We’ve seen a number of manufacturers rowing back on their touchscreen-laden dash designs of late and it appears the news has reached KGM – judging from the newly facelifted Torres.
The Torres has only been on sale here in the UK since 2024, shortly after KGM’s rebranding from SsangYong. The updated car has only been spotted in Korea so far, but we expect it to arrive in the UK shortly to provide fresh competition to the Skoda Kodiaq and Nissan X-Trail.
There’s not too much change on the outside – just a new front bumper and reshaped grille with horizontal slats. The side air intakes have also been changed, as has the ‘Torres’ badge embossed just below the upper intake. The blocky LED headlight signature, which imitates the fascia of the old SsangYong Korando from the nineties, is retained.
As part of KGM’s rugged branding, the Torres features faux protective plates on both bumpers and they’ve been redesigned as part of these revisions. For Korean-market cars there’s extra designs of alloy wheels, fold-out tables for rear passengers, a ‘multi umbrella stand’ mounted inside the bootlid and even a uniquely shaped air mattress.
Something we found irritating on the original Torres was the lack of physical controls for frequently operated functions such as the window demister. So it’s a relief that KGM appears to have taken our suggestions to heart and fitted a set of rotary dials in the centre of the dash for the Torres’ climate controls, plus heated and ventilated seats.
There’s also a chunkier gearshift selector on the centre console and the four-spoke steering wheel has been replaced by a two-spoke design.
In the Korean market, the car’s engines remain untouched – and we expect the same of the Torres here in the UK. The pure-petrol 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder with 161bhp was previously axed, so alongside the all-electric Torres EVX there’s still the Torres Hybrid with a 1.5-litre turbocharged unit mated to an electric motor for 174bhp and a 0-62mph time of nine seconds.
The Torres Hybrid currently starts from £35,995 in the UK, though you can enjoy an average saving of £1,250 when you buy via the Auto Express Buy A Car service.
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