- The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz is unlike anything else on the market, being both a pickup and an SUV.
- It has a modest but surprisingly adaptable truck bed and costs $24,000.
- It’s the ideal vehicle for weekend activities since it combines SUV proportions with pickup-truck functionality.
Three different people approached me and asked the identical question in the course of just one afternoon while I was driving Hyundai’s new pickup truck, the 2022 Santa Cruz: “What the heck is that thing?”
If we didn’t live in a time when many people’s social skills have completely vanished, much like their early-pandemic sourdough starters or their desire to dress oneself below the Zoom line, I imagine the figure would have been higher.
The majority of folks haven’t actually seen a Santa Cruz up close because it only came onto the scene this summer. However, there’s another reason why people always ask inquiries and give Hyundai’s small truck perplexed looks: it’s freakin’ strange.
The Santa Cruz is unlike anything else you can purchase today, occupying the odd space between a pickup and an SUV. In essence, Hyundai took an SUV, removed a sizable portion of the roof, and added a tiny truck bed where the trunk should have been.
Although the end result sounds horrifying, it flawlessly combines the functionality of a pickup truck with the comfortable form and feel of an SUV. The Santa Cruz is a brilliantly funky response to the big trucks and generic crossovers that rule US roadways, and it is in a league of its own.
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The new Hyundai Santa Cruz reimagines the little pickup truck.
Possibly one of the most eagerly awaited pickup debuts is a new Hyundai model. The manufacturer of automobiles and crossover SUVs has, in a way, entered the pickup truck industry.
Its name is the Santa Cruz, and it introduces—or rather, revives—the class of tiny pickup trucks.
A four-door cab with a small, lockable bunk in the back. Just enough cars are mixed in with the right amount of pickup.
Because it uses the same platform and other parts as the Hyundai Tucson sport utility vehicle, the car is feasible. The Tucson’s SUV cargo space is taken out of the Santa Cruz and replaced with an open bed, turning the Tucson into the ideal little truck.
With the short truck bed, you won’t be able to move anything particularly large, but for weekend trips to the big-box shop or garden center, it should be adequate. The Santa Cruz provides you with the front-seat comfort of a passenger car, a comfortable ride, and respectable fuel efficiency thanks to its four-cylinder engine. The new SE model’s starting price is $23,990.
The steel cover that slides over the bed and may be locked is one of its distinctive characteristics. When put flat, the cover functions as a commercial security shutter. When necessary, it keeps cargo secure; yet, it fully retracts to transport heavier items.
Although the Santa Cruz is categorized as a pickup truck, it isn’t truly one. The Santa Cruz’s intentionally small size may appeal to those who appreciate the idea of owning a truck while still maintaining the small size of a car.
The brand-new Maverick is intended for truck buyers who are unaware of their need for a truck, according to Mike Levine, a Ford Motor Company spokeswoman.
Ford, though, is staking that you might want their little truck in the coming months. The name is dated and was formerly used for a basic economy automobile that Ford marketed in the 1970s. But hybrid power will be the norm, and the technology is purely 2020s.
Levine stated that a hybrid powertrain with a targeted 40 mpg in the city is available for $19,995 beginning MSRP.
Nissan may also enter this new market for tiny trucks, according to rumors. They might be developing a smaller truck than their Frontier that might run on electricity. When Nissan’s brand was Datsun in the 1970s, it was a market leader in small trucks.
Hyundai may have a tremendous hit on its hands with the new Santa Cruz in the interim. It’s a car for those who never believed they could live without a pickup truck but may soon realize they can’t.
The 2022 Hyundai Pickup Truck: What Is It?
Anyone looking to purchase a compact or midsize pickup truck should learn more about Hyundai’s latest model. Although the brand doesn’t offer any other truck options, what it does offer is a lot. While it won’t be able to tow or haul as much as your Ram 1500 or Ford F-150, it’s still a great truck-crossover that incorporates pickup attributes. The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz is a small, agile truck that is easy to drive and ideal for daily use. The 2022 Hyundai pickup truck is what?
What brand does the new Hyundai pickup truck go by?
Overview. Contrary to popular belief, the new Hyundai Santa Cruz is a pickup truck. Even though it lacks a full-size tow rig due to its smaller dimensions and unibody construction, we nevertheless think highly enough of it to include it on our list of Editors’ Choices.
Is there a truck model from Hyundai?
The new Hyundai vehicle was just released in 2021, so it does now. The Hyundai Santa Cruz pickup is what it is named. It aspires to combine the utility and comfort of an open-bed truck with the room and comfort of an SUV. Whether traveling for a weekend road trip or a daily commute, the Santa Cruz performs admirably.
Will Kia release a pickup truck at some point?
Kia has made the unexpected revelation that it is creating two new electric pickup trucks. However, as you’ll see, this has been in the works for a while. By 2027, it intends to introduce a total of 14 new EVs at a rate of two each year. While Niro EV sales have increased, it recently debuted its EV6 crossover. The Niro has increased by 132% just in the past month.
Will there be a Kia pickup?
Kia has announced its AutoMode self-driving car technology, a new electric pickup truck that will go on sale by 2027, and that it will produce the pickup and electric SUVs in the United States in a presentation outlining its business objectives for the remaining 2020s.
Where is the Hyundai Santa Cruz truck manufactured?
- Hyundai will manufacture the Santa Cruz pickup in Alabama in the future.
- Review of the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz: Car or Truck?
- First impressions of the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz: Now for Something
Santa Cruz, is that a small truck?
The company’s Alabama factory will start producing the Santa Cruz in June 2021, and sales will commence that summer. By the end of April, Hyundai promises, an early-reservation system will be operational on the Hyundai website.
The Santa Cruz’s pricing hasn’t been disclosed, but a long-rumored Ford Maverick light truck, which is smaller than the Ford Ranger, is anticipated to go on sale and be available later this year. According to sources, the entry-level Maverick might cost as much as the mid-twenties. That might be a good indication of how much the Santa Cruz will cost.
However, Hyundai makes a point of saying that the Santa Cruz is a sport adventure vehicle, or “SAV… [for] urban explorers,” rather than just another ordinary pickup. BMW has been referring to its capable SUVs as sporting activity vehicles (also known as SAVs) for many years.
The Santa Cruz “breaks open an all-new category territory, both for Hyundai and the industry as a whole,” according to Jose Munoz, president and CEO of Hyundai Motor North America. The adventure-oriented purchasers’ shifting daily needs are met by the open-bed flexibility and closed-cabin security, he continues, and “Our customers will wonder how they ever got by without one.”
The Santa Cruz is special because it is compact compared to other pickups. It is 195.7 inches long, 75.0 inches wide, and 66.7 inches tall, or about 14 inches shorter and roughly 4 inches narrower and shorter than a Honda Ridgeline. These dimensions are made possible by the two rows of seats and the four-foot truck bed. It’s a little bit of unexplored terrain in terms of dimensions because current midsize pickups, which are also known as compacts, including the Chevrolet Colorado, Toyota Tacoma, and Ridgeline, are all about a foot longer. A pickup that is almost as long as a Cadillac Escalade shouldn’t be categorized as tiny.
How large is the bed on the Hyundai Santa Cruz?
Dimensions of the Hyundai Santa Cruz’s bed: length, width, and height 48.4 inch bed length with the gate closed. Bed Length (52.1 inches) from Floor to Closed Gate. Bed Length (74.8 inches, Floor, Gate Open)
A Santa Cruz—is it a truck?
The starting price is $25,450. Although the Hyundai Santa Cruz is an unusual pickup truck, many drivers find it to be the ideal vehicle. It has the practicality and driving qualities of a compact SUV similar to the Hyundai Tucson on which it is based thanks to its small size, car-like chassis, and capacious 4-door body.
Does the Hyundai Santa Cruz have all four wheels?
The Hyundai Santa Cruz has all four wheels, right? Yes, the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz is available in all four trim levels with HTRAC(r) All-Wheel Drive. The top two model levels, the SEL Premium and Limited, both come standard with all-wheel drive while the SE and SEL are both optional.
What other vehicle has a bed like a truck?
The Chevrolet El Camino is perhaps the first vehicle that comes to mind when you discuss a car with a truck bed. Even though you don’t often see the El Camino hauling a noteworthy quantity of cargo in the truck bed, many people nevertheless adore its novelty. This sportster, which is categorized as a coupe utility muscle car, looks to have it all.