Hyundai debuted the oddball Santa Cruz truck concept at last year’s Detroit Auto Show where it was meant with a strongly positive reaction. That reaction has inspired Hyundai to green-light the Santa Cruz for further development and eventual production. Hyundai will likely approve the Santa Cruz in November. The Santa Cruz blurs the lines between CUV, pickup truck and neo-El Camino.
The concept had diesel power but there’s no official word yet on what will power the production version. The pseudo-pickup will be a part of Hyundai’s SUV and CUV lineup which currently includes the Tuscon, Santa Fe, and Santa Fe Sport. There’s also a good chance that Hyundai will soon add a compact CUV to their lineup to compete with the Honda HR-V, Mazda CX-3 and Chevy Trax. The future CUV might be based on the mechanicals of the Indian-market Creta, but with revised, more exciting styling.
