Acaba de publicarse nueva información sobre la versión de producción del Hyundai Santa Cruz concept, un pick up presentado en el Salón del Automóvil de Detroit de 2015.
Según Dave Zuchowski, CEO de Hyundai Motor America, el equipo de Hyundai en Estados Unidos espera que la Santa Cruz sea aprobada por la matriz coreana este noviembre. La reacción positiva del público ante la Santa Cruz ayudó a Hyundai America a construir el argumento, y el cambio de varias plantas de fabricación de coches a crossovers ayudará a liberar la capacidad de producción necesaria. “La pick up está en estudio y podría recibir luz verde en noviembre.” añadió.
La Hyundai Santa Cruz usará la plataforma del Tucson 2016. Estará disponible con tracción total así como una configuración de cinco plazas. Se espera que la gama de motores se herede, pero un informante dijo que también se está considerando un motor diésel.
Hyundai Motor America director de planificación de producto Scott Margason no quiso dar detalles pero dijo a la publicación “No partiríamos de cero con este vehículo, eso es justo decirlo.” También señaló que la empresa ahorraría entre uno y dos años de desarrollo al basar la camioneta en un modelo existente.
Aunque la Hyundai Santa Cruz no ha recibido luz verde oficialmente, se espera una decisión final para finales del verano.
Fuente: [Car&Driver]
Comentarios
6 comentariosThey have said several times that is not a pickup truck like the Chevy Colorado. It isn't intended to tow and haul the same way. It is a soft roader for Millennials to haul around their toys. The Chevy Colorado is a body on frame truck and can't be used for comparison. It is NOT a soft roader and is nearly the same size as a full-sized pickup truck. The compact pickups such as the Chevy Luv, original Ford Ranger, Nissan Hardbody, etc. have been long gone and what Hyundai is hearing is that there is a place for them still, but they probably don't need to be as stout as a body on frame vehicle.
And yet, no front drive based truck-like architecture has succeeded in the U.S. market. It remains to be seen if Hyundai's concept to production will be the one. I am very skeptical that this will unless they can get the packaging, pricing and MPG to upend the Colorado so it becomes a truly worthwhile alternative.
SUVs all used to be RWD body on frame and now they are mostly FWD CUVs.
I like the concept but I have some serious reservations about whether Hyundai can do this. My main concerns are as follows:
Its basically a Tucson with the rear roof chopped off so that will give you a good idea about pricing and fuel efficiency. As far as space, its a smaller vehicle, but they can still devote more room to the interior than the bed. Its a FWD car-based CUV with fully independent suspension so it should have pretty good ride and handling compared to a full frame, live axle pickup built for heavy payload.
A few good commercials (tv and online) showing its efficiency, utility, compact size, and most importantly price will help. Now that Hyundai is the official sponsor of the NFL, they can get the word out pretty quickly to large audiences.