Ssangyong Musso Pricing and Specs

There’s a couple of things to look for here. The first is pretty fundamental and relates to how the caravan is loaded and set up. You need to check that the two-ball down-load has not exceeded its maximum (usually 10 per cent of the towed load, so about 270kg in this case). And how is the van loaded beyond that? Are there full water tanks on board? Is the bulk of the mass inside as close to the axles as possible and not stacked in the extreme front or rear of the van?

Swaying and a light front end are classic signs of a poorly loaded or set-up rig. But they’re also dangerous and contribute to many serious caravan crashes every year.

The air-bags are another matter altogether. If these are not correctly set up and adjusted, they can cause more problems than they fix. The best advice would be to visit a caravan and suspension specialist, have the rig weighed axle by axle to determine the total mass and how it’s distributed. From there, you need to listen to what the specialist has to say and be prepared to make some changes on how you set up to tow. But even set up correctly, a 2.7-tonne caravan is getting pretty close to the practical maximum for a SsangYong Musso.

My experience has generally been that Ssangyong is a brand with decent reliability. Many people think it’s a Chinese brand, but it’s actually a South Korean company. And when you look at the other South Korean car-makers we see here – Hyundai and Kia – you can see that the country makes some fine vehicles with great reliability and durability.

You’re right about that warranty, too; at seven years of factory cover, it’s one of the best (if not the best) in the business. You’re also right about the relative value-for-money equation. The Ssangyong seems like a lot of vehicle for the money.

Perhaps the only thing that might make you think twice would be the supply of spare and service parts. That said, in 2022, that problem is afflicting a lot of mainstream companies and volume sellers as well as the smaller brands. And from what I can gather, this problem is a bigger one for the Chinese brands than some of the others.

A Musso has a towing capacity of 3500kg (with a braked trailer) so a 1200kg caravan should not trouble it one bit. Take the Musso for a test drive and decide for yourself, but we reckon, after a D22 Navara, you’ll be amazed at how good a modern dual-cab ute can be at this price-point.

The one thing you haven’t told me, Graham, is whether your Musso has a manual or automatic gearbox. If it’s a manual, my suspicions would be with the clutch. If a clutch plate is damaged or worn, the clutch sometimes doesn’t fully disengage. That can lead to the gearbox not wanting to select gears from standstill with the engine running.

However, if the transmission is an automatic, then you could, indeed, be looking at a low transmission-fluid level. Unfortunately, the automatic gearbox in this vehicle doesn’t have a dipstick for easy checking of the level, so the first thing to do is take a look underneath the car to see if there are any leaks form the transmission. If there are signs of a fluid leak, then the vehicle needs to go to a transmission shop to have its level checked and the leak fixed.

Overall, the automatic transmission in the Musso Sport was a solid unit, but it’s now getting on a bit in years, so who knows what state the inside of the transmission is in. If you’re lucky, it will just need a service and a new filter and fluid. But there could be a lot more going on inside. Automatic transmissions rely on simple principles but very complicated assemblies. The valve body is a great example: While it relies on relative hydraulic pressure to choose a gear, the reality is a hugely complex circuit of hydraulic passages and valves.