KGM Torres EVX review

Is the KGM Torres EVX a good car?

The KGM Torres EVX feels like an old-school EV to drive, but there’s no denying that it offers a huge amount of space for family car buyers, a respectable range versus its main rivals, and an impressive amount of standard kit for the money. 

It’s not the fastest to charge or the most efficient and both of these issues impact its ability to tackle longer road trips when you need to recharge mid journey. The infotainment isn’t the slickest system around, either, but pricing of less than £40k softens some of these shortcomings and also helps the Torres EVX undercut the likes of the Skoda Enyaq, Kia EV6, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Nissan Ariya, and Volkswagen ID.4. 

Model range and specs

The car brand formally known as SsangYong is now known as KGM and post relaunch the firm wasted no time in refreshing its model range. As well as SsangYong’s key strong suits of simple, affordable 4x4s and pick-ups. KGM is also aiming for EV adopters with an all-electric version of its latest family SUV, the KGM Torres.

The Torres EVX, to give it its official title, is a 4.7-metre-long SUV that has the same beefed-up design as the petrol-powered version. The cars share a platform that KGM claims is new, although given that work on the Torres started before the takeover, it’s likely to be linked in some way to older SsangYong tech.

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The same certainly can’t be said for the EVX’s powertrain. KGM needed quick access to a proven set-up, so it turned to Chinese giant BYD and agreed on a joint venture to produce batteries in Korea. As such, the Torres EVX features BYD’s clever ‘blade battery’ design. Capacity stands at 73kWh, although KGM says that a larger 80kWh battery may come to the EVX in due course.

There are just two trim levels available with the Torres EVX, and both come with plenty of goodies for the money. The K30 kicks off the range with 18-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels, full-LED headlights, electrically adjustable and heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, front and rear parking sensors, a 12.3-inch infotainment system with sat-nav, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity, dual-zone climate control, and cruise control.

The range-topping K40 has bigger 20-inch wheels, premium leather upholstery, adaptive cruise control, a 360-degree camera system and a blind-spot monitoring system. You also get a more energy-efficient heat pump as standard to help preserve the driving range in colder winter weather.

Prices

The entry-level KGM Torres EVX K30 starts at the same price as the top-of-the-range, four-wheel-drive petrol Torres - just under £37,000. The most expensive K40 version of the Torres EVX is just shy of £40,000. 

You can lease a KGM Torres or buy a used Torres now through the Auto Express Find a Car service.

Best buys and alternatives

• Our pick: KGM Torres EVX K30

We’d suggest you stick with the entry-level K30 Torres EVX in order to get the best value for money. Unless you really value the increased efficiency in colder weather that comes from its standard heat pump, the K40 isn't worth the extra cash. There’s only one electric motor and battery size in the Torres EVX line-up, so there aren’t any other decisions to make.

A drop in pricing since the Torres EVX was launched made it a more competitive proposition next to the entry-level Nissan Ariya, Skoda Enyaq, and Volkswagen ID.4. The Torres EVX has a longer range than those rivals because of its larger capacity battery pack, but in the case of the Enyaq, it’s only a 26-mile advantage. Plus the Enyaq charges at a faster rate, achieving a 10-80 per cent top-up in 25 minutes, whereas the Torres EVX takes 37 minutes. While that doesn’t sound like much, it can add up if you happen to need to charge multiple times on a journey. The Enyaq is also a more refined EV to drive and has a very well finished interior, justifying its price premium over the KGM.

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The BYD-sourced powertrain for the KGM Torres EVX makes it more powerful than the petrol versions, with 204bhp and 339Nm on tap.

Despite the chunky SUV looks of the Torres, there’s no 4x4 option and all versions come with front-wheel drive. That leads to some traction issues (more on that later), especially if you’re after a car to cope with slippery conditions, such as pulling a caravan out of a wet field. In order to get four-wheel drive, you’ll have to go back to the regular petrol Torres. Alternatively, you could look at the e4orce version of Nissan Ariya or the Skoda Enyaq Sportline 85x. 

Performance, 0-60mph acceleration and top speed

Actually achieving the claimed 0-62mph time of 8.1 seconds in the real world might prove tricky because from the off, the Torres EVX feels very much like an older-generation EV. The core suspension set-up is pretty stiff – probably necessary to cope with a kerbweight of more than 1,900kg – and this, coupled with a sensitive accelerator pedal, means that the car will spin its front wheels all too easily, even on a bone-dry road. This is in the normal Comfort driving mode, too; changing to Sport increases the wheelspin to almost comical levels. Switching to the Eco setting makes the throttle less sensitive and modulation easier to the point where it becomes a little more straightforward to drive the Torres EVX smoothly.

A top speed of 109mph is more than enough for our 70mph speed limit.   

Town driving, visibility and parking

The light steering at low speeds helps when parking the Torres EVX, while the high driving position and relatively narrow windscreen pillars afford a decent view ahead when navigating through parked cars on tight streets. Performance is noticeably stronger than the petrol Torres, allowing you to nip into gaps in the traffic with confidence. The ride is fidgety over smaller bumps at low speeds, and impacts with speed bumps are more jarring than they would be in the more comfortable Skoda Enyaq.

We also had issues with the regenerative braking system on our test drive. In cars like the Tesla Model Y and the Nissan Ariya with its e-Pedal system, the braking effect when you release the throttle is strong enough to allow for one-pedal driving - you hardly have to use the brake. That isn’t the case with the Torres EVX, no matter which of the varying levels of strength you choose using the paddles behind the steering wheel.

Another issue we found when slowing down on the approach to junctions or roundabouts is that the Torres braking system doesn’t offer the level of control you’d want. There’s a lag between you lifting off the accelerator pedal and the regen system kicking in, making driving in traffic difficult. You have to be aware of that lag if you need to slow for a vehicle in front that’s braking, and ultimately, it's easier to do the braking yourself.

B-road driving and handling

We found the steering to be accurate enough for a relatively large SUV on country roads, so you can build up confidence with the car and carry a bit of speed into corners, although you need to be careful with your accelerator inputs because it is all too easy to lose traction, spinning the front wheels and causing the traction control to get involved. 

The stiff suspension of the Torres EVX leads to a feeling like your head is being jostled from side to side over rough roads. It makes the Torres EVX feel like something Hyundai or Kia were producing five years ago. Some of our road testers felt that the ride is particularly crashy on impacts with bigger bumps, while the weight of the car causes the body to lean in the bends and pitch forward under heavy braking.

Motorway driving and long-distance comfort

There’s enough power for the electric Torres to keep up with the flow of traffic on a motorway, with minimal electric-motor whine. However, we did notice that the rather odd plastic handles on the bonnet generate quite a lot of wind rustle at 70mph.

Expert view

“It doesn't feel like the noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) is any better than the KGM Musso pick-up, because the Torres EVX is so crashy when it hits a big bump” -Alex Ingram, Chief reviewer, after driving the Torres EVX on a variety of UK roads

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In common with the rest of the KGM range, the Torres EVX looks like a lot of car for the money. Running costs shouldn't break the bank either, although it's not at the head of the class when compared with other EVs of its size.  

Electric range, battery life and charge time

While the company has suggested that the Torres EVX might be available in the future with a larger battery pack, for now, you get a 73.4kWh useable pack with a range of 287 miles between charges. On a cold day doing plenty of stop/start driving on high-speed country roads, we only saw an efficiency high of 2.6 miles/per kW/h, which suggests a sub 200-mile range. However, we anticipate that figure should be better in warmer weather, and at lower speeds where there’s more chance of using regenerative braking to put some electricity back into the battery as you’re slowing the car down. 

The Torres EVX has a maximum charging rate of 145kW, potentially taking the battery from 10 to 80 per cent capacity in 37 minutes. That’s not bad, but the Skoda Enyaq charges at an even faster 165kW, and along with its smaller battery, this means shorter 25-minute top-ups.

Insurance groups

Insurance costs for EVs generally tend to be higher than for a traditional petrol or diesel car, and this is also the case for the Torres EVX. While the standard petrol Torres is in group 33, the EVX is in group 48. That’s also a lot higher than the E-3008, which starts in group 32.

Tax

Being powered by electricity means that the Torres EVX will curry favour with company-car drivers, but as with every other zero-emission model, the Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) tax band is up from two to three per cent from April 2025. 

EV owners will have to pay road tax from April 2025 onwards, too. The one benefit of the Torres EVX’s sub £40,000 pricing means you’ll only have to pay the standard VED tax rate, rather than the luxury car supplementary tax of anything that’s over this price threshold.  

Depreciation

Residual values, according to our experts, suggest the Torres EVX will maintain around 44 per cent of its original value after three years or 36,000 miles. That’s not quite as high as the 49 per cent the Peugeot E-3008 is predicted to hang on to, but that’s offset by the fact that the Torres EVX costs less than the Peugeot to begin with.

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As with the regular petrol KGM Torres, you get bonnet-mounted grab handles and roof rails to give the impression of this being a tough SUV, but the front of the EVX does differ slightly from the petrol model. Due to the electric EVX not needing as much cooling, it doesn’t have its sibling’s front grille. Instead, you get a light bar across the nose, with the middle part divided into sections to give the impression of a traditional grille. The headlights are also mounted lower in the bumper than with the petrol model, giving the electric version a different look at night.

Interior and dashboard design

Just as with the KGM Actyon, the Torres has a pair of 12.5-inch displays, with the driver’s one dealing with speed and trip information, and the central display controlling most of the car’s functions. It’s an uncluttered look, but we’d prefer more physical dials and buttons, especially for things like climate control, because it makes simple tasks like adjusting the temperature more distracting on the move than they ought to be. Even the often criticised interior of the Volkswagen ID.4 has a panel of touch-sensitive controls close to the steering wheel so you don’t always have to delve into the screen in order to switch on certain important functions, such as the windscreen demister.

Materials and build quality

The rest of the dashboard has a good level of perceived quality, especially for the money. Most of the dash is trimmed in soft-touch materials, with cheaper-looking hard plastics well hidden on the lower areas of the interior. The copper-coloured interior trim also looks the part and is a welcome variation from the endless piano black plastic utilised by so many rivals.

Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

While going all-in on screens gives the Torres EVX a less fussy interior style, it hasn’t quite worked out as well as it could have. The issue is that the screen is laggy, taking too long to switch between menus or accept inputs, which contributes further to the issue of it being distracting while driving.

You’ll need to spend some time learning the layout, because switching off the speed limit warning is a more involved process than it ought to be, and the Torres could really do with a big ‘favourites’ button located on the steering wheel, like you’ll find on the KGM Actyon. This lets you save shortcuts to your most used features.

Unlike in the petrol Torres, the entry-level K30 has sat-nav as standard, but you can also connect your phone to the car if you prefer to use a navigation app instead. Just be aware that you’ll have to use a cable to connect to Android Auto, and even though we did use a cable to connect to Apple CarPlay on our test, the connection still dropped out once and the phone needed to be unplugged and plugged back in again to restore the link. The car’s sound system does a decent job, but there’s no option for a fancier set-up, unlike in many of the Torres’ rivals. Wireless phone charging comes as standard across the entire Torres EVX line-up. 

Expert view 

“It took me a long while to work out that there’s a hidden menu at the top of the screen you need to swipe down to see in order to change the drive modes and switch off the auto hold function.”
… - Max Adams, online reviews editor, after testing the car on a variety of roads in Bedfordshire, UK.

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The Torres EVX is a boxy five-door SUV, and looks much more like a traditional 4x4 than more svelte rivals like the Skoda Enyaq – especially in the latter’s more streamlined Skoda Enyaq Coupe variant.

The Torres has a relatively high driving position, and the long flat bonnet gives the impression that you’re driving a substantial vehicle. While you might consider the stuck-on bonnet grab handles a bit odd, you can use them as a gauge of width when driving down a narrow street.

It’s really the amount of space inside the Torres EVX that’s its USP. We think it’s perhaps a missed opportunity not to provide additional seating in the rear, because the car is certainly big enough to accommodate seven people, but has only five seats.

Dimensions and size

At 4,705mm in length, the Torres EVX is a little bit longer than a Nissan Ariya and Skoda Enyaq. It’s also taller than those rivals, contributing to its more commanding driving position that makes you feel that you’re driving a proper SUV. The Torres is also wider, so you’ll need to keep that in mind if you live on a narrow street.

Driving position, seats, & space in the front

Still, not trying to squeeze in more seats does mean that everyone will have plenty of head-, knee- and leg-room. All versions come with electric adjustment for the front seats, so it’s easy to find a comfortable position. You can’t get memory settings for the driver’s seat, which might be an issue if you share the car with someone else of different stature.

Sitting in the front, there’s plenty of head, leg, and shoulder room for a pair of six-foot adults in the front, and there are a number of large storage areas to place odds and ends. The area directly under the gear selector isn’t covered and wouldn’t be suitable for valuable items if you’re leaving them in the car.

Seats & space in the back

There’s a small central tunnel that the middle-seat occupant will need to straddle, but it’s unlikely to cause a major issue if you have to put three people in the back on a longer trip. A member of the test team just under six foot found there was plenty of head- and leg-room, so we expect that anyone over six-foot should still be able to sit comfortably without bashing the head into the roof or find their knees buried into the seat in front of them. There’s enough space to slide a pair of size 10 feet under the front seats.

Anyone looking to put child seats in a Torres EVX can utilise the two ISOFIX points on the outer positions of the rear bench, although anyone hoping to find an additional child seat mounting point on the front passenger seat will need to look towards the Skoda Enyaq. You can also keep the sun off those in the back of top-spec K40 models with the handy retractable sun blinds fitted into the rear door cards.

Boot space

The KGM Torres EVX boot is an impressive-sounding 839 litres, which is even more than the standard petrol Torres. When testing the load area, we found that the luggage area isn’t as usable as that headline figure suggests because the space available under the retractable tonneau cover isn’t all that generous and a lot of the quoted volume is actually between that cover and the roof. It’s fine if you can pile your cargo high but isn’t that great when trying to keep taller items in the boot covered and away from prying eyes. 

There is further room beneath the floor for charging cable storage, but KGM hasn’t added any additional storage features to sort or secure loads, such as a cargo net or ‘curry hooks’. In the end, you get a huge box in which to throw items, but you will hear them rolling around.

Towing 

The towing capacity is impressive for an EV, at 1,500kg for a braked trailer or caravan. That’s significantly up on rivals such as the Volkswagen ID.4 and Skoda Enyaq. It can’t quite match the smaller Volvo EX30, which can manage up to 1,600kg in some configurations.

Expert view

“To its credit, I would say that the rear seat space in the Torres EVX is brilliant - head room is about as generous as any car I've measured" - Alex Ingram, Chief reviewer, after driving the car on a variety of UK roads.

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With the Torres EVX being a new car, we don’t have any Driver Power customer satisfaction survey information. It does use battery technology and an electric motor from BYD and while the Chinese brand may not be all that well known in the UK yet, it has been making EVs for a long time. We would hope its electric expertise will pay dividends for KGM. 

If anything does go wrong, the car is backed up by a seven-year/90,000 mile warranty, which also guarantees that the battery will retain 70 per cent capacity over that period. Perceived build quality appears to be pretty good and the SsangYong brand, as KGM was previously known, has been making rugged 4x4s and pick-ups for decades, so we anticipate that the Torres should stand up to the rigors of everyday life well.

The Torres or the electric Torres EVX haven’t been crash-tested by Euro NCAP yet, but we expect that the model should get a solid score in both forms, given that it comes with a long list of standard safety technology. On the whole, the EVX follows the regular Torres, although you don’t get blind-spot monitoring as standard on the K30 EVX as you do with the equivalent K30 petrol Torres. For that safety aid, you’ll need to go for the top-of-the-range K40 trim.

All the basic stuff is covered, such as autonomous emergency braking to help prevent or mitigate collisions with pedestrians, vehicles or cyclists at low speeds. Traffic sign recognition is also standard, helping to keep you informed of the speed limit on the road you’re driving on.