the centre console, and the clear heating and ventilation controls. We also liked the clever addition of a power point on top of the dashboard - right where your sat nav or phone might sit. However, the whole thing does look pretty cheap, and feels it to the touch – from the thin plastic at the top of the centre console to the scratchy metal-effect stuff splashed around the lower half, not to mention the nasty faux-wood and tacky digital readouts for the clock and air-conditioning. It’s also worth nothing that, if you specify the optional satellite-navigation, you get an aftermarket touchscreen stereo unit that neither looks good nor is easy to use. Better to stick with the standard stereo and buy yourself a standalone satnav.

Easy to drive

Narrow body is a help; auto gearbox isn’t

Piloting a great big 4x4 like this one might seem daunting, but the Rexton W makes life a little easier because it’s relatively narrow. While it’s longer than many 4x4s of a similar price, it’s about the same width, which means you can still squeeze it through width restrictions and into tight gaps relatively easily. However, don’t lose sight of the fact that the Rexton W is a large, tall car, and as such it does need more care when manoeuvring than most similarly-priced 4x4s. What’s more, the nose falls away quite sharply, which can make it tricky to judge where it ends, and there are also some considerable blind spots around the rear-most windows and wing mirrors. Manoeuvring isn’t made any easier by slow steering which takes lots of turns to move from lock to lock. Rearward visibility is also badly hampered when the third row of seats is in the upright position. Fortunately, rear parking sensors – a useful addition – are optional on the SX model and standard on the EX. You can specify an automatic gearbox on the EX model, but if you need an auto, we’d look elsewhere, as this one is a very old design that feels irritatingly sluggish and causes the engine to rev noisily almost all the time.

Fun to drive

Lurchy and numb, though it’s good off-road

Anyone looking to the Rexton W for a sporty driving experience rather needs to readjust their expectations. It isn't shaped like, or intended to be, a fun car to drive – and sure enough, it isn’t. Pitch the Rexton W into a corner with any sort of vim, and it rolls over like an old Labrador that’s in no mood to play. And the steering feels so loose that you wonder whether the column is just whirling through thin air at the other end. Try and push any sort of limits, and the car lurches around uncomfortably, trying unsuccessfully to decide whether it wants to push its nose wide or swing its tail out. That said, you can have some fun in the Rexton W if you take it off the beaten track, where that sturdy frame means it’ll crest more mounts and ford more streams than anything else you can buy for the price.

Reliability

Anecdotal evidence suggests problems

Getting any sort of definitive data on the reliability of the Rexton W is tricky, as it isn’t included in any of the usual reliability surveys. However, Warranty Direct’s Reliability Index, which scores based on warranty claims, rates the Rexton W very poorly indeed, and says repair costs are high. Stories we’ve heard from owners seem to bear that out, with tales of expensive parts and lengthy labour times marring the Rexton W’s reputation. On the plus side, though, SsangYong does provide a five-year, unlimited-mileage warranty on the Rexton W, which matches Hyundai’s offering, and betters most other warranties.

Fuel economy

Cataclysmically thirsty, despite a diesel engine

There’s only one engine available in the Rexton W, and it’s a diesel, so you might assume it to be relatively economical. Not so. In fact, we suspect it’s the least economical diesel 4x4 you can buy; it’s even thirstier than most of its petrol-powered rivals. If you need seven seats, the Nissan X-Trail is streets ahead of the Rexton W in terms of its fuel economy. And if you don’t, just about any rival will be more frugal.

Affordability

Low price counts for a lot

If you’re a private buyer and buying outright, the Rexton W looks like something of a bargain, considering the amount of metal and kit you’re getting for your cash. Some dealers are offering hefty discounts too, with £2,000 off the list price relatively easy to find. However, bear in mind that the Rexton W will lose its value quickly, and you’ll pay more road tax than you will with rival models because carbon dioxide emissions are high. Those high emissions also make it quite expensive to run as a company car, despite its low P11D values. And if you’re planning to lease, you'll find Rexton W lease deals are few and far between, and expensive when they do crop up.

Safety

Falling behind the times

The Rexton W hasn’t been crash tested by EuroNCAP, the benchmark safety organisation in Europe. However, crash tests on other SsangYong models from similar organisations around the world suggest that they fall behind their rivals in terms of safety. It’s also worth considering that the Rexton W is, at heart, an old design now; its roots lay in the original Rexton, which was introduced in 2001, and as such its standards of structural integrity will not match those of its more modern rivals. That bears out in the safety equipment, too. You only get four airbags in the Rexton W, unlike the six you’ll find in most rivals. And while you do at least get systems which help maintain stability and prevent skids, the Rexton W misses out on the latest safety systems, such as those which detect impending crashes and apply the brakes, those which increase the force of your braking in an emergency, and those which monitor the pressures of your tyres for you. You'll find all of these as standard in many rivals.

Standard spec

Lots of equipment for the money

For all its flaws, the SsangYong Rexton W does give you a lot of toys. Even the entry-level SX model, which is startlingly inexpensive, comes with cruise control, climate control, heated electric door mirrors, electric windows front and rear, and Bluetooth hands-free phone connectivity. For a little more, you can choose the EX, which adds leather seats – heated and electrically adjustable with a memory function in the front – as well as rear parking sensors, privacy glass, 18-inch alloy wheels and running boards. We’d keep costs down and choose the former smodel, though, not least because its smaller wheels should help with the ride quality. We’d add parking sensors as they’re relatively inexpensive and extremely useful.