SsangYong Musso Review
The facelift sees the Musso gain a mid-spec variant, bringing up the lineup to a total of three grades.
Musso Pricing
This vehicle is the Flagship Ultimate, which is priced from $45,000 drive away, making it one of the most affordable 4 by 4 dual-cap Uts on the market.
However, it have a few option packs and accessories which does boost the overall price.
Interior Of Musso
The ultimate grade gets heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, as well as upgraded technology like the new 12.3-inch touch screen multimedia screen, which is up from the previous 8-inch system.
There’s also a new 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, which is also up from the previous 10.5-inch system. Musso Review
This vehicle has been fitted with the luxury pack for an extra $3,000.
That adds dual zone air conditioning, leather upholstering, electric front seats, a sunroof, as well as heated rear outboard seats.
It’s also fitted with an XLV pack for an extra $1,500.
Now, that adds 300 millimeters to the tray length as well as 20 Newton meters of extra Torque.
But we’re not done with the red metallic paintwork and the optioned extras like the tow bar, tonneau cover, rubber mat set, and the electronic brake controller, this vehicle actually slides in to just under $54,000.
Not bad considering the market, but not as jaw-dropping as what the initial price might suggest. Musso Review
However, I do feel like a lot of those items are more needs rather than wants, especially the extra torque and towbar.
If you’re going to make use of the three and a half ton break towing capacity.
Design
Design is always subjective. This is big and looks like a 4 by 4 dual cab ute to me. I do like some of the cool new design features like the HID headlights and the vertical LED fog lights. Musso Review
The finish isn’t the best I’ve seen with wide spaces between the door jams and a weird painted-like foam joinery that’s in the tailgate that’s already showing quite a lot of wear and tear for a brand new workhorse.
Little things like this could make it seem quite worn very quickly. The bonnet is huge, but a little bit odd-looking because of how low-slung the horizontal grill is.
But again, you might love it. It’s obvious that the facelift focus has been on the interior, and it’s here that the design really works for me because it feels like a premium cabin with the leather upholstery, black headliner, and sunroof.
The dashboard has been redesigned and now it features the updated tech, large integrated air vents, as well as a digital climate control panel.
The interior on a whole just makes us feel like it’s more expensive than what it actually is. Musso Review
Practicality
The room up front is downright roomy. The electric upgraded seats are a must-have. They’re so comfortable, and I love that it has lumbar support, too. Individual storage is average for this size.
I like that the charging options have been upgraded from the previous USB A ports to 2 USB C ports. You also get two 12 V ports, but one of them is an old-school cigarette lighter.
Sunroof
The sunroof has a manual sun blind, which just reminds you that this is, in fact, a workhorse. Musso Review
Other little elements are the big gear shifter and the manual handbrake. But these are all things that I actually really like.
Touchscreen
The touch screen multimedia system is responsive but is limited to just the radio and a small settings menu.
Think of it more like a mirroring screen for things like your wide Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
But it is very easy to connect to the CarPlay, which was great, and the graphics are super clear and colorful. Musso Review
The instrument cluster is semi-customisable, but it’s in here that you can actually access a lot of the safety features to customize them, which is great.
Backseat
The back seat is as comfortable as the front, and good amount of leg room 168 centimeter height people, but the headroom is even better because of the clever lifting of the roof.
What I like about it, too, is that the width of the seat and the flat floor means that you could probably get three adults pretty comfortable on back seat. The amenities are okay for a youth of this class.
You get directional air vents, reading lights, mat pockets, but you do miss out on any charging options in this row. Musso Review
I always practical things like the hardened kick plates and a fall-down armrest with two cup holders.
The ground clearance is a smidge lower, despite not having any sidesteps.
Back row has no split, so it actually folds down in one piece, which does mean that when you’re fitting a child seat, if you have to fit more than one, it’s going to be a little bit of a struggle.
Boot Space
With that extra pack, the length of the tray is increased by 300 millimeters, which boosts the overall capacity by 251 liters.
The max payload for this is 880 kilos, which is fine for your odd adventure pursuits on the weekend. Musso Review
With our optioned soft tonneau accessory, it means that your gear stays dry, which is great, and you get a full-size spare wheel in this, which is always good.
I like that the tailgate is nice and wide and also quite light to open with the assisted tailgate function.
However, this doesn’t have any sidesteps to speak of, which means that if you’re a bit short it can be a bit of a comedy to get into the back to get things.
Musso bonnet
The facelift doesn’t see any changes to the Musso power train, with it still having a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel engine with a max power output of 133 kilowatts and 420 newton meters of torque with that XLV pack fitted.
Despite only having a six-speed auto transmission, the gear changes are pretty smooth, and this has got a really good sense of power.
Adventure enthusiasts will also be pretty happy that this is a proper part-time 4×4 with low range, and it’s easy as pie to switch into it if you need to.
While the looks haven’t won me over, the driving experience certainly has. This is a very nice ute to drive and doesn’t feel you like, which is great.
I did find that the retuned suspension, which is on the facelifted model, has improved the ride handling as well. The suspension feels really well cushioned but not spongy, which is always a plus in a big car.
this actually isn’t that hard to park because it has a really good 360-degrees view camera system as well as front and rear parking sensors.
Efficiency
You won’t have too much trouble. Despite being so big, it’s not too bad when it comes to fuel efficiency. Musso Review
The official combined fuel cycle is 9 liters per 100 kilometers.
Based on the official combined fuel cycle and the large 75 liter fuel tank, you should be able to see a driving range of around 833 Ks, which is still pretty good for a Ute of this size, but probably not as good as other more efficient the Uts on the market.