Remember the Korean cars in Bangkok pre-1997 Asian economic "tom yam kung" crisis--the Daewoos, the Hyundais, the KIA's and the Ssanyong's? The new Koreans were affordable and compact city cars, including a monster SUV, one of the first sport utility vehicles in Thailand: Ssanyong Musso.

After the economic bubble burst, Daewoo vanished from Thai shores, and today three Korean brands are available: KIA, Hyundai making a strong comeback, and Ssangyong.

The name Ssangyong means "twin dragons". The initial S was doubled to correspond to the duality of the name. Currently, the Ssangyong model line-up in Thailand consists of the Actyon, the Kyron, the Rexton, and the Stavic--all imported vehicles or CBUs ("completely built ups" in motoring babble). Ssangyong (Thailand) Co., Ltd. boasts 3 showrooms and service centers in Bangkok, Chonburi and Phuket.

The demo unit provided for Phuket Post was the metallic space black Ssangyong Stavic, a premium multipurpose vehicle (MPV). It's not only a passenger car but also a super-sized MPV measuring an impressive 5.1 metres and powered by a silky smooth Mercedes Benz 6-cylinder 3.2-litre engine.
The looks or the body design of Stavic may be unorthodox and funky to some, but they are unique and stylish to others. Ssangyong, Korea's fourth largest automaker, calls it "neo-fusion design". The vehicle was designed by Ken Greenley, former head of the automotive design course at the Royal College of Art in London.

Stavic's interior reveals an impressive passenger carrying capacity. Laid out like a miniature tour bus, it has four rows of seats with 3 configurations possible. Depending on how seats are folded for cargo space, the Stavic can carry 7, 9 or eleven people. For longer journeys the 7-seater is the best option as it offers room for luggage.

The cabin is luxuriously appointed with high-grade porous beige or grey leather, plush carpets, a mix of wood and alloy panels plus the essential ingredients: CD cases, a sunglasses holder, one-touch pop-out cup holders, power outlets and front and rear grab handles. The second row has a 180-degree swivel seat. To cool you down, there are separate air vents with individual controls for the second and third row passengers.

Onboard entertainment consists of a Ssangyong premium audiovisual package with a one-touch CD/DVD player and MP3 tuner with front and rear video monitors. (For safety, the front monitor automatically cuts out as soon as the car starts moving.) The DVD screen is also connected to a reverse parking camera, handy when backing up into tight spaces.

All audio and video controls are steering wheel mounted. Other cool features include a power sun roof, or "moon roof" as we prefer to call it here in tropical Thailand, and a fuel saving cruise-control feature for those long highway trips.

Under the bonnet lurks a grey-and-black, matte, state-of-the-art quiet-and-powerful Mercedes Benz 3.2-litre 6-banger motor pumping out 220 horsepower. It's mated to a silky smooth 5-speed Mercedes Benz automatic box with a T-tronic manual shift option, the same as in a Porsche.
The engine performance was confirmed during a brief high-speed test when we managed to touch the 195kph mark on the speedometre. Overtaking cars on the highway was safe and effortless thanks to the powerful German engine. Stavic's thirst for fuel was approximately 8-9 kilometres per litre during our test drive, normal for a V-6 petrol engine.

Our demo wagon came with the whole safety package: driver and passenger airbags, front electronic brake force distribution (EDB), an antilock braking system (ABS) and a traction control system (TCS) plus double wishbone suspension in front.

Since the Stavic carries up to eleven passengers, the import tax is only 40% while other 7-seater MPVs face 80% import duty plus excise duty. That's why the Benz and the Volk vans are priced over 3 million baht but the Stavic sells at 1.9 million baht, the diesel version at 1.7 million baht.
Our road test was conducted along the Bangkok-Chiang Mai northbound trunk road, also known as Asian Highway 2.

Stavic's independent 4-wheel suspension and the smooth V-6 propulsion worked wonders. And the kids: no more "are we there yet?" The DVD player played on without any interruptions. No jumps. Crystal clear picture and stereo sound as we watched Disney's Ratatouille. Driver and passengers were all happy campers, on our arrival at the green hills of Kong Lan National Park in Kampheng Pet Province.

Stavic is a shining star powered by another star, the Stuttgart 3-pointed Mercedes silky-6 Wonder Motor. A 5-star 7-seater for the extended family going to the beach or traveling long distance.
T.B.V. Auto Service is the authorized Ssangyong dealer on Phuket. The T.B.V. showroom is located on Chaofa Road opposite Villa California.