{"id":27222,"date":"2021-04-21T09:05:18","date_gmt":"2021-04-21T13:05:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=27222"},"modified":"2021-04-21T09:05:18","modified_gmt":"2021-04-21T13:05:18","slug":"payne-hyundais-segment-busting-pickup-aims-for-suv-buyers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2021\/04\/payne-hyundais-segment-busting-pickup-aims-for-suv-buyers","title":{"rendered":"Payne: Hyundai’s segment-busting pickup aims for SUV buyers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tucson, Arizona \u2014<\/em>\u00a0The pickup wars have a new warrior:\u00a0Hyundai unveiled its long-awaited pickup truck here Thursday, further expanding\u00a0the red-hot\u00a0midsize\u00a0truck segment.<\/p>\n

But the Made-in-America, 2022 Santa Cruz thinks outside the usual boxy pickup. It’s aimed at SUV buyers rather than the traditional, rugged, ladder-frame Detroit Three pickup customer.<\/p>\n

Call it an SUV with a bed.<\/p>\n

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The strikingly-designed Hyundai, first seen as a concept at the Detroit Auto Show way back in 2015, is the second unibody-based pickup after the Honda Ridgeline. But where the Ridgeline’s long-bed proportions match up with the Detroit Three pickups, the Santa Cruz embraces its ute-ness. Out front, the full-fascia grille echoes the Tucson SUV with which the pickup shares a platform. Out back is a compact bed no longer than a typical SUV hatch.<\/p>\n

The bed is shorter by 8 inches than competitors Ford Ranger and Toyota Tacoma. Since the box only comes in one size (not short and long options), it is\u00a0more integrated into the vehicle’s angular body design than the traditional, boxy truck.<\/p>\n

It’s most striking feature is a optional, sliding tonneau cover that brings to mind the radical Tesla Cybertruck pickup bed. The lockable cover allows owners to throw dirty, smelly items (think hockey gear) into the bed separate from the cabin \u2014 but without the risk of having them stolen.<\/p>\n

Hyundai calls Santa Cruz a segment-buster \u2014 referring to it as a \u201csport adventure vehicle\u201d that allows SUV buyers the utility of a pickup but without the interior and parking constraints of its bigger segment brothers. The idea appears to be in vogue as Ford is also reportedly coming to market with a unibody pickup called Maverick. VW, Ram\u00a0and GM are also looking at the nascent\u00a0segment.<\/p>\n

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“The Santa Cruz shatters convention,” said design director Brad Arnold. “This is neither truck not SUV. It’s an entirely new category of vehicle.”<\/p>\n

The small\u00a0Santa Cruz bed is designed more with fertilizer-toting gardeners in mind than home-builders with long wood planks. A hidden, sub-bed compartment can store additional gear or be used as a tailgate cooler (there is also sub-rear seat storage). The Hyundai also takes a page from Chevrolet with corner bumper steps for easier rear access.<\/p>\n