Calling the younger generations hipsters may even be old and outdated, but the new pickup truck being featured is not. At the beginning of 2015, right on the New Year to be exact, the Detroit Auto Show opened and was the first opportunity of the year for manufacturers the world over to display their new offerings whether they be upgraded production models, the new run of a production model with a whole new design or concept vehicles. The concept vehicles always seem to be the most interesting of the bunch as they are intended to be a thought, a possibility, or a test in the market to see what reaction will be.
Hyundai was not expected to show up with a truck in the concept series, but they did in the form of the Santa Cruz. The Santa Cruz is a great looking truck that appears to be a large SUV with a car front end when viewed from the front. It is full with the large geo-shaped grill and the angry an furrowed brow headlights. Heading toward the rear a low angle from the hood to the roof is found but the big surprise is actually in the rear, where there is a fully integrated truck bed made to carry the load.
The Santa Cruz is not made to be the same kind of hauler the domestic trucks are built to be, but is made more for an urban crowd who need a truck on an occasional basis and want the flexibility of being able to haul a small load when needed. Everything about this truck looks modern and fresh, from the outstanding body molding on the sides to the rear suicide doors to give access to the rear of the passenger compartment but still maintain a two door appearance, and eve the horizontally opposed rear taillights that look great and don’t leave a huge blank canvas on the tailgate.
As for some cool features, the Santa Cruz, looks like it has a small bed, which it does, but that bed can be extended with the push of a button and be the same size as the Toyota Tacoma. Even though this truck is not built to handle the same load capacities of the full size non-integrated trucks, it doesn’t have to as it is built to attract a crowd that needs a light hauler and not an heavy duty massive monster.
Powered by a 2.0-liter diesel engine the offers 190 horsepower and over 300 lb.-ft. of torque, the Santa Cruz will have enough power to get the job done. The power included is transferred to all four wheels of the truck via the HTRAC four-wheel drive system and the fuel mileage comes in at 30 mph. With these kind of performance numbers, many truck shoppers may head to the Hyundai Santa Cruz over a smaller truck just to gain an edge in performance.
Only time will tell us if this will become a production model, or if it will actually be scrapped for a different design. Even if this model does not make it to production, Hyundai is on the right track as they are simply missing out completely in the truck market. This is certainly a market Hyundai would like desperately to compete in and with the right model could give some of the domestic competition a run for their money.
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