Hyundai is hot
Hyundai North America president and CEO José Muñoz joins Gary Gastelu in The Fox Garage to talk about the brand's recent success, the upcoming Santa Cruz pickup and its drive toward electrification.
The small pickup wars are here.
The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz goes on sale this summer (Hyundai)
Hyundai North America president and CEO José Muñoz told The Fox Garage that the brand’s upcoming Santa Cruz compact pickup is on track to sell out for the year by July … and the price hasn’t even been announced yet.
"I'm sure we're going to have a good result because we put this truck on presale starting last month and we have already sold out a fifty percent of the total production foreseen for this year," Muñoz said.
What he didn’t say is exactly how many Hyundai plans to build at its Montgomery, Ala., plant alongside its best-selling Tucson SUV, starting this summer.
Some analysts have predicted the number is in the neighborhood of 30,000. So is the number of orders for its top unibody-based competitor, the Ford Maverick.
Ford revealed on Thursday that it has 36,000 reservations for the similarly-sized 2022 Maverick pickup that will enter production in Mexico this fall.
The Maverick will have a base price of $21,490 and come standard with a 181 hp front-wheel-drive powertrain that has an EPA combined fuel economy rating of 37 mpg. An all-wheel-drive version with a 250 hp turbocharged four cylinder engine will also be available for = $22,575.
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The Santa Cruz comes standard with front-wheel-drive, but all-wheel-drive is optional along with the choice of either a 180 hp 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine with 180 lb-ft of torque or 275 hp turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 310 lb-ft.
The Santa Cruz also features a built-in roll-top cover for the bed and a trunk under it.