Video: 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz Up Close: The Korean El Camino Gets A New Face

What else has Hyundai changed? Well, let me walk you through it. First thing of note is the new styling for the Santa Cruz. It's not all that different, it's pretty much relegated to just upfront. You've got a new grille up front, you've got some new headlights. These tow hooks are new for the XRT Quasi Off-Road trim. You've also got some new bumpers, front and rear, for better approach and departure angles, and you've got some new wheels as well. They're kind of a wrench theme, but they feature some altering tires to better help the Santa Cruz go off-road. Not that you're really gonna take this thing too far off road, but yeah, you can go a little bit further now. Inside you've got some upgrades as well. Most notably a new dash and center console. In front of you, you've got two 12.3-inch screens. You've got a display for the driver and you've got a touch screen as well, running a new multimedia system. Now, not all of the Santa Cruzs are gonna get these large screens. These are optional and gonna be standard on some of the higher trim levels. One of the items of note that we're really happy about is that they've taken some of the controls that were previously touchscreen for climate and radio, and they've made them buttons again. How often do you see an automaker going from touch controls back to buttons? But hey, we're certainly gonna celebrate that. Overall, the rest of the interior is pretty much the same as it was, which just to say it's comfortable, it's high quality, it's well-made, feels good, just as good as it used to, and now you've got more functionality. But the thing that might make us happiest about this interior is that wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are now available on all trim levels. No more having wireless Apple CarPlay for the base trims and then having to plug a phone in for the higher trim levels. This new multimedia system finally does Apple CarPlay and Android Auto wirelessly across all of the versions of the Santa Cruz. Powertrain's are carry over for the '25 Santa Cruz. You have a choice of a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder, or a turbocharged version for a little bit more power. All wheel drive is optional as well. But of course the best part of the Santa Cruz is this. The tailgate and pickup bed. It's not huge, but it's still pretty useful. And it turns what is normally just a Hyundai Tucson into basically a Korean El Camino, to quote my friend Mike, who just bought one a month ago. What else is new on the '25 Santa Cruz? Not terribly much. It was a mild refresh. There's a new tow haul mode for the XRT Unlimited trim with the turbocharged engine. But other than that, you've pretty much been told everything that they've changed for the '25 Santa Cruz. Now, we don't necessarily have pricing or availability numbers just yet. Those are coming closer to its on sale date. But when we do have all that information, you'll be sure to find it at Cars.com.