An SUV? A crossover? A truck? Yes!
It is all of the above, but Hyundai calls the new Santa Cruz a Sport Adventure Vehicle.
But what is that, you may ask. It's a vehicle for buyers who want to do more with their lives than just exist. Whether it's just a daily commute to work or delivering the kids to school, or running around town for your business, it's the perfect urban adventure vehicle for you. And should you ever want to hit the trails, the Hyundai Santa Cruz is the one for the adventurer who wants it all.
The Santa Cruz is the first-of-its-kind four-door pickup truck/crossover/SUV from Hyundai for America. It shares a platform with the
Hyundai Tucson and includes the same innovative daylight running lights located behind the grille. Innovative styling like this doesn't happen every day.
The new Hyundai Santa Cruz features an exciting swept-back windshield leading to a spacious cabin that will get noticed. There is innovation from front to rear and includes large 20-inch alloy wheels with impressively large wheel arches. The Santa Cruz's buttressed C-pillars emphasize lend a sense of visual strength and emphasize the opened-back capability of a compact Hyundai pickup truck with the utility of an SUV. Its 4.3-foot deep-lined bed can carry items securely with a lockable tonneau cover which is an especially desirable feature for truck customers.
The new Santa Cruz includes smart design throughout. Its overall length is designed to fit in an average garage, making it the perfect vehicle for many buyers. Engineered to carry five passengers comfortably, it offers a behind-cab bed which is good for transporting over 1,700 pounds of cargo and/or payload.
What Powers the Santa Cruz?
The Santa Cruz is available with a choice of two engines. Standard on all Santa Cruz models is the 2.5-liter naturally-aspirated inline-4 engine making 190 horsepower and 180 lb-ft of torque. It is matched to Hyundai's 8-speed automatic transmission for quick and sure shifts.
Enthusiasts and those who appreciate more will like the 2.5-liter direct-injection turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Built to make 275 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque, this turbo matches to a well-sorted 8-speed automatic dual-clutch transmission (DCT). The Hyundai Santa Cruz delivers with front-wheel drive as standard, but Hyundai's Advanced HTRAC all-wheel drive (AWD) is an available option. Towing capacity for the standard 2.5-liter engine is 3,500 pounds, while the turbo engine can tow up to 5,000 pounds.
Hyundai's HTRAC AWD system is complete with a drive selector dial and active torque control. Driving in Sport mode varies the torque heading to the rear wheels. The system reacts to certain circumstances on the road and improves handling and acceleration driving in a straight line. It also provides a fairly entertaining ride.