Hyundai Tucson 2017 Review

Tweaked Tucson
Taking on the Ford Escape, MazdaCX-5 and Volkswagen Tiguan in this test is the range-topping Tucson Highlander, a four-time motoring.com.au Medium SUV Comparison winner. The 2017 Highlander offers unchanged direct-injected turbo-petrol and turbo-diesel powerplants.

Our test car is a Tucson Highlander all-wheel drive powered by the 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine, seven-speed dual-clutch transmission combination. Retail price is $45,450 (plus on-road costs). ‘Ara Blue’ metallic paint is a $595 option.

Built in the Czech Republic, the Tucson is sold with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty and is backed by Hyundai’s lifetime capped-price servicing scheme with 12 month/15,000km service intervals and 10 year roadside assistance plan.

Come sale time, redbook.com.au forecasts the Tucson will have a retained value of 59.6 per cent after three years.

Mixed blessings
The country setting chosen for our latest Medium SUV Comparison (designed to mimic a weekend away) proved a mixed blessing for the Tucson. The dual-clutch transmission, which was fractious in stop-start city traffic, became cooperative and efficient at highway speeds, the seven forward ratios exploiting the Hyundai’s relatively meagre on-paper ouputs (130kW/265Nm).

Hyundai’s localised suspension tune also proved its worth on country roads. The Tucson rode comfortably over a variety of sealed and unsealed surfaces while also delivering predictable steering and handling characteristics. In a nutshell, the Tucson definitely provided the most involving and communicative chassis of the contenders. Let’s call it ‘fun to drive’.

The downside was road noise. Impressively hushed aerodynamically and mechanically, the Tucson’s otherwise refined demeanour was let-down by a heavy drone of tyre on road. In a competitor set keenly focussed on better attenuating tyre noise, the Tucson felt dramatically underdone.

We also felt the Hyundai’s brake pedal was a little soft when compared with others.

In the Tucson’s favour, it did offer the tightest turning circle (10.6m) and was capable of running on standard 91 RON unleaded or E10 blend petrol.

Among the SUVs assembled for this test, the Hyundai was the only all-wheel drive model to feature a locking centre differential – something to keep in mind if light off-road duties, such as trips to the snow or beach, are on your agenda.

Room to grow
With young Aussie families embracing medium SUV ownership like never before (Hyundai has sold more than 7000 Tucsons so far this year) cabin packaging and cargo flexibility are major considerations.

The Tucson excels on those fronts, providing generous accommodation levels both front and rear, headlined by supportive, leather-wrapped seat cushioning. Driver ergonomics and visibility are agreeable, though for passengers, we found the low-set rear seat may hinder the outlook for young children. Perhaps they’ll enjoy the standard panoramic sunroof instead…

ISOFIX, top-tether child seat anchor points, and three lap-sash seatbelts cover the needs of most rear seat occupants. Note though, the centre belt is roof-mounted, which is cumbersome.

Hyundai’s Tucson offers 488 litres of cargo space behind a keyless, electrically-operated tailgate and capacity expands to 1478 litres with the 60:40 split-fold rear pews flipped flat.

The cargo area provides a retractable security blind, light and 12-volt power outlet and a full-size matching alloy wheel is secured beneath the floor.

On the downside, the Tucson offers only 1600kg of braked towing capacity, matching the Ford Escape, but short of both the CX-5 (1800kg) and Tiguan (2500kg).

Tough call
The Highlander is the only grade of Hyundai Tucson to include low-speed Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) as part of its standard safety equipment list. AEB joins regular electronic chassis controls and driver assistance technologies including a reversing camera, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keeping and blind-spot assistance.

The Tucson has received a five-star ANCAP safety rating.

It does, however, omit both radar cruise control (found optionally in the Escape and Tiguan, and standard in CX-5’s Akira grade) and the 360-degree reversing camera of the Volkswagen. We also found the Tucson’s auto-levelling LED headlights less than impressive on low-beam, but welcomed the inclusion of static cornering, and front and rear fog-lights.

By now, we’re sure you’re as confused as to where the Hyundai Tucson ranked in this test.

It’s an SUV which offers much in the way of value, is impressively package and provides a dynamic drive. But Tucson lacks some of the technology now included in the competitor set, the tyres are noisy at highway speeds, and it’s disjointed to drive in stop-start traffic.

Looks like the Tucson may have finally been knocked from its perch.

2017 Hyundai Tucson Highlander AWD Turbo pricing and specifications:
Price: $45,450 (plus on-road costs) / $46,045 (as tested)
Engine: 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 130kW/265Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch
Fuel: 7.7L/100km (ADR Combined) / 8.6L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 178g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP