Will Hyundai Santa Cruz cargo bed attract crossover buyers?

Car-centered pickups have a colorful but insignificant historical past in the U.S., from the after-ubiquitous Chevrolet El Camino to the quick-lived Dodge Rampage and niche Subaru Brat and Subaru Baja. But automakers this kind of as Hyundai continue to be intrigued with the components.

When the authentic Santa Cruz strategy was presented at the 2015 Detroit vehicle present, it was embraced by an vehicle fanatic neighborhood that tends to favor offbeat automobiles that never make it to manufacturing — or market inadequately when they do.

Hyundai preferred to stay away from that entice.

The strategy had an prolonged cab with doorways that open backward and a very constrained second row. But a completely performing back again seat was viewed as essential by product or service planners.

Even so, planners had to wait around till the Tucson was redesigned on a bigger platform prior to creating the Santa Cruz along with the crossover.

“When the strategy was demonstrated, the second row was substantially smaller than the vehicle you have prior to you now,” Castillo said in the course of a product or service presentation past week. “And it was as a result of our exploration that we identified that if we ongoing down that route, we were substantially compromising the quantity prospective.”

The base motor for the Santa Cruz is a 2.five-liter four-cylinder with 191 hp and 181 pound-ft of torque. The optional 2.five-liter turbo motor is believed at 281 hp and 311 pound-ft of torque.

Hyundai’s HTRAC all-wheel push is accessible with both equally engines. Towing ability for the base motor with fwd is rated at 3,500 lbs. That rises to five,000 lbs for the turbocharged motor with awd.

In styling and requirements, the Santa Cruz shares a great deal with the Tucson and even the midsize Santa Fe. But Hyundai whipped up the greatest things of its preferred crossover lineup, additional an open bed and developed but one more crossover variant to increase to its steady.

“The Santa Cruz’s unconventional type will enchantment to unconventional truck prospective buyers,” said Karl Brauer, govt publisher at CarExpert.com. “That is a good point for the reason that it is not meant to convert existing truck clients.

“Instead,” he additional, “Hyundai will concentrate on active-way of life customers looking for comfy, straightforward-to-push weekday transportation prior to they load up their bikes or kayaks or mountaineering equipment for a weekend outing.”