[Hyundai Santa Cruz News]

We’ve been waiting for an announcement from Hyundai since the Santa Cruz small pickup concept debuted at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show, but news were scarce in the months to follow with people giving up hope. Now we’ve learned from Reuters that the automaker plans to launch a pickup truck in the United States to give their sales a boost.

The U.S. market is shifting away from sedans and Hyundai wants to catch up to changing trends, thus their plans to develop a pickup truck similar to the Santa Cruz concept and a few more SUVs. Currently, the Korean automaker does not offer a pickup of any kind in North America, leaving a hole in their lineup.

If someone wanted a pickup that’s not a behemoth like the Ford F-150 or the Ram 1500, they’re stuck with very limited choices and even the Honda Ridgeline and Toyota Tacoma can be more truck than what they’re looking for. The gaping hole in the segment can be plugged by the Santa Cruz, which will slot right under those mid-sized pickup trucks.

Of course, you won’t be able to haul and tow as much, but the small truck bed will appeal to those living in urban areas who wants something to go on weekend adventures with.

 

[Santa]

This has been a very long time coming, but I'll take it with a grain of salt. Didn't they mention way back that the Santa Cruz production was just waiting for the final word? After that Hyundai was silent about it and I assume the same could happen again unless they come out with an official statement.

 

[Santana]

It has been a while since the concept came out so now that they're finally serious about bringing it to market, hopefully we are still getting something along the lines of what was shown and not anything less.

 

[don4331]

Ford announced it's 2019 Ranger in January '17, which will be little more than a facelifted version of the truck which has been sold in rest of world since 2011. Prototypes running around with appropriate camouflage have been seen for at least 4 months. So, 2 years from announcement through prototypes to in showrooms.

Jeep announced its Pickup around same time as Ford. And FCA is now talking that it will be a '20 model - 3 years from announcement to in showroom. Wrangler pickup is supposedly just modified Wrangler - new rear body panels (maybe frame stretch over Unlimited).

Based on above, Hyundai is announcing the Santa Cruz in August '17. Which may/may not be a Tuscon with alternate rear body panels. But there haven't been prototypes rolling around. So, if Hyundai manages something before 2021, they will have done extremely well.

I hope we are getting something along the lines of the concept, not something MORE ( It needs to have a footprint smaller than my Ranger - 67" wide* x 176" long) . Otherwise, I will buy the midsize Ford.

* Doesn't include mirrors

 

[Santa]

Since it was just announced this year and it takes an average of around 2 years to produce a market ready model, would the Santa Cruz not be ready by the end of 2019 or 2020?

Perhaps even earlier because as I recall, it was suggested that Hyundai was already working on a production model after the concept gained so much praise.

 

[Santana]

how long it takes to make a car depends on what the car maker has going on and from what I have noticed it can vary a lot so saying 2 years can be right on the ball or very off.

the average production time line i have seen is 5 years and if you consider the platform they're using you can say it even longer than that.

 

[Santa]

You do make a good point about the platform problem. They don't really have a pickup to base it off of and the largest model they have is the Santa Fe XL, which doesn't seem nearly long enough.

 

[Santana]

Who knows, maybe they engineered a current SUV platform to allow this sort of move. Not always are they stuck with the way things are currently but are able to adjust to their unique needs as they go. Toyota is a good example of a car maker with very diverse platforms.

 

[Santa]

Hyundai is pretty diverse as well with all the sub-brands under it. The launch of Genesis was probably why they were too busy to push forward with the Santa Cruz. Not that a lot of those models are close to production, they may buckle down and get to work.
But instead of borrowing a platform from another model, Hyundai may as well engineer a new one to be used in future pickup models as well.

 

[Cruizin]

I hate how Hyundai just leaves us hanging again right after telling us about the Santa Cruz. After the initial announcement they haven't even mentioned the ute...

 

[Santana]

I hate how Hyundai just leaves us hanging again right after telling us about the Santa Cruz. After the initial announcement they haven't even mentioned the ute...

to be fair they came out with this concept a while ago and probably were unsure about when best to launch, plus it brings into question who from Hyundai made this decision and who's making decisions now.

with the way things are going now they seem to be on the right track although it means no SC truck any time soon

 

[Cruizin]

Way back when the concept was released, someone from Hyundai said the pickup was all but officially green-lit which I assume meant that production model development was already underway. They sounded so certain, but then went quiet. Let's see if the same happens because potential customers will only wait so long before moving on to other UTEs.

With the Mercedes X-Class other automakers may follow and Hyundai will miss the chance to be one of the first ones to the market.