• Petrol engines offer reasonable fuel economy
• But hybrid-powered rivals are cheaper to run
• Mechanicals have proved to be reliable

What are the running costs?

The Tivoli petrols aren’t great at the pumps, wioth the most economical option is a 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol – and it’s not all that frugal. Officially, SsangYong said the engine will return 40.4mpg on the WLTP combined cycle.

SsangYong’s 1.5-litre engine is less frugal than the 1.2-litre unit, returning an official WLTP fuel economy figure of 40.1mpg when coupled with the six-speed manual gearbox and a disappointing 36.9mpg when paired with the automatic. In the real world, though, you won’t get anywhere near these figures.

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Our test car’s trip computer showed an average fuel economy figure of 22.5mpg, which is very poor for a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine – even one without mild-hybrid assistance. Even when driving carefully, the real-time gauge bumbled around the low-to-mid 30mpg region.

Servicing and warranty

SsangYong clawed back a bit of kudos here because the Tivoli was offered with a seven-year/150,000-mile warranty, so buying one used means you’re likely to still have some balance on that.

Buyers could also opt for SsangYong’s three-year service plan, which covered the cost of the Tivoli’s first three scheduled services and its first MOT for 34 monthly payments of £19.99. This was transferrable.

Reliability

• The Tivoli has proved itself reliable
• Long warranty – so it probably won’t break before that’s up
• Only a couple of minor recalls from launch

Our owners’ reviews section attests to this – generally, buyers are pleased with the car’s reliability. There have been a couple of Friday models that have wormed their way on the market, but the issues they’ve had (such as one car needing to be completely rewired) have been covered under warranty. It’s annoying to have the problem fixed, but at least SsangYong held its hands up and admitted its mistakes.

Recalls are few and far between. Some early cars had issues with the fuel pipes in the engine bay. It was a substandard batch of hoses that were liable to crack and leak – and it’s worth checking that the remedial work has been done if you’re buying used.