Ssangyong Rexton II introduced in Madrid
Admittedly, to North American ears, 'Ssangyong Rexton II' sounds like the sequel to some kind of science fiction monster movie. The reality is that it's the oven-fresh replacement for... wait for it... the Ssangyong Rexton, a popular if ill-styled SUV. Alberto Ballestin (aka 'Our Man in Madrid') was at the Madrid Auto Show press conference for Autoblog Spanish, and he came away with a few snapshots and impressions.
Powered in the market by a 2.7-liter Xdi diesel giving 165 horsepower and a stout 250 lb.-ft. of twist, the new Rexton was introduced with the assistance of Spanish NBA baller Pau Gasol, who will be the new 'face' of the brand in Spain. Aesthetically, one might be hard-pressed to call this Ssangyong 'attractive,' but it is a marked improvement on the original, and leagues ahead of other company offerings like the Musso and Rodius, the latter of which has been dubbed the 'Ugliest of them All' by UK publication Pistonheads.
Critically, Alberto informs that peculiar design or no, "...the quality/price is nearly unbeatable, and this has propelled the sales to a gigantic 210 percent last year (in Spain)," so this is obviously a package to be taken seriously.
Although Ssangyong didn't provide any English language press packs, interested parties are advised to click here to learn more about the Rexton II.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Myspace Layouts 2:56PM (5/29/2006)
ugh these things are ugly...
http://www.km77.com/marcas/ssangyong/2005/rodius/gama/gra/07.jpg
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Neil 3:24PM (5/29/2006)
The outgoing Rexton looks like an even uglier MBZ R class. Blech!
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Howard Kerr 5:45PM (5/29/2006)
I suppose it's merely an accident that this SUV is shown in such a dark color, as a lighter color (say, silver) allows you to really see how ugly these things are. About the only saving grace to a SsangYong is the M-B derived mechanicals.
And yeah, you can easily achieve sales gains of more than 100-200 %, when NO ONE was buying the old model.
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Howard Kerr 5:46PM (5/29/2006)
I suppose it's merely an accident that this SUV is shown in such a dark color, as a lighter color (say, silver) allows you to really see how ugly these things are. About the only saving grace to a SsangYong is the M-B derived mechanicals.
And yeah, you can easily achieve sales gains of more than 100-200 %, when NO ONE was buying the old model.
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Stoneman 10:46PM (5/29/2006)
What a fugly piece of crap this is. Anyone with any self-respect and decent taste would never buy this garbage. I hope the manufacturer sells paper bags with this car, because nobody is going to want to be seen driving it.
Stoneman
http://www.stonemanautoreview.com
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PJ 3:52AM (5/30/2006)
So, the consensus is that looks matter then, I guess.
Actually, although there does seem to be a problem with amateur (for lack of a better word) styling themes among Korean car companies, the Rexton gets a decent amount of respect in most of the world.
Even UK car magazines, which are predisposed to rip on anything made in an Asian country, admit that the Rexton is really quite capable and well-equipped for the price. As I understand it, that disesl engine is an ex-Mercedes piece that's quite good.
It'll be interesting to see if this company grows enough to enter the NA market in the coming decades.
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Raul 3:57AM (5/30/2006)
Rexton's are very nice. I like the styling though I liked the previous model more. These cars are very popular in Italy and Spain. This is a beautiful car and offers a lot for the money. I wan't one.
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