Hyundai is reportedly planning to finish manufacturing of the Santa Cruz early as a consequence of sluggish gross sales of the approach to life ute.
Sources have informed Automotive Information the unique plan was for the ute to march off into the sundown throughout the second quarter of 2027, however the date is being moved ahead. Moreover, the present manufacturing charge is being halved as Hyundai makes an attempt to cut back the Santa Cruz’s excessive stock ranges.
If the report is right, it can unlock capability at Hyundai’s Alabama manufacturing facility to provide extra of the carefully associated Tucson SUV.
In response, Hyundai USA informed the commerce publication the ute’s “life cycle plans stay unchanged”.
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Given lacklustre gross sales of the Santa Cruz, it gained’t get replaced instantly. As an alternative the corporate has confirmed it’s engaged on a body-on-frame ute that can debut earlier than 2030 within the US.
This ute will likely be developed in-house and will likely be a “mid-size” mannequin that can tackle the likes of the Toyota Tacoma, Ford Ranger, Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon and Nissan Frontier. The mid-size ute might additionally spawn a SUV spinoff to deal with the Toyota 4Runner.
It’s unclear if this new American ute would be the mannequin to meet Hyundai Australia’s long-held want for a body-on-frame ute.
Launched in 2021, the Santa Cruz appeared like a wonderful thought on paper: use the platform of a well-liked unibody SUV, lengthen the wheelbase, and tack on a tray.
It’s the identical formulation utilized by Ford to create the Maverick ute from the underpinnings of the Bronco Sport and Escape.
Whereas the Maverick belied its title with trad-pickup truck styling, the Santa Cruz leant into its unibody origins with a non-conformist design that included flying buttresses and a a lot nearer affiliation to the Tucson it’s primarily based on.
At its debut, additionally in 2021, the Maverick charged out the gate with a beginning worth just under US$20,000 for the bottom hybrid mannequin.
Though the 2 utes now have beginning costs simply US$1605 aside, with the Maverick kicking off at US$28,145 and the Santa Cruz beginning at US$29,750, gross sales of the Santa Cruz proceed to lag nicely behind its Blue Oval competitor.
In line with Good Automotive Unhealthy Automotive, in 2025 the Maverick bought 155,051 items (down 1.5 per cent) to be the nineteenth hottest mannequin within the US, whereas the Santa Cruz was down 25.2 per cent to simply 23,962 gross sales in 141st spot.
