2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Exterior Official Photos Revealed

Finally, the wait is over for the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz truck and the first impression is that it looks like a small adventure vehicle. The full debut is scheduled for April 15 and will get on the production line this summer at the Montgomery, Ala plant.

So far, the automaker showed only four official photos for the pickup's front, rear, side, and profile. Both - side and profile pictures - reveal a shorter bed and a smaller cabin making the truck look-alike a small one.  Built on a uniform platform, its size makes the Santa Cruz similar to the compact mid-size truck Ford Maverick and the unofficial rival on the car market. 

Despite having a truck's body aspect, Hyundai puts it under the pickup category as a "Sport Adventure Vehicle" which embodies the vehicle's purpose. It's a bit of confusion for customers because this is a pickup just by having a bed, already marked it a pickup. So, let's meet halfway and agree that the bed's smaller length, the shape of the cabin, and the car-inspired grille put it in a gray area between tool and adventure-mobile. 

The grille is a bit taller and bolder, inspired by other previous models - a perfect combination between Tuson and Elantra's face. We can still enjoy the exotic Hyundai front light scheme with headlights mounted much lower in the front bumper. The vehicle features a Y-shaped crease pattern that is visible from the hood and the front fenders into the door and the side. Also, we see vertically-oriented windshields similar to a crossover character.

Inside, the cab suggests a bed from a diagonal angle, while the back shows a "Santa Cruz" stamped onto the tailgate and the handle with Hyundai text on it. The pickup's rear end is completed by the strong. T-shaped horizontal taillights. The coolest feature of them all is the bed steps incorporated into the rear bumper allowing to reach the items inside the bed.  

According to Hyundai, the 2022 Santa Cruz will have a "flexible bed for gear, cutting-edge connectivity, highly maneuverable AWD platform", perfectly suitable for an adventure-focused environment. We know that Hyundai never disappoints with its engines, and this time they promised a "powerful and efficient engine with multiple options".