Hyundai Teases Santa Cruz In New Video Outlining Design Ethos

In designing the Santa Cruz “Sport Adventure Vehicle,” Hyundai was focused on what Brad Arnold, Design Manager at Hyundai Design North America, calls Construction by Contrast.

Embracing contrast was the vehicle team’s guiding principle throughout the development of the small unibody pickup.

“Everything, from its proportions to its lighting conveys that it’s not a truck, it’s a Santa Cruz,” says Arnold.

Indeed, he says that the Santa Cruz is not a traditional truck, calling it instead something completely new. We imagine the Ridgeline and the upcoming Ford Maverick will have something to say about that. This so-called SAV, though, is designed to thrive both in the city and out in the country.

Although details are still scant, Hyundai says that the Santa Cruz will be offered with powerful and efficient powertrain options, cutting-edge connectivity, and all-wheel-drive.

Hyundai has also revealed that it will produce the Santa Cruz in Montgomery, Alabama. There, it will share the plant with the Santa Fe and the Tucson.

Hyundai announced in 2019 that the plant would require $410 million in expansion to support the addition of the Santa Cruz. The truck, which was first teased at the 2015 North American Auto Show, is supposed to go into production this year.

We’ll finally be able to see all of the Santa Cruz’s design details on April 15 when Hyundai plans to fully unveil the new Sport Adventure Vehicle.