Why are you showing me a smoothed-off SsangYong Tivoli?
We're not. This is the SsangYong Smart Interface Vehicle 2 (SIV-2), the Korean brand's Geneva Motor Show star. It's likely to morph into SsangYong's Nissan Qashqai rival, as it's a bit bigger than the Juke-sized Tivoli. And it's a hybrid, pointing the way to a future in which the marque makes a lot of different electric vehicles (EVs).
What drivetrain is it packing?
A 1.5-litre direct injection turbocharged petrol engine with a 10kW (14hp) electric motor added in for good measure. That electric unit is only really designed to eke out fuel and suppress CO2 emissions, but apparently the SIV-2 can run silently at very low speeds. The lithium-ion battery is 500Wh - not kWh, that would be ludicrous - and the hybrid system is a 48-volt set-up. Plug-in and hydrogen EVs from SsangYong could follow, as well as full EVs.
What's inside?
A load of connectivity software, which is why it's called the SIV-2. There's also a woodgrain floor, to, er... fool you into thinking you're on a yacht, while the seats are covered in Alcantara. The headliner and door pillars are clothed in Italian suede.
Any other goodies?
Lights in the doors flash in time to music being played on the in-car entertainment, which features speakers mounted in the SIV-2's bucket seats. Disco goodness.
Matt Robinson - 1 Mar 2016
