2024 New York Auto Show: Hyundai Doubles Up
NEW YORK -- Hyundai kicked off the 2024 New York International Auto Show by dropping the new Tucson and a refreshed Santa Cruz minitruck.
The Santa Cruz gets an interior and exterior refresh, standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the XRT trim gets beefed up a bit with all-terrain tires and front tow hooks.
As part of the refresh, the dash gets redesigned to have a curving layout that sweeps the gauge cluster into the infotainment screen.
XRTs get their own grille, front and rear fascias, 18-inch wheels, and badging. The approach angle is increased, and a 360-degree camera and blind-spot monitoring are added.
For the rest of the lineup, the grille and front fascia are reworked along with the daytime running lights. Customers now have new wheel designs to chose from.
In addition to the new dash, there's a new steering wheel and new audio/climate controls with -- hallelujah -- knobs and buttons. The rear-seat armrest has two cupholders.
There's more -- over-the-air update capability is added. So are USB-C ports, an in-car payment system, Hyundai's BlueLink+ infotainment app, a digital key, towing mode for certain trims, and a fingerprint scanner. Forward-attention warning is now available.
Perhaps the bigger news from Hyundai is the new Tucson. It, too, is refreshed, getting new wheel designs and changes to the front and rear lighting. The front and rear ends are massaged, getting new fascias. The grille is new, too.
The interior, meanwhile, gets the same treatment as with the Santa Cruz.
Certain models now get an column shifter, and the wireless charging pad gets moved to a more convenient location.
Other, smaller changes include the addition of noise-reducing laminated glass on the Limited trim.
As with the Santa Cruz, other additions include standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto plus available features such as forward-attention warning, digital key, and fingerprint scanner.
[Images: Hyundai]
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Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.
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My mother was a big fan of the Santa Cruz but didn't like the color palette or user interface. These updates might get her buying one.
I already have some of that in my '24 Santa Cruz I just purchased. And honestly, I like the current grille more than I do the new one. I won't argue the overall effect, however. So far I'm VERY pleased with my new, smaller, truck.