The next Hyundai Tucson, the brand’s second-best-selling model in Australia, appears to have been spotted testing overseas, and the new-generation model is expected to look very different.
The next-generation Hyundai Tucson has been spied in Germany, and the crucial new family SUV looks to be sporting a bold new look to steal the attention away from the Toyota RAV4 and Mazda CX-5.
The Tucson is Hyundai’s second most popular model in Australia, after the Kona – each sold 10,272 and 11,241 units respectively this year so far – and the next iteration looks to borrow the chunky and rugged styling of its larger Santa Fe sibling.
The Tucson is clad heavily in black coverings, obscuring much of the detail on the mid-size SUV, but the silhouette suggests the fifth-generation model will eschew the sleek design of the current car in favour of boxier looks.
However, what is clear is that the new Tucson will be a clear departure from the current fourth-generation model.
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Exterior
Hyundai’s chief exterior designer, Simon Loasby, told UK publication Auto Express that the “Art of Steel is our next-generation [design] … and you will see that on multiple new models”.
“We don’t like to do nesting dolls, but you will see how that is developed across a range of products. We’ve got a busy two years of new stuff coming.
“We deliberately want to turn the volume up on the capability and SUV-ness. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to see that every region in the world is becoming more comfortable with SUVs”.
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Interior
There are murmurs the new Tucson’s interior will integrate Pleos, Hyundai’s new infotainment hardware aimed at improving connected services.
The infotainment system will launch in 2026 and will be applied to over 20 million vehicles by 2030, according to Hyundai Motor Group.
Loasby also told Auto Express that the interior space will “be a much more calm and comfortable space than a tech fest”.
“That’s been our balance with the product,” Loasby said.
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“Over the next two years you’ll see our next generation of interiors coming out … the safest way to drive is to keep our customers’ eyes on the road, so you build your philosophy around that. You quite quickly realise that the centre screen is actually just a distraction.”
This would suggest the integration of physical buttons and minimally distracting user interfaces, unlike Mazda’s new CX-5 interior, which forgoes a lot of tactile user input for touchscreen controls.
“We believe nine is the best number of both legal and physical, regular interactions,” Loasby said.
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“They’re all physical buttons, and they will stay physical buttons because they are things that I want to adjust without looking away [from the road].”
Engines
It is still unclear what powertrains the new-generation Tucson will offer, but the current car is available in Australia with a choice of pure petrol and petrol-electric hybrid power.
The base car features a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine, outputting 115kW/192Nm, while a 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine is also on offer, upping the ante to 132kW/264Nm.
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Finally, the hybrid version pairs a 1.6-litre engine with an electric motor for combined outputs of 172kW/367Nm.
The current Tucson is also available overseas with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, but it is not available in Australia.
It is rumoured the next-generation Kia Sportage – mechanically related to the Tucson – will go hybrid-only, like the Toyota RAV4, so the Hyundai could also follow suit.
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