28/03/2022
Here it is, Hyundai's first pick up ‘’the Santa Cruz”. Well, is it really a truck? There's a cab and a bed, but Hyundai insists the Santa Cruz is a "Sport car", not a pickup truck.
The massive South
Korean brand is present in all major categories as well as low-volume segments
like sports cars. The only area it's steered clear of so far is trucks, and that
won't change anytime soon.
The Hyundai Santa Cruz is distinctive. With integral body
construction, independent suspension and a front-wheel-drive platform shared
with the Tucson SUV, the Santa Cruz might be considered by some to be a
crossover with an open bed. Still, Hyundai is betting customers will be drawn
to the Santa Cruz's small size and day-to-day usability, even if its towing and
hauling capabilities pale in comparison to real trucks on the market.
Hyundai is
obsessed with this new designation to identify this novelty. Why not? After
all, we haven't seen anything quite like it in a long time. Of course, this is
not the first time that a manufacturer has tried to graft the body of a pickup
truck to a crossover to fool buyers. This is not the case with the Santa Cruz.
Like the Tucson and Santa Fe crossovers, with which it shares several
components (its dimensions place it between the two), it has a unibody chassis
that considerably limits the parasitic vibrations and bouncy behavior common to
pickup trucks.
This famous box,
it makes all the difference. It's obvious. And make no mistake about it, even
if its useful surface is limited to 4 feet, it is much better than a flower box
grafted stupidly behind a utility. There is a lighting system, cleats and
fixing points, and even a lockable trunk under the floor, like that of the
Honda Ridgeline. You know, that chest that you can fill with ice to keep the
fish you've caught cool, then drain it when it's melted. There's a 115v outlet
and small storage spaces in the interior walls of the bed on each side, as well
as recessed steps at each end of the bumper suitable for steel-toed boots.
Accessories to
extend the cargo area are available from dealers and a standard retractable
heavy-duty tonneau cover keeps cargo box contents secure.
We won't pile as
many things in this crate as we would in the trunk of an SUV. Also, whenever
you want something in there, you have to disembark and go get it. Needless to
say. But Hyundai is doing everything possible to ease the transition from an
SUV to this VAS.
The engine, a
turbocharged 4-cylinder, delivers 281 horsepower and 311 lb-ft of torque. It
allows the towing of a cargo of up to 5000 lbs. The Sea-Doo is around 2000 lbs;
it therefore poses no problem. So, whether you choose to drive in normal or
smart mode, which analyzes the way you drive and adapts gearshifts and engine
response accordingly.
Let's move on to
the cabin. The Santa Cruz is fully equipped. This top-of-the-line version
offered alongside the Trend ($41,399) and Preferred ($38,499) has generous
appointments, heated and ventilated leather seats in the front, a 360-degree
camera system, LED headlights, a 10.25" center touchscreen, Blind Spot
Detection (displays an image captured by a camera instead of digital dials) and
windshield wipers rain sensors.
All this is added
to the all-wheel drive, the heated steering wheel, that famous tonneau cover
and a dapper supercharged 2.5-liter engine.
As far as the
space up front is concerned, it's pretty much like a Tucson cabin. This means
that we have ample legroom, significant headroom and a rather high driving
position. In the design of the San-ta Cruz, this last point was a priority for
the designers.
The display of the
digital screen, behind the steering wheel, is clear and free from any annoying
reflection, even if there is no sun visor. This is another positive for the
driver, but personally I think this screen could have been better integrated
with all the instrumentation on the dashboard.
Road manners are
excellent on almost all surfaces. Whether you drive on old concrete, a railway
sleeper, a speed bump, everything is well cushioned. Only grooved concrete from
a stretch of road under construction got the better of the generally smooth
ride of this vehicle. Moreover, the roll resulting from the raised ground clearance
is not excessive.
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