New XRT trims brings robust look, soft-roader consolation.
Textual content and photos by Amos Kwon
2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz XRT AWD
Trim Base MSRP: $40,000
As Examined Worth: $42,075 (incl. $1,395 inland freight & handing)
Assessment
Vehicles are scorching, and that’s evidenced by stratospheric gross sales volumes. However the life-style unibody pickup truck phase is a little more difficult since they don’t present the identical utility and ruggedness as body-on-frame fashions. The Hyundai Santa Cruz competes with the Ford Maverick and the Honda Ridgeline, and the Santa Cruz pushes to make its little truck much more distinct with a refresh for 2025. The “extra rugged” XRT trim pushes a extra off-road leaning model although there’s no extra floor clearance and no skid plates. What it does get are extra rugged tires, trim-specific wheels, decrease door safety, some suspension tuning, and (lastly) a pair of entrance restoration factors. Other than that, it’s extra of an aesthetic distinction somewhat than a purposeful one. The quick 48” mattress is extra for outdoorsy gear than for carrying hay bales, however the upside is a degree of utility and practicality that works higher for extra people than a bonafide pickup truck would.
Design
There’s no mistaking the Santa Cruz for one thing discovered on a building web site loaded with instruments and lumber. The profile is smooth and edgy whereas the redesigned entrance finish is definitely extra truck-like than earlier than with a blockier grille sample, bigger headlight housings, and a brand new decrease grille.The brand new pink tow hooks on the entrance are a welcomed addition for 2025, too. The XRT advantages from chunkier fenderwell trim, satin black decrease door safety pads to match the outside trim, and a regular sliding tonneau cowl.
Energy and Efficiency
The Santa Cruz XRT comes customary with HTRAC all-wheel drive and a 2.5-liter four-cylinder turbo mill underneath the hood with 281 horsepower and 311 pound-feet of twist. It’s mated to an eight-speed twin clutch transmission. The naturally-aspirated 191-horsepower 2.5-liter four-banger base engine is just not out there on the XRT, and that’s factor as a result of the extra highly effective engine is the one one which feels competent. 60 mph from a standstill arrives in about 6 seconds, and throttle response is fairly good. The twin-clutch transmission supplies competent shifting duties.
Experience and Dealing with
The XRT trim advantages from smaller 18” wheels than the 20” variations on the fancier Restricted trim. The softer tires with taller sidewalls additionally assist present a cushty trip over most surfaces. It feels something however truck-like, making it excellent for city jaunts. That mentioned, we nonetheless didn’t shrink back from mounting the curb when parking head-in for tight spots. The decrease trip top and the superb steering make for excellent maneuvering. It’s even higher than the Honda Ridgeline for fast lane modifications and hitting apexes. We discovered ourselves having fun with the drive greater than we anticipated.
Connectivity
For 2025, the Santa Cruz ups its in-car tech with a unified infotainment display and instrument cluster pairing. The separate items from the 2024 mannequin had been nice, however this setup is each higher wanting and functionally simpler. It appears to be like extra just like the model BMW has in its automobiles.There’s no shroud over both of the 12.3” items, however visibility in vivid daylight stays uncompromised. Additionally of observe is the up to date infotainment software program that comes with wi-fi Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
What’s most vital to us, although, is the change from the gloss black contact controls for local weather and audio, changed by a brand new management unit with knob and button controls. There are nonetheless just a few contact local weather controls, however they now sit on a matte floor that’s not the fingerprint and dirt magnet the outdated unit was. We will testify that the brand new setup is way simpler to function whereas driving and likewise higher wanting. It permits the vents to take a seat decrease on the sprint for a extra cohesive look with improved performance.
Room and Consolation
There’s a lot to like in regards to the cabin of the Santa Cruz in the case of house and luxury. The brand new ergonomics of the sprint, middle stack, and middle console enhance consolation and operation, nevertheless it’s the spaciousness in each rows that shines for on a regular basis use. The entrance seats have good cushioning and assist. The seating place is rather like a automobile with good sightlines over the sloping hood. The 8-way energy entrance seats with lumbar make it straightforward to get into a great place, and largely comfortable surfaces meet your elbows and arms. The assorted modifications to the inside of the Santa Cruz assist place it forward of each the Honda Ridgeline and the Ford Maverick.
We had been particularly impressed with the rear seats that present 39.6 inches of headroom, 36.5 inches of legroom, and 56.1 inches of shoulder room. Seating for tall occupants doesn’t current an issue, and even the center place isn’t an disagreeable place to take a seat, simply not for lengthy journeys. Welcomed additions for the 2025 XRT are rear vents and charging ports. Storage isn’t large, however there are sensible areas. We love the sprint storage shelf and the large charging binnacle. The door pockets are on the small aspect, however the middle armrest, cupholders, rear under-seat storage, and seatback pockets are fairly good.
Worth
Simply over $42k isn’t low cost for a small off-road-esque pickup truck. It’s a few grand greater than the all-wheel drive gasoline model of the Maverick Lariat and about three grand lower than the Ridgeline Trailsport. Whereas Hyundai touts the Santa Cruz as a Sport Journey Automobile somewhat than a pickup truck, the Santa Cruz properly toes the road between small truck and mid-size SUV. The components works properly, and the modifications for 2025 make the Santa Cruz much more interesting. The chance that drivers will take the XRT trim off the overwhelmed path isn’t excessive, however like so many “ruggedized” trims within the business right this moment, it’s good to know you possibly can.
Amos has been an automotive author and editor for nearly twelve years. He has written for Gear Patrol, Askmen, Primer Journal, Fatherly, and is the present automotive editor for the favored males’s life-style web site, Cool Materials. As a lot as he loves monitoring supercars such because the Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS Black Sequence and the BMW M5 Competitors, he’s most happy by actually wonderful and reasonably priced mainstream vehicles just like the Mazda3 and the brand new Chevy Trax. His dream automobile is the Ferrari 288 GTO, however he’d settle for nearly any gas-powered, rear-wheel drive, guide transmission automobile. He lives in Evanston, IL, along with his spouse and three kids.
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