Hyundai Tucson Review

With Ford, GM, Toyota and Honda pretty much dominating the U.S. car market, there are always hungry challengers striving to chip away at the top five carmaker’s tenable grasp. With a
noticeable increase of market share, Hyundai has been on fire the past two years with top contenders such as the Genesis and Genesis Coupe. Fortifying their position and offering another solid vehicle into the crowded crossover market is the all-new 2010 Tucson.

While the previous generation lagged behind competitors, the new Tucson received a much-needed redesign which gave it greater power, more style and a competent interior. The changes make it one of the best values in its class.

The first generation Tucson (2005 – 2009) was bland and underpowered, the redesign gives it good-looking curves and a more powerful and efficient powertrain. The Tucson now has the power, fuel economy, and interior amenities to do battle with competitors such as the Honda CR-V, Chevrolet Equinox, Toyota RAV4, Ford Escape, and others.

Best of all, the Tucson starts at $18,995, which makes it one of the more affordable crossovers in its class. In fact, only a few SUVs cost less — and none of these less expensive models come close to matching the Tucson’s frugal fuel economy. With its new 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and 6-speed automatic transmission, the base model is expected to achieve 23 mpg in the city and 31 on the highway. Observed mileage during our week of testing was 22 mpg overall. Its highway fuel economy is surpassed only by the GMC Terrain/Chevy Equinox.

The 2010 Tucson comes with a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 176 horsepower and 163 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm. This engine replaces the previous model’s 2.0-liter four-cylinder and optional V6 engines. Even though the new engine delivers more horsepower than the previous V6, it has better fuel economy. In fact, it provides nearly as much power as the Toyota RAV4’s 179-horsepower four-cylinder engine. We found the new engine is a champ and has no trouble in passing and merging maneuvers.
What we like:

* Almost perfect compact suburban get-it-done family mover
* Most of the road noise stays outside
* Sharp-dressed interior
* Good fuel economy
* Available XM Nav traffic with live updates

What we didn’t like:

* Position and angle of display screen gets a lot of glare from sun
* iPod interface and controls reset to default settings every time the ignition is turned on
* To maximize fuel economy the automatic transmission up-shifts too early, which causes engine to fall out of power range and bog
* Tight cargo hold limits “utility” function

Ruling: it’s fuel-efficient, stylish and high-rent — but limited on utility