Hyundai Tucson Takes The 4x4 Battle To New Heights

It’s not too soon for the Tucson! Hyundai’s brand new sports utility four-wheel drive car goes on sale on 14 August; bringing a new dimension of style, value and space to the small SUV market.

The Tucson (pronounced Too-son) marks the new entry-level to Hyundai’s 4x4 range and complements the existing larger Santa Fe and Terracan. The Tucson will compete against cars such as the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, Subaru Forester, Mitsubishi Outlander and Kia Sportage.

There are seven Tucson models to choose from with prices starting at £14,995 for the 2.0 16v GSI rising to £18,695 for the powerful 2.7 V6 CDX (full price list at end).

As well as conquest sales from other four-wheel drive cars, Hyundai expects to attract customers who have not previously considered a 4x4. The added attraction is that the Tucson is a five door only vehicle, competing against three door opposition.

The Tucson has a monocoque construction, and sits on a highly modified version of the current Coupe platform. There are three engine options (2.0 litre petrol, 2.0 litre common-rail turbo-diesel, and a powerful 2.7 V6), and two trim levels; GSI and CDX.

The 2.0 litre engine, which is a CVVT unit as seen in the Coupe, develops 140bhp@6000rpm, has 184Nm/136 lbs ft of torque on tap at 4500rpm, reaches a top speed of 108mph and performs the 0-62mph run in 11.3 seconds.

Hyundai expects the diesel version of Tucson to be especially popular in a segment where more drivers are switching to diesel. It produces 111bhp of power at 4000rpm, has a torque figure of 245Nm/181 lbs ft@1800-2500rpm, reaches a top speed of 104mph and does the 0 to 62mph dash in 13.8 seconds.

The top-of-the-range 2.7 V6 CDX has 173bhp on tap at 6000rpm, delivers 241Nm/178 lbs ft of torque at 4000rpm and has a top speed of 112mph. Its 0-62mph figure is a competitive 10.5 seconds.