• It’s massive
• Seven seats as standard
• A whopping 1,806 litres of boot space

How much space is there?

There is so much space in the KGM Rexton, no matter what parameter you’re after. All Rextons come with seven seats as standard, and there won’t be any grumbling from any occupant due to a lack of elbow, head, or legroom. The space up front is excellent, with the cavernous centre console, tall roofline, and big windows making it feel huge from behind the wheel.

The second row is also spacious. Again, head and legroom are generous, and even the middle seat — normally the short straw for space — is roomy. It’s nice and wide, so a central-sitting occupant shouldn’t be rubbing shoulders with the outer passengers. They’re all sure to appreciate the nearly flat floor and the extra foot space it affords.

25

The third row is arguably the most impressive. The usual knees-kissing-ears isn’t applicable here. Our six-foot tester could sit rather comfortably here without crumpled knees or much complaining. Access to the rear row is cumbersome for our six-footer despite the rear doors opening wide. A shorter individual would have no trouble getting in and out.

Boot space and storage

The boot space with all seven seats in place is average for the class at 240 litres. This is larger than the Toyota Land Cruiser and its paltry 130 litres, but it is far from the class-leading Skoda Kodiaq and its 340 litres of space.

The Rexton is at its best in five-seat mode. With the third seating row stowed, there is 872 litres of space. Fold all the rear seats flat, and the amount of available space swells to 1,806 litres. It’s still shy of the Skoda Kodiaq’s 2,105 litres of space, but it is still impressive.

25

There’s also a two-position boot board, which raises the level of the boot floor to eliminate the lip up to the third seating row’s backrests. The middle row has a typical 60/40 split-folding arrangement and, disappointingly, no load-through hatch.

Owing to its massive size, KGM has found loads of space inside for storage. There’s a gigantic cubby in the central armrest, deep door bins, and a tray in the centre console large enough for a modern smartphone. Those in the rear are well-catered for, too. Second-row passengers get similarly cavernous door bins and accommodating pouches on the rear of the front seats. The rear-most set of seats even gets scratchy trays to let things rattle about in.

Is it easy to park?

The Rexton is nearly five metres long and nearly two metres wide, so don’t expect to palm it into a multi-story in any hurry. However, visibility is good and the mirrors are big and easily adjustable. The slab sides and short overhangs also make this less cumbersome than its size would lead you to believe.

All models come with standard front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera. The range-topping K50 features a 360-degree parking camera, which, in our testing, makes manoeuvring even easier.

Safety

• The Rexton hasn’t been tested by Euro NCAP
• Lots of standard assistance technology
• Slew of airbags line the car

Euro NCAP hasn’t tested the Rexton for safety, so we don’t have any information about how it’ll perform in an accident. However, you get lots of kit, such as autonomous emergency braking, lane-departure warning, a speed limit warning, cruise control and seatbelt pre-tensioners.

The Rexton features forward and side airbags for the driver and front passenger, side airbags for rear-seat passengers, and curtain airbags running the length of the vehicle. The amount of equipment is impressive on paper, but the fact that it doesn’t have an official Euro NCAP score is a turn-off. When the likes of the Hyundai Santa Fe and Kia Sorento can boast five-star scores, the lack of any score makes the Rexton a tougher sale.

It’s also worth noting the K30 spec doesn’t include blind spot detection or rear cross traffic warning, you’ll need K40 or K50 for these safety features.