Hyundai Santa Cruz
The Hyundai Santa Cruz is a four-door compact pickup truck manufactured and marketed by Hyundai. Released in 2021 for the 2022 model year, the Santa Cruz is the first four-door pickup truck sold by Hyundai in the North American market. The vehicle is based on the Tucson crossover SUV, and uses a unibody chassis design.
Industry analysts expected the Santa Cruz to attract car or crossover SUV buyers instead of people who have owned a larger, traditional pickup truck. Hyundai is to reportedly discontinue production of the Santa Cruz in 2026.
Overview
The Santa Cruz was previewed by a concept pickup truck at the 2015 North American International Auto Show with the same name.The production model debuted in April 2021 for the North American market. Marketed as a "Sport Adventure Vehicle", it is closely related to the fourth-generation Tucson, sharing the same project code, production site, and dashboard design. It also features a similar styling introduced on the fourth-generation Tucson, with its front end dominated by the grille with integrated daytime running lights.
The Santa Cruz uses a front-wheel-drive configuration as the base model, with an available upgrade to the HTRAC all-wheel-drive system. The HTRAC system allows for the rear wheels to receive up to 50 percent of the drive power via a lockable clutched center differential. It is equipped with strut suspension for the front wheels and a multi-link independent suspension in the rear. The rear suspension is equipped with self-leveling shock absorbers to keep the truck level even when there is weight on the bed or a trailer on the hitch.