The Santa Cruz is, weirdly, both smaller than it looks in photos and larger than it looks in real life. Not an amazingly high lift, mind you, but it rivals that of go-anywhere utility vehicles like the Subaru Outback or Crosstrek. With a fairly low 66.7-inch height, the Santa Cruz seems much more compact.Īt 8.6 inches off the pavement, the Santa Cruz has the highest ground clearance of any current Hyundai crossover. Standing next to the little 'ute in the real world, however, it's hard to jive with those numbers. That means this compact pickup is only about an inch shorter than Hyundai's three-row Palisade SUV with a wheelbase that's 4 inches longer. The Santa Cruz measures 195.7 inches bumper to bumper, 118.3 inches of which make up the wheelbase. But it isn't exactly a microtruck, either. More compact than any other pickup on the market - yes, even the upcoming Ford Maverick - the Santa Cruz is well-suited for urban parking and narrow lane maneuverability. The crossover underpinnings mean a car-like unibody construction and roadgoing characteristics that should be more approachable for drivers not used to the idiosyncrasies of body-on-frame trucks. It's even got the same jewel-like grille and triangular light signature up front. The Santa Cruz rides on the same platform as the Hyundai Tucson. The actual headlamps are tucked into the bumper's corners, where you'd expect to find foglights. The aesthetic, meanwhile, feels like a high-tech Subaru Baja revival, which I absolutely love. Hyundai points out that the Santa Cruz's target audience is not traditional pickup truck owners, but SUV buyers looking for something different and a touch more rugged. What Hyundai has here is more of a compact alternative to Honda's Ridgeline rather than just a really small F-150. It blends the bed of a pickup, the soul of a crossover, compact car sensibility and a dash of 'ute styling to create something that's a little weird, but undoubtedly awesome. Hyundai's genre-bending 2022 Santa Cruz is the duck-billed platypus of the automotive world, combining the best bits of multiple classes.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |