SsangYong comes of age with the new Tivoli

IT is more than a little ironic to think of a carmaker that can trace its roots back more than half a century as “the new kid on the block,” but that is the overriding impression when one slips behind the wheel of one of the latest offerings of South Korea’s SsangYong Motors.

When Fast Times was offered an extended test drive of SsangYong’s newest compact SUV, the Tivoli, I have to admit I was a little skeptical. Having spent the best years of my life with BMW, taking the helm of a vehicle from a company which is best known in the West for the somewhat unfortunate Musso, the result of a partnership with Mercedes-Benz, I was mentally prepared for some disappointment.