SsangYong Chairman

SsangYong Chairman
Overview
Manufacturer	SsangYong
Production	1997–present
Body and chassis
Class	Full-size luxury car
Body style	4-door sedan

The SsangYong Chairman is a full-size luxury car manufactured by the South Korean automaker SsangYong. A long-wheelbase model is also available and is favored by some limousine operators in South Korea. In 2008, a new Chairman was introduced and in order to differentiate the new model from the older Chairman, it was named the Chairman W. However the Chairman H has since been discontinued.

History

When it came out first to South Korean market in 1997, Chairman was a high-end executive sedan. Its manufacturer, SsangYong, was famous for its SUVs and RVs and Chairman has been its only sedan. The first generation Chairman was built on the W124 Mercedes-Benz E-Class platform, but styled to resemble a the W140 S-Class.

Chairman H (1997–2014)

Chairman H
2011 SsangYong Chairman H
Overview
Also called	Daewoo Chairman Pyeonghwa Junma (North Korea)
Production	1997–2014
Assembly	South Korea: Pyeongtaek
Body and chassis
Layout	Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive
Related	Mercedes-Benz W124 Mercedes-Benz W140
Powertrain
Engine	2.3 L M-B M102 I4 2.8 L M-B M104.94x I6 3.2 L M-B M104.99x I6 3.6 L M-B M104.941 I6 (from 2007)
Transmission	5-speed automatic (5G-Tronic)
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,900 mm (114.2 in)
Length	5,055 mm (199.0 in) (1997–2003) 5,135 mm (202.2 in) (2003–2008) 5,110 mm (201.2 in) (2008–2011) 5,050 mm (198.8 in) (2011–2014)
Width	1,825 mm (71.9 in)
Height	1,465 mm (57.7 in)

SsangYong renamed the original pre-2008 Chairman model as Chairman H (which has the same design as the 2003–2008 model) to differentiate from the Chairman W. Chairman H kept the same exterior, interior, engine, transmission and features as the previous models. In 2003, the Chairman received a restyled front grille, front and rear headlights and improved interior assembly.

The 2005 Chairman (although based on the Mercedes-Benz W124) had a lot of electrical features for a car from that year and for a car of that price, including: heated and cooled cup holders, rear parking sensors, rain-sensing wipers, anti-lock brakes, stability and traction controls, illuminated "Chairman" signatures on the door scuff plates and the back seats are individually electrically controlled and can move backwards, forwards, upwards and downwards when the engine is turned on to improve comfort; the driver's seat and the steering wheel behave in a similar way.

Although sold globally, the Chairman H sold very poorly outside Korea, due to both poor reviews and a lack of SsangYong dealerships. This was in part rectified by labelling the car Daewoo in some countries, which also included the Daewoo corporate grille.

In 2011, the Chairman H was once again redesigned, still keeping its Mercedes-Benz design cues.^[1]

As of January 2015, official website of SsangYong Motor Company does not show Chairman H anymore. According to KAMA (Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association), SsangYong Motor Company sold 1,718 of Chairman H in Korea during 2014.

Engines

Gallery

• 

  Chairman CM (1997–2004)

• 

  Chairman CM rear (1997–2004)

• 

  Daewoo Chairman

• 

  SsangYong Chairman H (2005–2011)

• 

  SsangYong Chairman H rear (2005–2011)

• 

  SsangYong Chairman H

• 

  Redesigned Chairman H at the 2011 Seoul Motor Show

Chairman W (2008–present)

Chairman W
Overview
Production	2008–present
Layout	Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive Front-engine, all-wheel-drive
Powertrain
Engine	3.2 L M104.99 I6 3.6 L M104.941 I6 5.0 L M113 E50 V8
Transmission	7-speed automatic (7G-Tronic)
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,970 mm (116.9 in) 3,270 mm (128.7 in) (LWB ver.)
Length	5,090 mm (200.4 in) (2008–2011) 5,135 millimetres (202.2 in) (2011–present) 5,410 mm (213.0 in) (LWB ver.)
Width	1,895 mm (74.6 in)
Height	1,495 mm (58.9 in) 1,500 mm (59.1 in) (LWB ver.)

SsangYong developed their own all-new flagship Chairman W, New Chairman with V8 5-litre engine and Mercedes-Benz 7G-Tronic automatic transmission. The Chairman W is derived from the SsangYong WZ concept car. The 'W' stands for 'World Class.'

Chairman W is offered in six trims with two engines, a limo version, and an additional AWD 4-Tronic (Mercedes-Benz 4Matic). XGi360, once used for New Chairman, is transferred to the entry model with a straight 6-cylinder engine, and the 5-liter V8 Mercedes-Benz M113 engine and the 7G-Tronic transmission (the largest V8 engine produced in South Korea^[2]) are applied to two high-end models, VVIP and the long-wheel-base version. It has an electronically controlled self-levelling air suspension system with a rebound coil that helps reduce noise and vibration, as well as an extended rear passenger space^[3] and the front and rear both have their own screen to control the car's entertainment system, similar to Chrysler's MyGig.

The Chairman W is the first Korean luxury sedan to apply a four-wheel drive system, a feature common in high-end European sedans.^[3]

The license-built Chinese version of the Chairman is called Roewe 850.

Engines

Gallery

• 

  Chairman W CW700 (2011–2013)

• 

  Chairman W CW700 rear (2011–2013)

• 

  SsangYong Chairman W

• 

  Redesigned Chairman W CW700 rear (2013)

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to SsangYong Chairman.

• Official SsangYong Chairman website
• Global Auto Index entry

Roewe A division of SAIC Motor Current models Cars 350 550 750 950 E50 Crossovers/SUVs W5 Historic and discontinued models 150 250 850 Related MG Motor MG Rover Rover Category