Tucson still a top drive

With more than 20 years in Australia, the Tucson has become a fixture of the SUV market

HYUNDAI’S Tucson nameplate, in Australia for more than 20 years, remains one of the company’s popular offerings, especially after a recent upgrade.

The body remains curvy, with rounded rear quarters, while the flanks are more muscular, with pumped guards and accentuated, hard-edged, hip lines providing a clearly defined side aspect, combined with blade-style lower sills.

Personally, I love this look, reminiscent of a flared-guard 1970s Group 5 sports-racer, giving the Tucson a sense of dynamic intent, even when stopped.

The dark chrome grille includes wing-like quadruple daytime running lights (DRLs), cascading down the nose, blending functionality and style, arching over the outboard-mounted LD headlights.

Although slightly larger, the Tucson remains well-proportioned and good looking, the curved roof ensures plenty of internal space, without looking bulbous.

Simple but effective, and also comfortable, the Tucson cabin is a nice place to spend hours behind the wheel

The cabin is similarly familiar, the majority of switches and buttons are unchanged, except the gear selector is a steering column stalk with a twist knob - a nod to 1970s column-shift autos! - creating a flat centre console, with an induction charger for mobile phones.

Ergonomically, this helps, after a few days it became routine, longterm owners shouldn’t struggle, a bonus is easy access to the twin cupholders and your butterscotch latte.

Steering wheel thumb buttons control audio, telephone, cruise and driver-selectable display options for the instrument cluster, framed by the height- and reach-adjustable wheel.

Our test car was the mid-spec Elite, with leather trim, heated front seats, including power adjustment for the driver, auto-lift tailgate and auto-dimming rear vision mirror.

Despite the curved roof, luggage space is good, with room for tall items behind the seats, while head and shoulder space, even with a sunroof, is good for tall and broad drivers.

Although shorter than I would like, the seat base is broad, accommodating wide hips, with good legroom for tall drivers, the seat back is both accommodating and supportive, appreciated on long drives.

Hyundai’s build quality has improved exponentially since 1985, the Tucson is the latest in a long line of comfortable and well-built models, it feels solid, not tinny, insulating and isolating you from the outside world.

While not a sports car, the Tucson is a competent and comfortable drive

The Tucson is an easy drive, although weighing around 1,800kg it doesn’t feel bulky, there is no objection to some twisty roads, but an extended session will cause body roll as the higher centre of gravity kicks in.

Electric power steering is further refined, it retains a solid feel, without being heavy, assistance is speed-dependent, with more help at low speed, reducing as road speed climbs, while still being precise, allowing for predictable cornering.

Our car was the hybrid 1.6 petrol turbo with an electric motor, producing a combined 172kW and 367nm, the separate outputs are ‘blended’ to deliver maximum power with inputs shared between the two power units.

Hyundai's 1.6 petrol turbo is mated with an effective electric motor/generator unit to provide a seamless power delivery in all conditions

Power regeneration, while effective, felt underdone, as though programmed to allow the car to roll on, even with no accelerator input, you had to actively brake more than I expected, rather than using the generator for stopping as well as charging.

That said, the brakes are efficient, easily stopping the Tucson from 100km/h, although brutal, ‘panic’ stops saw no loss of control, the car able to retain grip at all four wheels even while nose-standing.

The 6-speed auto is smooth, providing full-power acceleration with precise, rapid shifts, there was no clunkiness, even on downshifts, engaging first gear when stopped was the most noticeable, with paddle shifters for manual control.

There is an extensive safety suite, too much to list, highlights include Brakeforce Assist, Electric Brakeforce Distribution, Smart Cruise Control and High Beam Assist and plenty more.

The ride is soft, without being mushy, bump absorption was generally good, those big, unavoidable, potholes were still heard and felt, but the suspension damped out the majority of hits without disturbing the ride.

A downside to the hybrid system’s battery is the loss of the full-size spare, instead it is a ‘space saver’, better a slow drive at 80km/h than a long walk in the dark.

Overall, the Tucson is solid, comfortable and well-equipped, as happy on the highway as it is in city traffic.