Ssangyong Tivoli vs BYD Shark 6

What's the difference?

Did you know SsangYong translates to ‘Double Dragon’?

How friggin’ cool is that? Far cooler, at least, than the Korean brand’s history, which the word ‘tumultuous’ barely begins to cover.

After years of ownership woes and a near-bankruptcy, the brand came out the other side with enough stability to field a range of new vehicles, courtesy of its ambitious new owners - Indian giant Mahindra & Mahindra.

The Tivoli small SUV is the first car to launch under the new, cashed-up leadership and when it landed in Korea in 2015 it was solely responsible for the ‘Double Dragon’ brand turning its first profit in nine years.

Fast forward a few years, and a re-booted SsangYong is again confident enough to enter the Australian market, with a four-pronged, all-new SUV assault.

So, does the Tivoli have what it takes to break into our highly competitive small-SUV scene and help SsangYong pull a miraculous Korean turn-around, a-la-Hyundai?

I spent a week in the mid-spec Tivoli ELX diesel to find out.

The BYD Shark 6 Premium has burst onto the scene with plenty of hype and a bit of side-eye from Aussie ute loyalists. 

We’re a tough crowd, especially when it comes to vehicles that need to juggle family life, work gear, and weekend adventures. 

So we put this handsome newcomer to the test to see whether it delivers genuine practicality and fun, or if it’s simply talking the talk in a ute-shaped body.