| The Future Of SsangYong | ||
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(Wed 08 Oct 08) SsangYong's C200 concept, revealed at the Paris Show, gives an indication of the direction the Korean company will be taking over the next few years.
The C200 looks very different from any current SsangYong, as indeed it should, since it's the first to have been designed by ItalDesign. It's also the first SsangYong with a monocoque construction (everything hangs off the bodywork, rather than the body being mounted on a separate chassis) and if it went into production it would compete with things like the Honda CR-V, Nissan Qashqai, Toyota RAV4 and Volkswagen Tiguan. The 175bhp two-litre turbo diesel engine drives through all four wheels in the C200, but there is also talk of using the same platform for a more conventional front-wheel drive car. "This is much more than just a concept car," says Paul Williams, MD of Koelliker UK, which distributes SsangYongs in this country. "It marks a sea change for SsangYong with a move to monocoque construction, new engines and transmissions and adaptable platforms. "It is also a strong signal of future intent that will see a wider and more contemporary line-up that will be able to compete aggressively in Europe." SsangYong has already announced that it intends to launch 20 new models on five different platforms between 2009 and 2014. It's almost certain, though, that not all of them would be sold in the UK. |
