By Today’s automotive market isn’t just about rapid crossover expansion. Pickup trucks are becoming more popular as well. As one of the major companies in the business, Hyundai wants its piece of cake. Therefore, big novelties are expected in the near future. The last time we saw Hyundai pickup was several years ago, when Santa Cruz was presented. Since then, we are waiting for the serial model. These days, it looks closer than ever. Moreover, it looks like the Korean manufacturer will offer two Hyundai pickup truck models. One of them will be offered internationally, while the other will come to North America only. Also, the two pickup trucks will be significantly different in terms of design characteristics.
Hyundai Pickup Truck For North America
When it comes to the North American version of the Hyundai pickup truck, it will come in a little bit uncommon way. It looks like the production model will have a lot in common with the Santa Cruz concept. Moreover, the company may use the same name as well.
Design
In terms of base design characteristics, the most important thing about this pickup truck will be the fact that it will ride on a unibody platform. The new model will share most design characteristics with Tucson crossover, which means that we are about to see a pretty compact truck, notably smaller than the Ridgeline. According to the company’s management, the new model will be more suitable for urban driving conditions, while it won’t sacrifice off-road potential.
Styling and Interior Design
When it comes to the styling, we presume that the Hyundai pickup truck will have a lot in common with the Santa Cruz concept. This particularly refers to the overall shape. On the other side, we presume that the front face will follow the brand’s newest design language, with the face that is similar to models like Santa Fe, Palisade etc.
On the inside, we count on a modern, crossover-like approach, rather than rugged, truckish design solutions. Count on the attractive dashboard, soft-touch materials and loads of tech features.
Powertrain
We don’t expect surprises in this aspect and the Hyundai pickup truck should come with familiar engines in the offer. Base models will probably feature a familiar 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, which is good for about 185 horsepower. We presume that higher trims will be equipped with a 2.0-liter turbo-four, which is good for about 235 horsepower.
Hyundai Pickup Truck For International Market
On the other side, the model for the international market will be designed in a more traditional way. This will be quite interesting to see, considering that the Korean manufacturer doesn’t have much experience with BoF vehicles. Most likely, the new model will be designed in Australia and that would certainly be the primary market.
Normally, it will be a mid-size truck, which will compete with models like Ford Ranger, Chevy Colorado, Nissan Navara etc. Unfortunately, we still don’t know anything about the future truck, but we hope some details will be known in the near future. Also, we may presume that this truck won’t be an incident case. We presume that Kia will come up with something similar. Moreover, we could even see a body on frame SUV in the future.
Release Date and Price
The official information about new trucks is still unavailable. However, the latest reports are suggesting that the North American models could come pretty soon, maybe already in the next year, as 2021 Hyundai Santa Cruz. We presume that the base price will go around 20-25.000 dollars. On the other side, the international version probably won’t come before 2022/2023.
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