KGM is the abbreviation for South Korea's KG Mobility (케이지모빌리티 주식회사). Formerly known as SsangYong Motor, the country's fourth‑largest automaker, the company was acquired by Samsung Group in 1995 but later spun off due to subsequent financial crises. In 2022, South Korean chemical and steel giant KG Group purchased a 61% stake in SsangYong Motor for approximately 1.8 trillion Korean won, and in March 2023 officially renamed the company "KG Mobility," establishing KGM as its new brand identity. KGM's birth maintains close historical and legal ties to its iconic predecessor, SsangYong Motor. As one of the oldest surviving automakers in South Korea, KGM carries on the industrial manufacturing legacy of Donghaehwan Auto Works, founded in 1954.
After more than 70 years of technological evolution, KGM has long focused on the SUV and off‑road vehicle segments, building a stable customer base in its domestic market as well as in Europe and the Middle East by blending rugged tradition with a fresh brand style. The company's current core development strategy relies on platform technology licensing from China's Chery Automobile, enabling a new product lineup geared toward electrification and intelligence. According to South Korean domestic sales data released in April 2026, KGM sold 3,382 units in that month, a slight year‑on‑year decline of 4.6%, maintaining a solid mid‑tier position among the country's top five automakers (Hyundai, Kia, KGM, GM Korea, and Renault Korea).
In 1954, KGM's predecessor was founded in Seoul, South Korea, and was one of the earliest pioneers of the Korean automotive industry. After being acquired by the SsangYong Group in 1986, it was renamed SsangYong Motor and formally stepped onto the global automotive stage. In 1988, SsangYong entered into a technical cooperation agreement with Mercedes‑Benz of Germany, launching a "German engine plus Korean body" collaboration model.
Following the Asian financial crisis of 1997, Daewoo Motors and foreign investors took turns controlling stakes in SsangYong Motor. In 2005, SAIC Group acquired 51.33% of SsangYong Motor's shares, becoming its largest shareholder. In 2011, India's Mahindra Group acquired a 70% stake in SsangYong Motor for $523 million. Between 2014 and 2018, SsangYong launched product lines such as the Tivoli and the new‑generation Rexton, but due to its small scale, the company remained deeply mired in financial difficulties. At the end of 2020, SsangYong Motor applied to the Seoul Bankruptcy Court for the ARS business revival procedure after failing to reach a settlement with labor and management. In 2022, KG Group completed its acquisition of SsangYong Motor.
In April 2024, the Korea International Trade Association approved the final legal name change process for SsangYong Motor in overseas markets, allowing the company to conduct export declarations and overseas business operations under the name "KG Mobility." Starting in 2025, new models released by KGM in global markets began to completely remove old SsangYong badging. The 2026 KGM Rexton has fully adopted the KGM logo, from brand identification to the rear nameplate. The 2026 KGM Actyon, as the first global strategic model to feature the KGM logo, marks the final closure of the brand's global name unification process.
Fuel and Hybrid Mainstays
The Rexton is KGM's flagship rugged large SUV and the soul of the brand's global lineup. The 2026 Rexton retains a 2.2‑liter four‑cylinder turbo diesel engine paired with an eight‑speed automatic transmission, equipped with part‑time 4WD and a rear‑axle automatic locking differential, offering a towing capacity of up to 3,500 kg.
The Actyon is KGM's first global strategic model launched after the introduction of the new brand logo, positioned as a stylish sporty mid‑size SUV. It is powered by a 1.5‑liter turbo four‑cylinder gasoline engine delivering 120 kW and 280 N·m of torque, paired with an Aisin six‑speed automatic transmission. Combined fuel consumption is 7.6 L/100 km, and the model meets Euro 6 emissions standards.
The Torres is one of the most strategically significant nameplates in KGM's sales mix, offered with fuel, hybrid, and pure electric powertrains. Overseas sales of the Torres reached 12,882 units in 2025, ranking first among the brand's exports. The Torres EVX is its all‑electric variant, which has been exported to multiple global markets.
The Korando is positioned as a compact SUV and later gained momentum as a key export model to Europe, primarily in its HEV hybrid guise. In May 2026, Korando sales in Europe saw a multi‑fold rebound, driving overall export growth for KGM.
New Energy Milestones
KGM launched South Korea's first pure electric pickup—the Musso EV—at the end of 2024. As of October 2025, the Musso EV accounted for the highest share of KGM's eco‑friendly model exports at 32.6%. The Musso EV is equipped with BYD‑supplied LFP Blade Battery packs.
The Torres EVX is KGM's second pure electric product, forming two core electric pillars alongside the Musso EV. The addition of the Torres HEV further enriches the brand's hybrid lineup.
Three Pickup Pillars
KGM has implemented a three‑pronged strategy in the pickup market: fuel (Musso Sports), PHEV (future R&D products), and EV. Together, the Rexton Sports and Musso product families accounted for a substantial share of the brand's global sales in 2025, while the Torres EVX supports and leads the pure electric market.
In full‑year 2025, KGM's global sales totaled 110,535 units, a year‑on‑year increase of 1%, marking the brand's best overall performance since its acquisition and restructuring in 2022 and official name change in 2023. Of this total, domestic sales in South Korea were 40,259 units, while overseas exports reached 70,286 units, a year‑on‑year surge of 12.7% and a new record for the brand's highest annual export volume in the past 11 years.
Since the start of 2026, structural divergence in KGM's global market performance has become more pronounced. In March 2026, KGM's combined sales reached 10,004 units, a year‑on‑year increase of 5.5%. Domestic sales rose sharply by 42.8% month‑on‑month to 4,582 units, driven by the new generation Musso SUV entering its full delivery phase, with cumulative orders surpassing 5,000 units. On the export side, sales declined by 13.6% year‑on‑year to 5,422 units, largely due to the timing of the previous year's holiday schedule in South Korea. Cumulative sales for the first quarter of the year reached 27,077 units, a 4.1% year‑on‑year increase. As of the end of 2025, KGM's cumulative sales in Turkey exceeded 50,434 units. Turkey remained KGM's largest export market in both 2024 and 2025, accounting for 19% of total export share in 2025.
KGM has ceded core strategic platform R&D to Chery, while concentrating its own platform development capabilities on traditional non‑unibody off‑road chassis and new energy pickup three‑electric integration.
In October 2024, KGM established a strategic partnership with Chery. In April 2025, the two parties formally signed a mid‑to‑large SUV joint development agreement at Chery's Wuhu headquarters in Anhui Province. Under the agreement, both sides will jointly develop a new generation of mid‑to‑large SUVs based on Chery's global technology platform, covering both traditional fuel and new energy models, with development scheduled for completion in 2026. The strategic cooperation models (project code SE‑10) will replace the existing outdated Rexton, which uses a non‑unibody chassis, and the partnership is expected to eventually expand to full‑size SUV models. The agreement also includes technology licensing for autonomous driving systems and the electrical and electronic architecture of software‑defined vehicles, paving the way for future high‑level intelligent models.
In the electrification space, the Musso EV uses BYD Blade LFP battery packs for the commercial vehicle market. KGM also signed a cooperation agreement with South Korean IT giant Kakao at the end of 2025, planning to launch a plug‑in hybrid mid‑to‑large SUV equipped with Kakao's development platform in the second half of 2026. In addition, KGM is investing in the gradual development of an i‑GMP dedicated electric suspension system and an in‑vehicle intelligent driving assistance system integrated with a new software architecture.
KGM has completed its transition from a traditional local‑market‑oriented model to a new global KD (knocked‑down) semi‑knocked‑down assembly export manufacturing model.
In the Vietnamese market, KGM is deeply tied to Kim Long Motors, a subsidiary of Changhai Automotive Group. The two parties signed a technology licensing and local assembly agreement in 2023. Through their cooperation at the KLMI facility, several of KGM's core models are set to officially begin production at the Hue Industrial Park in Vietnam. In March 2026, KGM Chairman Kwak Jae‑sun personally visited Vietnam to inspect the KD assembly line preparations for models such as the Rexton and Musso. Mass production is expected to start in the second half of 2026, with right‑hand drive exports also planned for the ASEAN region.
KGM has also signed a KD parts supply agreement with Indonesian partners, with the goal of building Indonesia into a new manufacturing hub serving Southeast Asia and Oceania. The company further plans to expand its KD business to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the near future, gradually building out a global KD network.
The production assembly line that KGM established in the Kaluga region of Russia in the 2000s is no longer operational. Markets in Central Europe and the Middle East, including Hungary, Romania, and Germany, remain traditional strongholds for KGM. Order recovery and delivery confirmation in the European market have accelerated significantly.
KGM's current core strategy rests on two main development pillars: leveraging Chinese technology platforms to fill gaps in its mid‑to‑large vehicle lineup, while simultaneously cultivating product matrices driven by pure electric and hybrid powertrains. According to KGM management, the mid‑to‑large SUV development project based on the new SE‑10 platform will be completed within 2026. This is expected to bring KGM's conventional fuel‑powered mid‑to‑large SUVs back into the same competitive arena as models such as Hyundai's Palisade and Kia's Telluride. Integration of the Kakao in‑vehicle system and new PHEV product planning are officially set to launch in the second half of 2026.
In 2026, KGM is expected to begin full deliveries of the Torres EVX in global markets, creating a full‑category pure electric ecosystem alongside the Musso EV. The Musso will receive a mid‑cycle enhancement and configuration upgrade in the second half of the year, with hybrid versions and a new 2.5‑liter gasoline powertrain also in the pipeline.
KGM Chairman Kwak Jae‑sun has proposed a "2030 Plan" focused on increasing electrification penetration rates and expanding the second wave of KD export economies. By the end of 2026, KGM aims to raise the sales share of electrified models from its low 2025 base to 25% of the brand's annual sales, with the goal of returning to a healthy medium‑to‑long‑term trajectory of approximately 200,000 units in global annual production and sales by 2030.
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