Has this thoroughly overhauled SUV got the dynamism to match its bold new looks?
When the first ever Hyundai Tucson launched in 2004, few would have guessed it would one day become one of the UK’s best-selling cars. Its current, fourth-generation guise went on sale in 2020, which has boosted the Hyundai Motor Group’s positioning as the fourth-biggest manufacturer in the world based on the number of cars sold between its Hyundai, Kia and Genesis brands.It finished 2023 as the UK’s sixth-best-selling model – ahead of key rivals such as the Volkswagen Tiguan and the Kia Sportage – helping to reshape Hyundai’s image along the way. The Tuscon has been representative of Hyundai’s product improvement, making better and better vehicles in their conventional everyday line-up, that has done the job, plus identifying growing market segments such as compact SUVs and crossovers and pitching cars into them with not just aggressive pricing but also genuine quality and ability. Its latest generation arrived with a bold visual overhaul, looking far more striking than its predecessor. The first-generation Hyundai Tucson of 2004 felt not-for-us, with heavy plastic cladding, which its replacement, the Hyundai iX35, traded for weirdness.The third-generation Hyundai Tucson of 2015 started to get the groove outside and inside, with European-friendly styling and a competitive driving experience. The Tucson line-up at a glanceAll of the new Tucson’s powertrains are based around Hyundai’s turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, with varying degrees of electrical assistance. With its plug-in hybrid powertrain, this crossover offers the broadest array of powertrains anywhere in the Korean giant’s line-up.The range opens with a 148bhp petrol engine with front-wheel drive, followed by a 48V, 148bhp mild-hybrid unit. While there was a 227bhp mild hybrid on sale previously, it’s no longer available in the UK. The Hyundai Tucson plug-in hybrid offers the most power of the lot, with 261bhp and a claimed electric-only range of 31 miles on the WLTP cycle. The 48V MHEV and range-topping plug-in hybrid variants can be had with all-wheel drive.Hyundai offers the Tucson with five specification levels: SE Connect, Premium, N-Line, N-Line S and Ultimate.VERSIONPOWER1.6T 150PS 6MT148bhp1.6T 150PS 48V MILD HYBRID148bhp1.6T 265PS 4WD Plug-in Hybrid261bhp
