2024 Hyundai Santa Cruz: Quick on its feet and offering some value

2024 Hyundai Santa Cruz Limited AWD: Splitting the difference.

Price: $41,810 as tested. Floor mats added $195.

Conventional wisdom: Car and Driver likes that it “drives like a car but can handle truck stuff, segment-best cabin look and feel, new XRT trim adds a hint of rugged attitude,” but not that the “base engine lacks pep, upper trims lack easy-to-use knobs and buttons, slightly larger midsize pickups offer a lot more truck capability for the same price.”

Marketer’s pitch: “Our one-of-a-kind Sport Adventure Vehicle.”

Reality: Maybe check with Ford and Honda on that one-of-a-kind thing.

Competition: Ford Maverick, Honda Ridgeline, Ford Ranger, Jeep Gladiator.

What’s new: Just a few trim-level changes. The XRT replaces the SEL as the top trim level.

Also, steering wheel haptic feedback is added to lane-keeping assist and blind-spot collision-avoidance assist.

Up to speed: This little truck makes for a rocking companion. It always seems eager to get moving, whether in Sport or Smart mode. It’s like driving a young poodle or Chihuahua.

The 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine makes 281 horsepower and gets the vehicle to 60 mph in 6 seconds, according to a Car and Driver review of the 2022 model. That’s pretty good for a small pickup.

A non-turbo version of the engine makes 191 horses.

On the road: The truck seems even more excitable on curves. The Santa Cruz operates the front wheels unless more traction is needed, and this makes for tight handling and a lot of oversteer. Couple that with the very light rear end and the Santa Cruz really tore into turns hard — uphill. Downhill, it was much more sedate.

That was about all the fun there would be, though. The truck was sprightly but not nearly as enjoyable as the Ranger XLT or the Gladiator but certainly on par with the most recent version of the Honda Ridgeline tested.

Highway driving was nice, though. The Santa Cruz performed well on a trip up north to see Sturgis Grandma 1.0.

Off the road: The Santa Cruz did wonderfully while creeping through the Sturgis family backyard. The all-wheel-drive system never let me slip.

Shifty: The 8-speed wet dual-clutch transmission could also be the culprit for the hard starts as well. They tend to be aimed at performance so they produce a lot of torque. Surprisingly, though, shifts were smooth and easy, which is usually not the case.

Driver’s Seat: The leather-trimmed seats in the gussied-up Limited edition impressed Mrs. Passenger Seat with how comfortable they were.

The dashboard gauges are the Hyundai standard issue, sharing information easily. The side-view video monitors that pop into the dashboard display when the turn signals are engaged are always a welcome touch.

Friends and stuff: The rear seat is tight, with limited legroom and foot room, although headroom is spacious. The seat back sits very upright, though, and that makes for a fairly uncomfortable space.

The seat bottoms fold up to reveal nice side cubbies underneath, but there’s no way to make one giant cargo space behind the rear seats.

Outside, the front of the bed had no hooks, which made carrying stuff worrisome. I even had the load shift one time, and I thought for sure this story was going to have a sad outcome.

The bed is just 4 feet at the top, 52 inches at the bottom, and 74.8 inches with the tailgate open. The volume of the bed is 27 cubic inches, which is not much larger than most hatchbacks.

The Maverick’s bed is the same length, while the Ridgeline’s is 64 inches long.

Payload is 1,411 pounds, slightly less than the Maverick, while towing is 5,000 pounds, more than twice as high as the hybrid.

Play some tunes: The Bose Premium Audio system offered fairly good sound, about an A-.

Operation of the unit could be easier. The ebony touch pad handles many functions including volume and tuning, and a 10.25-inch touch screen for the rest. I’m not sure what I had on my hands when we set off up north, but that morning my fingers could not make the touch screen cooperate for anything; check this carefully if you have a chance to test a Santa Cruz.

Keeping warm and cool: The HVAC is controlled by the same type of sometimes-stubborn buttons. This looks cool but it is not a win for functionality.

At least the readout is clear and doesn’t require the touch screen.

Fuel economy: I averaged about 22 mpg in a rather robust week of driving.

Where it’s built: Montgomery, Ala.

How it’s built: Consumer Reports ranks the Santa Cruz as middling for reliability, a 56 out of 100 on the new scale.

In the end: The Santa Cruz did not do badly overall. But if you’re looking to save fuel and money, the Ford Maverick is the way to go.