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Hyundai Santa Cruz Concept
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Hyundai Santa Cruz Concept
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14th January, 2015
Hyundai has revealed its innovative Santa Cruz utility concept vehicle at
this week's Detroit Motor Show in America. This fresh concept reflects a completely new interpretation of a utility for a
new generation of buyers, especially those in their 20s through to mid-30s, who represent the second-largest group of car
buyers.
Mark Dipko, director, corporate planning, Hyundai Motor America said “This new cross-over allows them all the
expandable utility they need throughout their active week, from work-life professionalism, to social interests, to a
whole variety of outdoor pursuits, without the typical compromises they have come to expect from the industry’s current
product offerings.”
SANTA CRUZ CONCEPT
To meet the specific needs of these Urban Adventurers, Santa Cruz doesn’t focus on all the same attributes as
traditional utes. It’s designed to meet more of their desires for expression, efficiency and manoeuvrability. Hyundai
designers made a bold design that conveys this lifestyle, with a wide, sure-footed stance and an aggressive side-profile
rake. The front view features an upright, hexagonal grille with cascading lines framing the sides, dual lens-free,
honeycombed headlamp projectors, and prominent LED fog lamps. The side profile is highlighted by oversized wheels,
Michelin® tyres with a special tread design, centre-locking hubs and yellow Brembo® brake callipers.
For ease of access to the rear seats, Santa Cruz features convenient, rear-hinged rear doors which integrate
seamlessly with the front door design. The wheel arches, roof, and bed rails offer convenient tie-down cleats for
securing cargo of all shapes and sizes. From the rear, the concept presents highly-contoured bed forms, and for extra
utility, the expandable bed can be easily reconfigured for longer cargo, using a unique drawer-like sliding function.
Efficiency is a key attribute of its advanced powertrains, with an environmentally-friendly 2.0-litre turbo diesel
powertrain delivering 142kW and 407Nm of torque. Santa Cruz also offers Hyundai’s HTRAC® All-wheel drive system, so
there’s no anxiety about getting those snowboarding “fresh tracks” right after a storm moves through.
The concept is purposefully compact, and although it has four doors and seating for five, its overall footprint is
similar to a small cross-over utility vehicle (CUV). These dimensions make it ideal for navigating the urban jungle or a
tight parking spot that some ute drivers have to pass by. It offers typical CUV driving character, but with a versatile
cargo bed that provides separated storage for all they want to bring along, whether it’s a trip to the recycling centre,
a surf or paddleboard session, or a couple of mountain bikes for the trails. Whatever the day’s activity might bring -
all that dirty, sweaty, wet, sandy, bulky gear remains in the back of the ute, cleanly separated from the passenger
compartment.
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During the work week, gear for that early morning hike or after-work sports activity stays securely locked in the
back, under an integrated, rigid tonneau cover that conveniently retracts when not needed. It not only keeps items safe
and out of sight, it also keeps the interior clean and fresh. Santa Cruz is a good vehicle for those that want the
attributes of a CUV, but still have dirty stuff that belongs “in the back.”
INNOVATIVE TAILGATE EXTENSION
Sometimes, there are those needs that call for even more cargo room; that’s why Santa Cruz offers an innovative
tailgate extension that allows the bed length to be expanded whenever those “just in case” moments arise. The extension
is perfect for everything from an epic mountain bike trip to bringing home an antique chest or classic motor
cycle that’s ripe for restoration. When fully extended, Santa Cruz’s bed length is similar to a mid-size ute, providing
the ability to carry much more than its compact footprint would suggest, yet only when needed. Santa Cruz was designed
to accommodate whatever the Urban Adventurer’s lifestyle calls for, whether expected or unexpected.
Some of the industry’s past attempts to blend utility-bed flexibility with passenger-car attributes were limited
because they didn’t deliver the practical benefits the customer expected. Most tried to straddle the line by attracting
traditional ute buyers with compromised products at a similar price point, failing to deliver any differentiating
benefits. Santa Cruz, by design, isn’t an alternative to a ute, so towing, payload and ground clearance were not primary
goals. Rather, Santa Cruz is intended to attract CUV and sedan buyers who are seeking greater utility, without the
compromises that traditional utility often require.
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URBAN ADVENTURERS
Modern urbanisation is impacting the new vehicle market in a broad way, and this trend is especially strong with young
adults, who face tighter parking on streets and parking garages, and increasing congestion overall. These trends are not
confined to one specific region; they’re happening in urban hubs all around the world.
So whether it’s loading up friends and equipment for an outing, coaching a young sports team or volunteering for
community projects, they need a vehicle versatile enough to accommodate both passengers and gear, while being efficient
enough to fit into their unique urban lifestyle.
MORPHING LIFESTYLE DEMANDS
Hyundai research revealed that not everyone who wants an open-bed vehicle is willing to accept the trade-offs that
come with it. As evidence of this, the U.S. industry utility pick-up truck share is down over five per cent in the last
10 years, with the biggest shift among young adults, reflecting a need for something that more closely matches these
morphing lifestyles. In the past, small utes accounted for half of U.S. utility sales, and they were particularly popular
with younger buyers. Today, that same young ute market is almost non-existent, and folks under 30 represent just seven
per cent of all ute purchases. Women, who buy more than half of all CUVs sold in the U.S., now account for only 10 per
cent of ute sales. Santa Cruz is intended to demonstrate that customer needs of the current utility product offering is
simply not fulfilling.
Santa Cruz is for the growing population who sees and pursues the world differently, those who want all the
traditional attributes of a small CUV, but need the day-to-day versatility of an open bed. It’s the cross-over ute that
meets the unspoken needs of Urban Adventurers.
AUSTALIAN MARKET
The Hyundai Santa Cruz ute concept remains, at this stage, a show car only - no plans have been announced for its
design and production. However, the market opportunities for a Hyundai utility vehicle globally are very real, not least
in Australia.
Hyundai Motor Company Australia is very interested in selling a utility vehicle to Australians and believes the
brand's reputation for toughness and reliability will stand it in good stead if and when such a vehicle is brought to
market.
"We have no doubt a tough, good-looking Hyundai ute will be popular with Australians," said Hyundai Motor
Company Australia Chief Operating Officer, John Elsworth. "But this is a concept vehicle and we do not make decisions
about which cars to bring to market - those decisions are in the hands of our parent company in Korea. However, we've
made our enthusiasm for a ute very clear - it surely has enormous potential - and we look forward to seeing how things
progress in the near future."
E&OE.
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