KGM Musso Xlv vs Range Rover Evoque

What's the difference?

What new 4x4 dual-cab ute can you buy for $50K these days? Well, if you want to stick with the major players, $50K will only get you into base-model workhorses like the Ford Ranger XL 2.0L auto ($50,880), Toyota HiLux Workmate 2.4L auto ($50,420) or Isuzu D-Max SX ($50,700). And that's list pricing before on-road costs.

However, if you’re prepared to try something different, the same money can let you drive away in the top-shelf model of KGM SsangYong’s MY25 Musso range, which is a 4x4 dual-cab ute that's bursting with luxurious standard equipment.

We recently spent a week behind the wheel to determine if its comparative bargain pricing does not come at the expense of quality or performance.

Range Rover has developed a bit of an image problem in the last few years.

To many the brand is still the face of a quintessentially British aspirational luxurious off-roader. But to a growing group, it has become synonymous with the concept of an environmentally reckless fuel-guzzling SUV.

They’re big, heavy, and still feature V8 engines, but Range Rover knows all too well the writing is on the wall for its increasingly infamous range of combustion vehicles.

The trouble is, customers love them, and while the I-Pace from sister brand Jaguar is a big leap into the future, there needs to be a happy medium for easing some of its existing customers away from combustion, while still offering the kinds of excess and aspirational performance the Range Rover brand is associated with.

Enter this car, the Evoque HSE P300e. It’s a plug-in hybrid, notably only available in the top trim level, with top-shelf performance, too.

Is it the right car to represent Range Rover’s entry-level model at a critical time of technological transformation? Let’s take a look.