KGM Torres review – a big family SUV with big value for money

Verdict – is the KGM Torres a good car?

The KGM Torres has a number of positive attributes, including its distinctive design, huge interior and generous equipment for the money. It also drives pretty well, but the mid-size SUV class is hugely competitive and the Torres struggles in a few places. Its petrol engines lack any form of electrification and are pretty inefficient, while the infotainment isn’t the most intuitive to use. There’s also an electric Torres EVX which should be cheaper to run, but efficiency suffers at higher speeds and in cold weather.

KGM Torres models, specs and alternatives

Formerly known as SsangYong, KGM is refreshing its model range and brand identity, and the KGM Torres was the first all-new model launched since its rebirth. It looks rather different to models like the Rexton too, with a more angular shape and rugged design cues like grab handles, silver skid plates and vertical bars in its front grille.

Despite being a five-seater, the Torres is pretty big for a mid-size SUV; it’s actually longer than a Nissan X-Trail. This means there’s acres of legroom inside for rear passengers, and the boot is also large for its class. If you plan on towing, the Torres isn’t too bad either, hauling up to 1,500kg regardless of whether you pick a petrol or the electric Torres EVX.

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Slotting in between the Korando and Rexton, the Torres starts from around £32,000 after a recent price cut, while the Torres EVX is just shy of £37,000. The hybrid Nissan Qashqai e-Power starts from just over £34,000 and a Skoda Enyaq costs from £39,000.

There are currently discounts on the recommended retail price of KGM models via our sister site Auto Express' marketplace

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One of the KGM Torres’ biggest strengths is its affordable price tag, and the fact you get a lot of car from the money. Look past this initial saving, though, and the Torres is one of the pricier cars to run in its class. Whether the up-front savings will make it cheaper in the long run will depend on how long you plan to own the Torres and how many miles you expect to drive.

There’s just one petrol engine that returns up to 33.2mpg in the basic car and a few less in the K40 with four-wheel drive, while emissions of close to 200g/km also don’t look too clever. The latter put the petrol Torres into the highest Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) band that will be sure to put off company car choosers. With a relatively small 47-litre fuel tank, you should expect just under 350 miles from a brimmed tank.

Choose the all-electric Torres EVX and it’s a roughly similar story, because while you get a lot for the money on paper, it’s not quite as efficient or quick to charge as rivals like the Skoda Enyaq. Still, zero tailpipe emissions make it much more appealing for company-car drivers, thanks to its 3% BiK bracket (from April 2025). 

Its 73kWh battery pack gives an official range figure of up to 287 miles, which is fairly competitive. A maximum charging speed of 145kW and fairly big battery means a 10 to 80% public top-up can take 37 minutes, which isn’t too bad. The Enyaq can peak at 165kW though, and has a smaller battery, so charging stops typically take around 10 minutes less. 

How efficient is the KGM Torres in the real world?

Driving the Torres EVX on a cold day we managed 2.6 miles/kWh, suggesting just under 200 miles is possible in wintry conditions. During summer driving – which EV batteries far prefer – it should improve quite a bit.

How much will the KGM Torres cost in tax?

All versions of the KGM Torres will cost the standard rate in VED (road tax) from April 2025, but a sub-£40k price tag does at least keep the Torres below the luxury car VED surcharge.

What will the KGM Torres cost to insure?

It’s worth getting an insurance quote before taking the plunge on a Torres, and especially the Torres EVX, because it sits in pretty high insurance groups. Even the petrol versions sit in groups 32 and 33 (out of 50), but this shoots up to group 48 for the EVX. That’s a lot higher than a car like the Peugeot E-3008 that starts in group 32.

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The Torres feels a bit more sophisticated than older SsangYong models on the road, with decent agility and a reasonably assured feel from behind the steering wheel. It’s still an SUV of course, so there’s a bit of body lean in tight corners, but not as much as you might be expecting.

Refinement at higher speeds is pretty good too, while the ride can get a bit fidgety at lower speeds around town, especially with large alloy wheels fitted. 

With more power and an instant response when you press the accelerator, the Torres EVX feels quite a bit quicker than petrol versions, but this can also result in pretty unruly wheelspin if you try and accelerate briskly – unlike the petrol, the EVX is front-wheel drive only.

Petrol models

A 1.5-litre petrol engine might sound a bit meagre for a big family SUV, but a turbocharger means the Torres feels like it has enough grunt to get going pretty well. It’s also fitted with an automatic gearbox that does a reasonable job of climbing up through the gears, only losing its composure if you rush it. We wish the throttle response was a bit more polished, though, because it can hesitate at lower speeds before delivering more power than you expected.

Electric models 

The Torres EVX gets a powertrain co-developed with Chinese brand BYD, with a 204bhp electric motor powering the front wheels. It’s plenty of power for a family SUV; it can actually overwhelm the front tyres at times, leading to wheel spin. This can be mostly fixed by putting the car in its Eco mode, making the throttle less sensitive and the EVX easier to drive smoothly. Its suspension feels a bit firmer than in the petrol model, most likely to cope with the extra weight of the battery pack. We didn’t find the regenerative braking to be as strong or intuitive as the best rivals, so it’s easier to just brake using the left pedal.

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The Torres and its Actyon sister vehicle are something of a departure for KGM, with boxy looks and features like bonnet-mounted grab handles and chunky wheels that give it a Jeep-like sense of ruggedness. While some of these design cues don’t really serve any purpose, they do at least give the Torres a pretty distinctive look.

Inside, the Torres is a lot more minimalist than the brand’s older models like the Rexton, with hardly any physical controls. Instead, the interior is dominated by a pair of large 12.5-inch screens sat side-by-side above a horizontal swathe of trim. Material quality is pretty decent too, with quite a lot of soft-touch surfaces and some interesting touches like copper-coloured finishes. While there are quite a few harder, scratchier plastics, they are kept mostly out of sight of front occupants.

Is the KGM Torres infotainment and sat-nav system easy to use?

The digital displays are quite sharp, so it’s not too difficult to read information, and once everything’s up and running the infotainment feels relatively snappy. It can take quite a while to load up when you first turn on the car, though, which is a pain when even the climate control and demisters are found in the touchscreen.

Some software updates would also make things a bit more intuitive, because at the moment, lots of the main functions are on the left of the screen making them a stretch to reach in a right-hand drive car.

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One thing the Torres definitely doesn’t lack is space – we can’t help thinking some manufacturers would have added in an extra row of seating, though KGM has stuck with just five seats. The result is that there’s lots of legroom in the back and it’s just the central hump that makes things a bit less comfy for the fifth occupant.

KGM has clearly thought about families, because there are two ISOFIX child-seat mounting points on the outer rear seats, and the K40 trim even gets retractable sunblinds built into the rear windows. 

Does the KGM Torres have a big boot?

It certainly looks big on the spec sheet, with an impressive 703 litres behind the rear seats (839 litres for the EVX) that expands to 1,662 litres with them folded down. It’s a fairly wide and shallow boot, so you may quickly find you’ll need to retract the parcel shelf to load bulky and taller items. The boot aperture is pretty big too, which should make loading wide items all the easier.

Clever features like hooks or loading partitions are absent, which is a bit of a shame given its size, as they would help prevent shopping from sliding around each time you negotiate a roundabout.

Both the petrol and all-electric Torres are also pretty good when it comes to towing, being able to haul a 1,500kg braked trailer. This puts the Torres EVX ahead of the Skoda Enyaq in this department.

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Neither KGM or SsangYong have appeared in our Driver Power survey in recent years, so judging customer satisfaction is somewhat tricky. Buyers can seek reassurance in the lengthy warranty, though, which lasts for five years and 100,000 miles as standard. That’s two years longer than Skoda currently offers. 

How safe is the KGM Torres?

The Torres hasn’t been crash-tested by independent body Euro NCAP yet either, but there’s plenty of safety equipment supplied as standard. Features like autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane departure warnings and a system to help keep the car in its lane are all fitted from the off. Blind-spot monitoring also makes it easier to check if it’s safe to change lanes on the motorway.

Should you buy a KGM Torres?

If you take a look at the Torres there’s sure to be quite a few things to like. Many will find its styling quite desirable, there’s lots of space inside and of course, there’s the appealing price tag.

Both the petrol and electric versions are decent to drive, with reasonable acceleration and a surefooted feel through bends, while it should also be adept at towing. Standard kit levels are pretty good too.

If there’s a “but” coming, it mostly lies in the fact the family SUV class is so competitive, with a host of rivals boasting some of the latest in powertrains and technology to help win you over. In comparison the Torres already feels a bit dated in some respects, despite being a brand new model.

Its petrol engine is punchy enough, but without any hybrid tech it’s pretty thirsty and has surprisingly high CO2 emissions, ruling it out for most business buyers. The electric Torres EVX will make more sense for a lot of buyers, and comes with decent specs and a competitive range figure. However, we found it lacked some of the polish of rivals like the Skoda Enyaq.

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What is the best KGM Torres for low running costs?

This is an easy one, because the Torres EVX should be cheap to charge up (so long as you have a home charger and cheap tariff) and sits in the lowest BiK band. Saying that, it’s also in a surprisingly high insurance group.

What  is the best KGM Torres for families?

KGM customers tend to like their cars' rugged abilities, so the four-wheel drive petrol is likely to prove popular with them. This will be able to tackle slippery conditions and lend an extra level of safety when towing a trailer. 

What is the Carbuyer pick of the KGM Torres range?

We’d stick with the Torres EVX, because the electric powertrain makes it the smoothest version to drive, boosts refinement and feels the most modern.

KGM Torres alternatives

Quite a few manufacturers have tried to position their family SUVs upmarket, so the Torres undercuts many of them.

• Nissan Qashqai
• Peugeot 3008
• Hyundai Tucson
• Volkswagen Tiguan
• Kia Sportage

How we tested the KGM Torres 

We tested the KGM Torres on British roads, both in the countryside and through villages, on a cool and crisp day.