It’s been years since Hyundai released the Santa Cruz. Unfortunately, the compact car-based pickup still isn’t offered outside of North America. We think that’s a bit of a shame since pickups are such strong sellers here.
That also means we’re missing out on the newest off-road oriented version of the Santa Cruz that Hyundai will be rolling out soon. It’s called the Santa Cruz XRT, and it gets some upgrades along the way.
OTHER STORIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED:
MMDA enforcers will soon wear bodycams—here are the initial implementing rules
It’s official, the next-generation Toyota Prado is coming soon
For starters, the XRT trim gives the Santa Cruz a set of chunkier fender flares and thicker cladding on the bottom half of the doors. It also gains a pair of step bars on the side, and bed rails for added utility. Dark chrome elements are present on the XRT, giving the compact truck a more aggressive appearance. Also exclusive to this variant are unique alloy wheel designs with orange center caps.
Inside, the XRT gets black leather seats, more leather on the steering wheel and shift knob, and, um, that’s it. It does get an auto-dimming rear view mirror standard, though. The XRT also has adaptive cruise control to make long drives that little bit more relaxing.
There are no updates or upgrades under the hood. The Santa Cruz XRT comes with a 2.5-liter turbocharged engine that produces 281 hp and 421Nm of torque. Lesser variants of the Santa Cruz come with a non-turbocharged version of the same 2.5-liter engine. All-wheel drive is standard in the XRT.
