Yahoo Autos Ssangyong previews a new SUV that leaves a Jeep-like aftertaste
South Korea-based Ssangyong Motors released sketches of an upcoming SUV called X200 that will usher in a new design language. While it's surprisingly Jeep-like at first glance, it's also inspired by the firm's heritage.
Officially, the new design language is called "Powered by Toughness." On the X200, it's interpreted by round headlights with LED accents and a blacked-out grille with five diamond-shaped inserts. Big air intakes on either side of the front bumper and a skid plate-like piece of trim add a rugged touch to the look, while a boxy silhouette and squared-off body panels create a design that's closer to an SUV than to a crossover. Of course, it's difficult to judge a car by seeing a pair of sketches, and the version that ends up in showrooms could feature much softer lines.
Jeep uses slats rather than diamonds, yet the X200's front end has a trace of Wrangler-ness to it. That's partly because Ssangyong started building the Jeep CJ-5 under license in its home country in November 1969, and the model evolved into the first-generation Korando in the early 1980s through a complicated latticework of joint ventures and bankruptcies. The second-generation Korando retained a handful of its predecessor's styling cues, some of which are visible in the X200; the horizontal turn signals located on the front fenders, for example.
