Hyundai’s Tucson XRT AWD – RAISING ARIZONA

Hyundai’s Tucson XRT AWD

RAISING ARIZONA

If Beyoncé can enter the Country Western space with Cowboy Carter (she has…it’s going well), it should be obvious that makers of soft-road  crossovers can tiptoe into the off-road space with derivatives of their popular mall crawlers. Toyota has done it, Honda has done it and Subaru has always done it – although Subies now do it more aggressively. Hyundai joins the fray with several XRT (Extra Rugged Terrain) variants, including its small Tucson. In its $30K base form we like the Tucson, and as a responsive, efficient hybrid we love the Tucson. But as a faux off-roader with little (or no) enhancements to its in-the-dirt capability? Not so much.

In a segment dominated by the RAV4 and CR-V, Hyundai’s Tucson has run a strong race since its redesign for model year 2021. On a wheelbase of 108.5 inches and with an overall length of 182 inches, the Tucson seems to hit the sweetspot between accommodation and maneuverability. Seating is relatively upright, getting in and out doesn’t require contortions, outward visibility is good, and four real adults and their stuff will find adequate room. And with a starting point at just $30K and topping out in the low $40s, most new car shoppers can afford it. 

The Tucson’s sheetmetal is sufficiently distinctive to avoid what I commonly refer to as ‘Asian generic’, but not so distinctive as to be disarming or alarming. What’s most evident is the Tucson’s side sculpting, not unlike – albeit on a smaller scale – what Lamborghini does with its Urus. And no, you won’t be confusing the Tucson with anything from Lambo’s HQ. But in combination with a generous greenhouse and reduced front and rear overhangs, the Tucson communicates generous servings of both ‘sport’ and ‘utility’, at least visually.

Inside, the black/black combo conveys quality appropriate to its price point. Seating is generous for four, doable for a fifth. The control layout allows for frequently necessary functions to be accessed apart from the screen, but the expansiveness of the screen itself  – some 24 inches wide – looks like it was sourced from RadioShack…back in that day. I’d prefer a more conventional gauge cluster in front of the driver, and then let the eye – and mind – wander over to infotainment. 

I also had issues with the driver’s seat 90 minutes into a drive up the California coast, but that’s probably on me as much as the seating itself. That tour to Big Sur ultimately encompassed some 550 miles from midday Friday to midday Sunday, and the Tucson could not have been more pleasant.

If there’s a hitch in this git-along it’s under the Tucson hood. Base Tucsons come with 2.5 liters of normally aspirated four, and while it works fine once up to speed, it can be a tad wheezy getting up to any speed. In Car and Driver testing 0-60 arrived in 8.8 seconds, and while its doubtful you’d get rear-ended in our home state of Virginia (where many drivers never see 60, unless taking off from Reagan…), merging onto a CA freeway is another something else. Kicking the 8-speed automatic down to accelerate results in a stronger-than-mild cacophony, and while we weren’t rear-ended on California’s 101, neither was the process even remotely close to sublime. 

With that, at highway speeds the Tucson cruises comfortably and – based on the reading from the dash – achieves a relatively consistent 30 miles per gallon at 65 to 70. Our preference for the hybrid – which gives you a combined horsepower of 231 and combined torque of 258 lb-ft – delivers not only improved performance from the git-go, but moves the Tucson’s EPA estimate from 24 City/30 Hwy/26 Combined in the 2.5 to mid-to-high 30s in the hybrid. And you’ll get to 60 in just over 7 seconds, again according to Car and Driver.  I think that constitutes a win, and you can be driving the Tucson Hybrid for roughly the same money as Hyundai wants for its XRT.

I’m fine with making a crossover more capable, if only to navigate the fire roads that take you to the trailhead or remote waterfall. And while the taller sidewalls on the Tucson XRT’s 18-inch rims might prevent a flat, and the space saver spare is more reassuring than plug-and-play, if you truly want to explore ‘gnarly’ bring your mountain bike – and leave the Tucson in, well…Tucson. The XRT doesn’t employ even a modest lift (Arizona wasn’t raised), and there’s no protection underneath. So, if going offroad bring a girlfriend, ‘cuz if you knock off the exhaust you’ll be reattaching it with her bra…

In sum, if looking for a small crossover the Tucson would be on my buy list. But it would be there as a $35K Hybrid, and not the XRT.