We didn't expect it but the World Cup has shown us that Korea is a formidable team. It's a bit like that with their cars too. They are improving vastly even though there have been some setbacks.
Less than two years ago Daewoo, which once had ambitions to be champions in the automotive world, went spectacularly broke. Now after protracted negotiations, most of Daewoo's car business has been taken over by General Motors and England's former Vauxhall manager Nick Reilly has been put in charge.
When Daewoo was on a winning streak, it acquired a smaller Korean car company called SsangYong, which specialises in four-wheel-drive vehicles powered by Mercedes-Benz engines made in Korea. The Musso and Korando, the main progeny of SsangYong thus became Daewoos.
Going on Irish sales this month although prices haven't yet been announced, is the latest 4x4 from Daewoo with SsangYong ancestry. It's the Rexton and it wants to be seen as a credible rival for the bigger SUVs from Europe, the US and Japan, offered at a lower price.
The Rexton is an all-round improvement on the Musso, with which it shares most of its mechanical parts. The wheelbase is longer and the independent front suspension has coil springs instead of torsion bars.
When we tested it recently, it felt more stable, didn't buck over bumps or show much body roll through corners. But don't expect the ride comfort of a saloon: this is a heavy, high-set SUV with a beam axle at the rear.
THE body was designed in Italy by Giugiaro but has a rather American look - better in the metal than photographs. Although it is the same size as a Land Rover Discovery, it is closer in style and spirit to Jeep Grand Cherokee.
Two versions are being offered here, the RX320 and the RX290 with engines of 3.2 220bhp petrol and the 2.9 120bhp diesel. It's the latter which, predictably, will be the biggest seller here. This five-cylinder diesel doesn't offer the latest in technology: we hear that a common-rail direct fuel injection unit will be available next year.
The petrol RX320 we drove was well-equipped with goodies such as cruise control, automatic air conditioning and power-operated seats. The standard of trim and interior plastic mouldings is high but we thought it a shame that so-called wood-grained panels were such a feature. They had clearly never seen a tree! Leather upholstery is part of the standard specification.
The petrol RX320 uses the same "torque on demand" system as the big Jeep. This permanent four-wheel-drive system normally distributes 65 per cent of engine output to the rear wheels and 35 per cent to the front, but that ratio changes automatically if a wheel starts to spin. The four-speed automatic transmission also has a low range, selected by a fascia button.