Ssangyong Torres vs BMW X1

What's the difference?

The KGM SsangYong Torres Adventure feels fresh-faced and offers competitive pricing and ongoing costs. Some of the technology could use a little tweaking but the cabin is practical and you get a fair amount of luxury features for its price tag. Value is assured and this is one to consider.

This new BMW X1 feels like it's been built by a team of parents because it’s one of the most practical and easy to use small SUVs my family and I have ever lived with and, trust me, they’ve seen a lot of test cars come through the Berry garage.

We loved the roomy interior with high ceilings, the clever storage everywhere from the giant door pockets to the floating centre armrest up front and big boot for our pram.

Entry and exit is easy through the tall and wide doors, something my back was thankful for every time I had to put our baby into her car seat.

Driving is easy, with great visibility and the engine that comes in the xDrive20i M Sport makes this X1 sporty and fun to pilot, too.  

The only drawback is the price, it's a bit expensive but at the same time you are getting a high-quality feeling SUV.

Despite sharing similar underpinnings to the Korando, the Torres is its own model when it comes to design.

It seems to borrow from a few different sources and there are some Kia Sportage and Land Rover Defender elements that are easy to see once you start looking closely.

It's refreshing to see such a bold and personality-rich design in this segment but there is a tendency to favour form over function.

There are handles on the bonnet which serve no purpose, a fake ‘wheel cover’ design on the rear (which is annoyingly off-centre) and a bunch of fake vents scattered across the car.

It looks like an SUV you would take off road but if this was a movie, it would be the actor instead of the stunt double.

Head inside and you'll find a gorgeous cabin with copper accent panels, thick soft-touchpoints and black synthetic leather trims.

The dashboard features contrasting stitching in copper and is headlined by a massive display panel that houses the dual 12.3-inch technology panels that look awesome.

Despite still featuring a few notes of harder plastics, the cabin still feels high-end and well-built. Although it has the largest steering wheel I’ve seen in the segment.

This current generation of X1 arrived in late 2022 and finally looked more like part of the BMW SUV family with tall and boxy styling rather than the sleek, but raised hatchback it seemed to be before.

My test car had 'M Portimao Blue' metallic paint - a flattering hue that showed off the X1’s lines as you can see in the images.

I like the X1’s oversized grille which suits the angry looking front bumper that comes with the M Sport inclusions, but balanced by pretty headlights.

Inside, the X1 xDrive20i M Sport is modern and minimalist in design. I like the floating centre armrest in between the driver and front passenger and the way it creates a feeling of more space and adds more storage.

The double screens are nice, but we’re seeing this same design and tech now in budget cars such as the Chery Omoda 5 and Haval H6. BMW needs to be even slicker and more stylish if it wants to maintain its edge.  

If you like your SUVs sporty looking then check out the BMW X2, X4 and X6. These are coupe style SUVs (but with four doors).

The cabin of the Torres almost defies its mid-size tag because there is oodles of space for taller occupants. Both rows feature excellent access with the 195mm ground clearance and wide door apertures. My eight-year-old son loved his view this week and didn’t have any issue climbing in and out.

Despite lacking lumbar support, seat comfort is best in the front and fatigue doesn't set in too quickly on longer journeys. The rear row offers plenty of under-bum padding but the backs are decidedly flat, expect a bit of movement from passengers in corners.

There are lots of storage options with a glovebox that can house a manual, mid-sized middle console, shelf underneath the centre console, six drink bottle holders, four cup holders and a phone tray.

The boot has a great luggage capacity of up to 703L when all seats are in use and the rear row has a 60/40 split to open up storage options if you need to.

The touchscreen multimedia system is a bit too simple in terms of its information and customisation. It's responsive but functionality isn't always the best. Music playing over Bluetooth hardly ever connects automatically, you have to select the Bluetooth function which is annoying while on the go. The radio is pretty crappy as it rarely picks up any stations and when it does there is a lot of static.

You do get wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, with the CarPlay easy enough to connect to.

Charging options are good with four USB-C ports and two 12-volt sockets, one of which is located in the boot. But you do miss out on a wireless charging pad in this grade.

The rear row features enough amenities to keep occupants happy, like the charging options, directional air vents, armrest and map pockets but my son said it was hard to position the air vents to blow air directly on to him.

My family found the X1 xDrive20i to be one of the most practical small SUVs we’ve lived with thanks to its spacious interior, clever cabin storage and plenty of convenient features.

I need to point out the door pockets - they’re the biggest I’ve ever seen. They’re more door buckets than pockets and super helpful over the week not just for bottles but for everything else that I needed to dump out of my own pockets and into them.

The floating centre armrest up front looks like an ironing board and has a tonne of storage underneath.

The wireless charging is handy but the holster is a bit un-user friendly in terms of access, but it held the phone tight and stopped it becoming a projectile when driving, which is what you want.

There are power outlets galore, too, proximity unlocking, and a gesture tailgate.

Legroom in the back is excellent and there’s so much headroom throughout. 

The X1’s 540-litre boot capacity is excellent for the class and meant we could fit our baby’s big pram and the seven-year old’s scooter and still have room for the grocery shopping.

In the space of driving this SUV and writing this review the list price of the X1 xDrive20i M Sport has risen from $68,900 to $73,400. 

That price hike was part of an increase across the model range and all grades now cost more, even the entry-level sDrive18i which is now 13K less than the xDrive20i M Sport.

But you’re paying for the more powerful, athletic and only all-wheel drive one in the X1 range. 

You’re also getting loads of standard features in the xDrive20i M Sport. 

There’s the 10.25-inch instrument display with three different styles for your speedo and other gauges, while flowing into that is the 10.7-inch media screen with sat nav, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and digital radio. 

There are LED headlights, plus proximity unlocking, a head-up display, dual-zone climate control, a power tailgate, sports seats (the front ones are heated and power adjustable) and adaptive cruise control.

As the name suggests the xDrive20i M Sport is fitted with BMW M Sport goodies as standard. These include adaptive M Suspension, M leather steering wheel, M roof rails, M headliner and M interior trim. 

My test car also had $8900 worth of options fitted including the sunroof, Harman Kardon stereo, the ‘Vernasca Black’ leather seats and 20-inch M light alloy multi-spoke wheels.

Is it good value? Well, you do get a lot of nice things here but at a $13,000 premium over the entry grade, plus the $3500 price jump in the past few weeks, I’d say the value isn’t great.

If you’re trying to keep the cost down, the sDrive18i is the budget pick. 

All Torres models share the same 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine but the Adventure model is a front-wheel drive, and the only grade that has an all-wheel drive is the Ultimate.

This is surprising as the Adventure moniker would suggest AWD capability ... so you could actually go adventuring.

The Torres offers up to 120kW of power and 280Nm of torque, and features a smooth six-speed auto transmission which is enough to ensure that it is is a pleasant open-roader.

The X1 xDrive20i M Sport has a more powerful engine than the grades below it in the range - it’s a 2.0-litre, turbo-petrol, four-cylinder making 150kW and 300Nm.

A seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission does the shifting for you.   

This is also the only all-wheel drive X1 currently in the range.

The official combined fuel cycle figure is 7.4L/100km and based on its 50L fuel tank, you should see a theoretical driving range of up to 676km. That’s not the best range we’ve seen in this segment but it’s still respectable for the odd longer road trip.

After doing a good mix of open-road and urban driving this week, I’ve managed a real world usage of  7.7L which is a great result overall.

BMW says that after a combination of open and urban roads the X1 xDrive20i M Sport will use 7.4L/100km.

In my own testing my driving was mainly city and suburban, which uses quite a lot of fuel. We did dashes to birthday parties, the grocery shopping, school drop offs and all of it in busy traffic.  

I recorded 8.9L/100km, but that’s not overly thirsty considering I was carrying two car seats with children, and all the gear that goes with them. 

A small 45 litre tank means the xDrive 20i M Sport has a range of about 608km, which is on the shorter side.

When it comes to power and its delivery, the Torres is willing but never spritely. It’s a bit sluggish off the mark and the auto-stop/start feature doesn't help but there is a decent well of power to dip into once you get going, making this a solid open-roader.

The steering can feel a bit wishy-washy on a winding road but there’s surprisingly not that much roll. Suspension is good without feeling floaty and you’re not bothered by the bigger bumps.

Visibility is good most of the time but occasionally the passenger side A-pillar can hinder, at least from my driving position. The back window is a smidge too small for my liking, especially on an SUV of this size.

The Torres doesn’t feel too big to park and the reversing camera is clear and features dynamic guidelines but all SUVs should have a 360-degree system, considering their bulk.

Only a week before testing the X1 xDrive20i M Sport I’d been reviewing a BMW 330e and going from the 3 Series to the SUV was like changing my seating position from being in a bathtub to sitting on a bar stool. 

Actually, the X1’s seat is far more comfortable than a stool and the refined quality is what you’d expect from BMW.

But compared to the low slung 330e the visibility and the upright driving angle of the X1 is very different.

It’s something you want in an SUV that puts practicality before performance.

As much as I liked the sporty sedan, as a dad I preferred being able to see better when parking in the X1, and this made life a lot easier.

Easy is a good word to describe what the X1 xDrive20i M Sport is like to drive - from that visibility to the light steering, comfortable ride and that great engine with all-wheel drive.

That 2.0-litre four-cylinder has more than enough grunt to run up the steep hills in my neighbourhood without struggling, the transmission is smooth and the all-wheel drive system adds a bit more reassurance in the wet weather.

All of this makes for an easy, enjoyable drive. 

The X1xDrive20i M Sport like all X1s scored the maximum five-star ANCAP rating in 2022.

A score of 88 per cent was given to child protection and the ANCAP report found that a 10-year old and six-year old in the second row had adequate to good protection in a front offset collision and a side impact. 

For child seats there are two ISOFIX points and three top tether anchor mounts across the second row.

As you would expect from a model that’s hasn’t even been around a year yet, the X1 xDrive20i M Sport has the very latest in advanced safety tech.

There’s AEB which is operational from 5.0km/h to 210km/h and also works at road junctions. There’s lane keeping assistance, blind-spot warning and rear cross-traffic alert. 

There are curtain airbags for front and rear passengers, a centre airbag for the driver and co-pilot along with frontal airbags plus side chest and side pelvis airbags.

The Torres comes with a seven-year/unlimited kilometre warranty which is great for the class and a seven-year capped-price servicing program for $2678, at an average of $383 per service, which is very reasonable.

Intervals are good at every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever occurs first.

The X1 xDrive20i M Sport is covered by BMW’s five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty.

A five-year/80,000km service plan through BMW will cost $2150. You’ll be looking to pay an average of $430 per service every 12 months.