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A fresh brand, KGM Motors, needs a fresh design approach and this KGM Torres very much offers that. A tough, versatile, five-seat upper-mid-sized SUV, it comes in combustion, Hybrid and EV forms and offers something quite appealingly different.
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Detailed ratings
Medium-Sized Family Hatch-Based SUVs
Background
With all the new brands flooding our market these days, you may have forgotten - or perhaps still not quite have caught up with - the fact that the Korean marque that used to be called SsangYong is these days marketing itself under the name KGM Motors. That change happened back in 2024 two years after SsangYong's buy-out by huge South Korean chemical and steel company the KG group. And KGM's headline car for its UK launch was this car, the KGM Torres.
The Torres (named after the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile) was important for this newly-named brand because all the other models it was selling from 2024 onwards were merely re-badged SsangYongs. The Torres though, was completely new, the first of a fresh raft of designs we'll see from the marque using a lot of borrowed technology from Chinese maker BYD. To begin with, there was a choice of an old-school conventional petrol model or a full-electric variant, the Torres EVX. In late 2025 though, the Hybrid version we'll be looking at here was added to the line-up, which is the car most potential Torres customers are likely to want.
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Range data
| Min | Max |
| Price | 35995 | 39295 |
| Insurance group 1-50 | 32 | 33 |
| CO2 (g/km) | 139 | 139 |
| Max Speed (mph) | 109 | 118 |
| 0-62 mph (s) | 10.8 | 8.1 |
| Electric WLTP-Rated Driving Range (miles) | 287 | 287 |
| Min | Max |
| Combined Mpg | 46.1 | 46.1 |
| Length (mm) | 4705 | 4705 |
| Width (mm) | 1890 | 1890 |
| Height (mm) | 1720 | 1720 |
| Boot Capacity (l) | 703 | 1662 |
| Power (ps) | 176 | 207 |
| Torque (lb ft) | 300 | 339 |
Driving experience
To suit the mood of the moment, there's the choice of the two kinds of powertrain that a well informed customer for a mid-sized family SUV will be looking for - full-Hybrid or full-EV.
The petrol/electric engineering here is quite complex, though unusually for a Hybrid powertrain sourced (as this one is) from BYD, you can't plug it in. As with the old petrol Torres, the engine is 1.5-litres in size turbo petrol engine, but here it produces slightly more power (177PS) thanks to the addition of two electric motors and a six-speed e-DHT automatic gearbox. Towers who liked the original Torres petrol model might be attracted by the 300Nm torque figure (30Nm up on that old car) but they shouldn't be because compared to that old un-electrified variant, braked towing capacity has fallen 200kg to 1.3-tonnes and, more seriously, there's now no longer a 4x4 drivetrain option - in any Torres.
Still, there's otherwise lots to like about this Hybrid unit. The powertrain has no fewer than nine different driving modes able to alter it for differing scenarios. Unless you're in the engine-only setting that preserves charge in the battery, most of your driving in town will be done without the aid of combustion power. In fact, KGM claims that the Torres Hybrid can do 95% of its city driving on battery power alone and all-electric driving in EV mode is possible at speeds of up to 62mph. 0-62mph takes 10.8s en route to 109mph. And there's a paddleshift-activated three-setting regenerative braking set-up to recharge the batteries as you drive. Which most of the time will be in the HEV mode that combines both electric and petrol driving.
If you're not really interested in petrol driving and like the idea of a Torres, then KGM hopes you'll want the all-electric EVX version. Despite the Jeep-style rugged looks, it only comes with a single motor front-driven powertrain. This uses a 201bhp electric motor energised by a 73.4kWh battery, which when fully charged is apparently good for up to 287 miles.
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Design and build
'Powered by Toughness' is apparently the design philosophy behind this KGM Torres - which is hardly a unique approach amongst SUVs. So it's quite refreshing to find that this car looks quite different to most of its rivals. The slotted grille gives a Jeep-style vibe, but here it's accompanied by all kinds of sharp creases and edges. This SUV's a little bigger than it looks in the pictures, the 4.7-metre length about the same as a Nissan X-Trail or Skoda Kodiaq. There's a chunky profile too, with 1,720mm of height and 1,890mm of width. Lots of black plastic cladding and a contrasting C-pillar add finishing touches. The red towing hitch covers of the combustion version are omitted on the all-electric EVX version. And that EV model is also set apart by a blanked-off grille, a unique 20-inch wheel design and a special LED light bar (replacing conventional headlights).
It's modern and minimalist inside, where a wide, slim dashboard houses a pair of 12.3-inch screens. You view the 'twin panoramic' instrument display through a four-spoke flat-bottomed steering wheel. And you're surrounded by metal accents, smart ambient lighting and (on top models) real leather upholstery, which all aim to create a luxurious, sophisticated vibe.
Rear seat space is generous for a couple of adults, but you might reasonably expect an SUV the length of an X-Trail or Kodiaq to offer a third seating row. The Torres doesn't, which seems like a bit of a missed opportunity. That does at least mean you get a class-leadingly large boot, with both versions rated at 703-litres with the rear seats in place - or 1,662-litres with them folded.
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Market and model
Torres pricing starts from around £36,000 for the Hybrid model, which comes only in the fully-loaded 'K40' spec we're trying here. Other brands charge you quite a lot more if you want all the niceties on this class of car, but KGM throws virtually everything you could want in as standard. One downside of this Hybrid unit replacing the original conventional 1.5-litre petrol unit is that there's now no AWD Torres variant available.
Even on the electric version because it comes only in single motor form. The EVX model in question was originally wildly over-priced (at around £45,000 at the time of our original test back in Summer 2024) but since then KGM's got real, introducing a base 'K30' EVX variant at around £37,000, with top 'K40' trim pitched from just over £39,000 as we filmed.
As expected, equipment levels across the line-up are generous. All Torres models come with LED auto-dipping headlights, roof rails, all-round parking sensors, rain-sensing wipers, power-folding mirrors, keyless entry, automatic cruise control with a speed limiter and a rear parking camera. Plus a 12.3-inch full digital instrument cluster, automatic dual zone air conditioning, a heated leather steering wheel, TPU man-made leather upholstery, an electro-chromatic rear view mirror, interior mood lighting, a power-adjustable driver's chair and heated and ventilated front seats, along with heated rear seats. Media connectivity's taken care of by a 12.3-inch smart audio centre screen with TomTom navigation, a 6-speaker audio system and 'Apple CarPlay' and 'Android Auto' 'phone integration.
With the Hybrid version - or if you can stretch to the plusher 'K40' version of the all-electric EVX - you'll get a smart powered tailgate, rear privacy glass and 20-inch diamond cut alloy wheels. Plus premium leather seats and a wireless phone charger. The EVX 'K40' gets an around-view camera system too.
Safety kit fitted across the Torres line-up includes autonomous emergency braking, forward collision warning, rear cross-traffic warning, rear side warning, LDW lane departure warning, LKA lane keeping assist, driving attention alert, front vehicle start alert and rear blind spot detection. Plus trailer sway control, speed limit warning, safe exit warning and all the usual front, side and curtain airbags.
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Cost of ownership
For the Torres Hybrid, KGM quotes a 46.1mpg figure on the combined cycle, which isn't anything to write home about when a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid can regularly achieve over 50mpg and a Nissan Qashqai e-POWER over 62mpg. The same could be said of the Torres Hybrid's 139g/km CO2 emissions figure - the class norm from something like a Kia Sportage Hybrid would be something like 130g/km. But comparably-equipped versions of all the rivals just mentioned would cost you significantly more. At least the returns of the petrol/electric Torres are a big step forward from those of the old conventional petrol Torres, which could only manage a dismal 33.2mpg and 194g/km.
As for the EVX full-electric version, well we gave you its EV range figure in our 'Driving' section - 287 miles. This variant DC-charges at 145kW, which isn't very fast, hence the 37 minutes 10-80% DC 100kW charge time (lowered to 28 minutes if you're lucky enough to find a 350kW DC charger). At home, a full AC charge of the EVX using a single-phase 7.4kW wallbox needs 11 hours 30 minutes - which you can reduce to 9 hours if you've a three-phase 11kW supply.
Whatever kind of Torres model you decide upon, perhaps the best bit is the peace of mind that comes as standard with this car thanks to KGM's impressively complete five year 100,000 mile warranty. The insurance group for the Hybrid Torres is 35; it's group 44D or 48D for the all-electric EVX.
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Summary
At a stroke, the Torres makes everything else in the KGM range look a bit 'yesterday'. The brand claims this C+ segment SUV creates 'a new market niche'. It doesn't, but it's an important car for the brand to have, filling the gap between its existing Korando and Rexton models. The Rexton has a niche following, but it's difficult to think of many reasons to buy a Korando, which is why the Torres is so important to the future of this Korean maker. It was the company's first really credible volume SUV and within the range is this manufacturer's first really credible volume electric vehicle. Firsts don't get much more significant than that in the modern automotive era.
We're a little disappointed that the efficiency figures here (even from the Hybrid version) aren't more class-competitive. Still, the exterior design's appealing and the EV variant's value proposition has now been considerably improved. As a result, expect the Torres to vastly out-sell everything else in the KGM range. Whether that's enough for marque profitability is another question.
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