2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz Review

The 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz, a compact truck known for its bold styling, continues to impress with solid performance and exceptional features. This new model year introduces improved style and features. The Santa Cruz now boasts more rugged styling with reshaped front and rear bumpers, maintaining its modern individuality. The profile remains aerodynamic, with a strong angle through the windshield and a smoothly descending hood. The front-to-rear molding is accentuated over the door panels and fenders, and the LED headlights feature a segmented, stacked design. The XRT trim level has been updated with tow hooks, beefy tires on updated wheels, and daytime running lights.

Inside, the 2025 Santa Cruz features an expansive glass housing with a 12.3-inch digital gauge panel and a 12.3-inch infotainment system screen. The updated infotainment system software includes Hyundai Pay, a fingerprint scanner, over-the-air updates, and wireless smartphone app connectivity. Other interior improvements include a revised control panel for the climate management system, enhanced steering wheel controls, and USB-C ports. Carryover features from the previous model year include a wireless phone charger, a household power outlet, LED lighting in the bed, adaptive cruise control, an auto-dimming rear mirror, leather upholstery, a 360-degree camera, a Bose audio system, a heated steering wheel, and highway driving assistance.

The powertrains remain unchanged for the new model year. The SE and SEL trims come with a four-cylinder, 2.5-liter, 191-horsepower engine and an eight-speed automatic transmission, available with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. The top three trim levels feature a four-cylinder, turbo 2.5-liter, 281-horsepower unit and standard all-wheel drive.