Durhl Caussey
The 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz XRT is a quiet, 4-door crew-cab that’s a very impressive pickup truck, perfect for an urban or rural environment.
The XRT trim delivers a turbocharged 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine, assisted by an 8-speed dual clutch transmission with paddle shifters. It features smart cruise control and highway drive assist, topped off with a surround view monitor.
The Santa Cruz delivers 18-mpg city and 26-mpg highway, for a combined fuel economy of 21-mpg.
Front seats of the Santa Cruz are heated, with power lumbar support. The steering wheel is leather-wrapped, complementing the shift knob. The 12.3-inch digital cluster is centrally located, which allows for easy viewing while driving.
This 4-door crew cab pickup is city friendly, and also eye-catching with its 4-foot bed. It’s also great for hauling items like mountain bikes, building materials, or mulch for front or back yard. The unibody truck is rated to tow 3,500 lbs.
The engine provides a perky disposition and right minded attitude, while the new model gives Santa Cruz a more rugged exterior that belies its quiet disposition. The XRT trim features modern styling, while the latest tech is accessible from the dual screen infotainment system.
I especially liked the Santa Cruz’s restyled center console and enhanced dashboard, with the panel of buttons for determining climate change, temperature, etc. The touchscreen includes Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, and Hyundai Blue Line, provided for three years.
The restyled grille and front bumper of the Santa Cruz XRT are complemented by meatier tires and 18-inch wheels. The new daytime running lights came in handy during last week’s strong winds and rain storms that brought dark clouds and blowing dirt to the DFW area.
Santa Cruz offers an array of driver assist technology, including standard driver attention warning and optional adaptive cruise control. Key safety features include standard forward-collision warning and automatic emergency braking, blind spot monitoring, and rear cross traffic alert.
The test Santa Cruz was fun to drive, while maneuvering wonderfully well in an urban environment. It was also very easy to park.
The MSRP for the 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz XRT AWD test model I drove was $46,000.
Warranty and maintenance coverage: Hyundai, along with its corporate sibling Kia, has long offered one of the best plans in the industry.
New Car Warranty: 60,000-miles new vehicle warranty 10-years-100,000 miles. Powertrain warranty, 7-year unlimited warranty anti perforation warranty. 3 year or 36,000 miles complimentary maintenance warranty, 5-year unlimited roadside assistance.
Durhl Caussey is a veteran car writer living in Dallas. He may be reached at durhlcaussey@gmail.com
