SEOUL, March 20 (Yonhap) -- Ssangyong Motor Co., a unit of Indian sport utility vehicle (SUV) maker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said Thursday that two of its top-selling cars received awards in Europe where the company hopes to increase exports this year.
The company said its Rexton W midsize SUV was picked as the best off-road car by Germany's Auto Bild Magazine.
In the screening process titled "The Last of the Mohicans," the Rexton W competed against nameplates such as the Toyota Land Cruiser, the Jeep Wrangler and the Land Rover Defender.
Automotive experts checked 39 areas, including trim levels, driving characteristics, all-wheel drive technology and price, and gave the Ssangyong model a total of 547 points, the company said. This placed it second only to the Land Cruiser.
In a separate evaluation, the company's Korando Commercial, a van version of its Korando C compact SUV, was tapped as the 2014 Continental Irish Commercial SUV of the Year.
The award given by the Irish Motoring Writers Association showed the car getting high points in areas of cargo hauling capability, safety, versatility and affordability. It also received good reviews in driving characteristics and comfort.
Ssangyong said its sales in Europe surged 70 percent on-year in the first two months of this year to 1,950 units from 1,100 vehicles sold in the same two-month period last year.
The carmaker said that it aims to export 91,000 vehicles in 2014 from 81,679 units tallied for last year.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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