Here in North America we’re pretty wrapped up in hype over the impending Los Angeles Auto Show, Baja 1000 and political discourse so the Hyundai Creta STC almost snuck past me. Almost.
This little trucklet dropped at the Sao Paulo Motor Show in Brazil, and hey, isn’t it just like the Santa Cruz we saw in Detroit last year?
While both vehicles are basically “compact-car-with-pickup-bed” the Santa Cruz felt a little more abstract while the Creta STC here seems fairly grounded in Hyundai’s current lineup. Well, maybe if you look past gleam of the 21-inch rims.The Creta has already been on sale as a little SUV in India and other global markets. This “STC” (Sport Truck Concept) pretty much just lops the back off the existing vehicle.
Indian Autos Blog saw the car up close and must have gotten a better briefing than I was able to find, because they’re detailing that the STC is about 15-inches longer, 3-inches wider and sitting on an extra 8-inches of wheelbase than the standard Creta. Though Hyundai has not said anything about engines or drivetrains, apparently.
The bed provides about 30 cubic feet of storage space, measuring about 50 inches in length, 50-inches in width and 20-inches in height.
The current Creta is about 168-inches long and is available with a selection of sub-2.0-liter engines and automatic and manual transmissions. For your context, it’s significantly smaller than the U.S.-market Hyundai Santa Fe SUV which stands at 193-inches long.
The highest-trim Creta, with a 1.6-liter engine and automatic transmission lists at about $22,000 in an Indian area like Goa. The Creta STC does not seem to have been promised for production, but I guess it would be priced around there if it ever were to hit the market.
Now that Hyundai is teased us with not one but two truly “small” pickup-style vehicles, I’m starting to feel like putting one into production is looking likely. As for whether it will come to the U.S. is another story.
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