2024-08-23 17:17:03
introduce
Just like plants and people, cars and trucks grow. Hyundai saw an opportunity here and offered the Santa Cruz for people who want pickup-style utility but don’t want to deal with the size and expense of the latest midsize or full-size trucks.
The Santa Cruz is significantly smaller than a midsize pickup truck but offers enough payload and towing capacity to satisfy the needs of many truck buyers.
Plus, the Santa Cruz’s elegant styling goes far beyond the pickup norm of an open box combined with a closed box. Rather than thinking of it as a truck, think of it as an SUV with a more versatile cargo area.
The Santa Cruz is based on the Tucson’s unibody platform, and has a much more comfortable ride than a traditional pickup truck.
Currently, there is only one other compact truck on the market: the Ford Maverick. Both vehicles have similar features but behave differently.
Styles and Options
The 2024 Hyundai Santa Cruz is a small pickup truck with a crew cab that comes in five models: SE, SEL, Night, XRT, and Limited.
Powertrain
SE and SEL models come with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine with 191 horsepower and 181 pound-feet of torque, shifting through an eight-speed automatic transmission.
At night, the engine is paired with an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission.
All trims except the SE are available with all-wheel drive.
Interior style
The Santa Cruz has plenty of headroom and legroom in the front of the cabin, as well as a highly adjustable driver’s seat. The back seat is a bit tight for adults, though.
The cabin has a decidedly futuristic look, thanks to the optional large central touchscreen and the integrated digital instrument panel ahead of the driver. However, the shortcut buttons below the touchscreen are too pretty for their own good. They are touch-sensitive pads, not regular buttons, which can be distracting to locate and use while driving.
Other than that, everything is well labeled and organized in logical locations, and there are plenty of redundant controls on the steering wheel.
The Santa Cruz’s bed is relatively short, but nearly identical in size to the Maverick’s. The tailgate can be adjusted to accommodate the height of the wheel arches, so a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood can be transported in the bed. The trunk with drain can be used to store wet or muddy items, even ice.
The cup holders and center console are similar to those of a compact SUV. Large child seats are tight in the back seat, but the anchor points are easy to find.
In terms of towing and payload, the Santa Cruz has an impressive maximum towing capacity of up to 5,000 lbs. But you should know that to tow that much weight, you need a trailer brake controller – which the Santa Cruz lacks. If you plan on towing a heavy trailer, you’ll need to add an aftermarket one.
Hyundai’s optional 10.25-inch central touchscreen and optional 10.25-inch digital driver’s display sit at the top of the Limited trim.
They feature crisp, high-resolution graphics that are easy to read and won’t fade in direct sunlight. The optional Bose audio system is also top-notch, with good sound quality across most of the volume range.
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connect wirelessly on base models, but the larger screen requires a USB connection. Fortunately, it connects quickly to smartphones and there were no disconnections during my testing.
Safety
The Santa Cruz comes standard with a host of driver assistance systems, such as adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist, and forward collision warning. The adaptive cruise control and lane keeping systems work well, but after a while I found the warnings from the other systems to be overly sensitive and annoying.
Visibility out the rear window is limited, but the optional 360-degree parking camera and high-resolution display are nice additions.
On the Road
Since the Santa Cruz uses a sturdier, car-like body-on-frame construction rather than body-on-frame like more traditional trucks, it drives much better than many of its competitors.
The steering and handling are impressive. It’s fun when the road gets rough, and the optional turbocharged engine has excellent power.
The Santa Cruz was quicker than any midsize truck in my testing, and it was on par with Ford’s new small truck, the Maverick. The dual-clutch automatic transmission also shifts quickly and crisply, further adding to the fun factor of the Santa Cruz.
With 8.6 inches of ground clearance and all-wheel drive, the Santa Cruz can handle most dirt and slippery roads. Just don’t expect it to be an all-rounder.
The Santa Cruz has a smooth ride on almost any road surface. Road imperfections are well absorbed, and the comfortable front seats make long highway trips much easier. The front seats are also heated and ventilated (on higher models), a rare feature in compact and midsize trucks, and the temperature changes are quick.
The downside is that the rear seats are upright and not very comfortable. At highway speeds, wind noise is very noticeable on the side mirrors, and road noise is also noticeable under the body.
in conclusion
The Santa Cruz combines compact truck practicality with original looks and a fun-to-drive attitude. It’s a bit more expensive than its main competitor, the Ford Maverick, and the styling may not be to everyone’s taste, but it has a long list of features and a premium interior that certainly justifies its higher price.
price: From $37,120
Consumption: 19 mpg city – 27 mpg highway
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