What 3rd stage development means? Usually Hyundai & Kia uses 3 prototype stages, with the 1st stage using a silver/white exterior colour car, with different coloured bumpers, non-painted grille and some details missing. The 2nd stage adds a fully uniform paint and new details suchs as production wheels and chromed details while the 3rd stage is the key to understand we are close to production. You just need to take a look to the new photo set of the 4th generation Tucson.
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What we know so far?
Thanks to the Vision T prototype unveiled at Los Angeles AutoShow on November last year, now we get a better idea of what the Next-gen Tucson looks like after Hyundai confirmed this SUV concept envisions what the 4th generation Tucson will look.
Instead of a Hyundai Palisade inspiration, the new Tucson will premiere a new design language inside SUVs for Hyundai. We still find the turn signal and the DRL on at the top and the bottom its reserved for a single projector with possibly more decorative lights, but in a smaller dimension. The headlight is also smaller but with more sharp lines and its not an horizontal rectangle like the Palisade. Though what it still like the Palisade is the front vents next to the headlights. Its hard to tell but the turn signals also seem to have a vent next to it.
The Front grille has a different design than its bigger sibling, and it will be a complete new design we haven’t seen before (despite the Vision T concept SUV). Right at the bottom we now find this smaller and much wider lower grill. We can only guess the final design but it’ll be a much more aggressive design compare to its current generation, hopefully soon we’ll receive some renders.
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We were a little bit surprised due to the Tucson is not following the latest design identity of Hyundai’s interiors, today we noticed we were in front of the Hybrid variant of the new Tucson, and on the picture above you have the prove in the tachometer. Looks like the infotainment is included on the dashboard instead of being a floating tablet system. We found the same steering wheel premiered on the Sonata and used also in the new Elantra. This version could be the base one as had a traditional cluster which is very similar to the included on Kia’s Niro.
The next generation Tucson is set to have the all-new Theta3 2.5-liter engine with an 8-speed automatic transmission. Hyundai plans to use the Theta3 N/A & Turbo 2.5-lite engine as its base engine in the US market. Should debut in April, according to the latest reports from South Korea, including a Hybrid powertrain for the first time (currently only has Mild-hybrid).
Hyundai Motor and its affiliates are in the process of updating the lines and supply lines of the Alabama plant, as the company has decided to produce Hyundai’s next generation Tucson (codenamed NX4) in 2020. Tucson will also expanding its line-up into pickup trucks and will be offer a pick-up derivative from 2021, the Santa Cruz.
More than the 60 percent of the US auto market sales have chose a SUV, so that it’s why they will be producing the Tucson at its Alabama plant instead of the anticipated sales of Elantra and Sonata are decreasing. Currently, the Alabama plant produces only three models – the Santa Fe, the Sonata, and the Elantra (Korean name: Avante).
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