Hyundai recently unveiled a gently updated Tucson, and it seemed like a safe bet that the closely related Santa Cruz unibody pickup would get a similar set of updates. Although the automaker is planning an update for the truck, our first look at a test car on public roads suggests that the facelift will serve to distinguish it from its crossover sibling.
Unfortunately, Hyundai is still trying to hide what it’s working on, so the Santa Cruz is covered in camouflage. From what we can see, it seems that the brand’s designers are working to give the truck a more square-off face.
Hyundai appears to have revised the front grille; whereas the current model’s lights expand at the top, forming a V, the camouflaged model’s lights don’t narrow towards the bottom, suggesting that the grille will be more rectangular than the existing model.
Read: 2025 Hyundai Tucson Debuts With Updated Looks And All-New Interior
In addition, the non-illuminated parts of the grille are also aligned in neat rows and appear to be larger, unlike the updated Tucson. That would suggest that Hyundai is trying to massage the front end of the Santa Cruz to make it look boxier and more truck-like.
The rear end is better camouflaged than the front, but at this early stage, it appears that the taillights on the updated truck are reasonably similar to the ones on the current model. It’s hard to tell if there will be more changes along the sides of the truck, but the wheels bolted to the test truck don’t look familiar, so buyers might get new options on that score.
It’s not yet clear if Hyundai will offer buyers any updates under the hood. However, given the updates to the Tucson’s interior, we expect the pickup truck to be updated with the new dashboard that features a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a matching 12.3-inch infotainment system. We don’t yet know when the automaker plans to unveil the updated Santa Cruz, but expect it to be ready for the 2025 model year.
