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Hyundai Santa Cruz pick-up definitely happening, but still two years away

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The Hyundai Santa Cruz, revealed as a concept back in 2015, is still two years away from production
The Hyundai Santa Cruz, revealed as a concept back in 2015, is still two years away from production
Andrew Chesterton
Contributing Journalist
18 Apr 2019
3 min read

The Hyundai Santa Cruz pick-up revealed at the Detroit Motor Show back in 2015 is still two years away from production, with the company's American executives saying they're still "working on it every day".

While it is understood Hyundai is also beavering away on a genuine mid-size ute, something to act as a genuine rival to the Toyota HiLux, the company is still eagerly awaiting the arrival of the "lifestyle" pick-up that was revealed at the Detroit Motor Show.

But that car, while green-lit, is still two years away, having been replaced on the build queue by the brand's ever-growing SUV family.

“This market is a truck market, so we would love more product. We have a huge market for trucks,” says Hyundai's North America CEO, Brian Smith. “And there’s a huge market for small pick-up trucks, I just would like us to have one soon.

"Every company is strapped for resources, and we’re prioritising the most important models for each market. (But) the Santa Cruz is being worked on every day. We don’t have any firm dates, times or pricing.

"What’s exciting about it is that we have the opportunity to do something that isn’t being done right now."

While the Santa Cruz is locked in for a USA debut, it's previously been comprehensively ruled out for Australia, with Hyundai’s former COO, Scott Grant, telling CarsGuide in 2017; "I can give you a quick answer: there is no plan for Australia for the Santa Cruz ute."

But hope is not lost for a Hyundai ute Down Under. The Australian company's requests for a genuine HiLux rival is understood to be an ongoing project.

“We’ve been taking about it for a number of years now, and HMC (Hyundai Motor Corporation) has been listening, but not necessarily taking a lot of action due to priorities in other markets and other developments and so forth,” Mr Grant said, back in 2017.

"About 12 to 18 months ago, HMC began studying about developing a light commercial vehicle for our part of the market, as well as for what North America likes. And you’ve seen the developments in North America (the Santa Cruz).

"Our market program is still in development. We’re confident of having something on the other side of 2020. But there’s no official launch plan at this moment."

Read More: Hyundai Santa Cruz ute gets 2020 launch date

Would the Santa Cruz work in Australia? Tell us in the comments below.

Andrew Chesterton
Contributing Journalist
Andrew Chesterton should probably hate cars. From his hail-damaged Camira that looked like it had spent a hard life parked at the end of Tiger Woods' personal driving range, to the Nissan Pulsar Reebok that shook like it was possessed by a particularly mean-spirited demon every time he dared push past 40km/h, his personal car history isn't exactly littered with gold. But that seemingly endless procession of rust-savaged hate machines taught him something even more important; that cars are more than a collection of nuts, bolts and petrol. They're your ticket to freedom, a way to unlock incredible experiences, rolling invitations to incredible adventures. They have soul. And so, somehow, the car bug still bit. And it bit hard. When "Chesto" started his journalism career with News Ltd's Sunday and Daily Telegraph newspapers, he covered just about everything, from business to real estate, courts to crime, before settling into state political reporting at NSW Parliament House. But the automotive world's siren song soon sounded again, and he begged anyone who would listen for the opportunity to write about cars. Eventually they listened, and his career since has seen him filing car news, reviews and features for TopGear, Wheels, Motor and, of course, CarsGuide, as well as many, many others. More than a decade later, and the car bug is yet to relinquish its toothy grip. And if you ask Chesto, he thinks it never will.
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