- Refined hybrid drive and good handling for the segment
- Spacious interior and boot
- Price reduction increases competitiveness with rivals
The Hyundai Tucson is a long-time challenger for medium SUV class honours, which has recently become more affordable.
Overview
Hyundai’s Tucson medium SUV has been around since the early 2000s, but it was the arrival of the fourth-generation version in 2021 that really made buyers take notice, with its impressive all-round abilities and strikingly distinctive design that seemed to blend the headlights into the large radiator grille. The model was then facelifted in 2024, and has continued to deliver success for its manufacturer, being the UK’s 10th most-registered car in 2025.
Following a range refresh carried out earlier this year, the Tucson was initially available with a choice of petrol and hybrid powertrains. The 1.6-litre, 150PS petrol engine comes with a choice of six-speed manual or seven-speed automatic transmission, and the 1.6-litre, 239PS hybrid as a six-speed auto. Orders are now also open for plug-in hybrid versions, with 288PS and a 13.8kWh battery offering an EV range of up to 43 miles.
In terms of rivals, the Tucson has its work cut out, since the biggest-selling model in its segment is its group cousin, the Kia Sportage. Other important rivals include the family SUV segment pioneer, the Nissan Qashqai, and the high-value new kid on the block, the Jaecoo 7.
Pricing and spec
Following the range refresh earlier this year, the Tucson line-up now consists of Element, Black Line and N-Line Edition trim levels.
The entry-level Element trim comes with features such as 17-inch alloy wheels, roof rails, dual-zone climate control and wireless smartphone charging, while further features of Black Line trim include 19-inch alloys, hidden DRLs, rear privacy glass, LED rear combination lights, metal door tread plates, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel.
Extra equipment with N-Line Edition trim includes matrix LED headlights, sporty N-Line styling elements (including twin exhausts which we think look a little silly on a family SUV), a Krell premium audio system, three-zone climate control, heated rear seats and a smart power tailgate.
The recent withdrawal of the previously available high-spec N-Line S and Ultimate trims leaves the Tucson range in a slightly strange situation, since the range-topping model now comes without equipment seen in top-spec versions of other Hyundais, such as ventilated seats, fully electric seat adjustment and blind spot cameras.
At the time when the new trim levels were introduced, Hyundai also carried out a ‘price realignment’, with reductions of around £2,000 compared with equivalent previous trims. The range now starts at £30,935 for a manual petrol Element, with the Black Line and N-Line Edition trims starting at £33,435 and £36,185 respectively.
The price reduction makes the cheapest Tucson much more competitive with its rivals. It’s now less than £100 more than an entry-level Sportage – traditionally a cheaper model – and less than £300 more than a base Qashqai, while even a Jaecoo 7 is less than £2,000 cheaper.
Tucson hybrids start from £34,860. The N-Line Edition hybrid spec we tested, priced at £39,725, comes in cheaper than top-spec versions of the Sportage hybrid and Qashqai e-Power – although following the withdrawal of the N-Line S and Ultimate trims noted above, it could be argued that this is a win for the Hyundai on a technicality, with a Sportage GT-Line S featuring equipment such as ventilated seats and blind-spot cameras that the Tucson does without. A top-spec Jaecoo 7 hybrid remains far cheaper.
Plug-in hybrid Tucsons start from £36,680.
The Tucson comes with Hyundai’s five-year warranty, which impressively applies with unlimited mileage – it will be up to individual buyers to decide how that compares with the Sportage’s seven-year/100,000-mile warranty. Service intervals for the Tucson are 12 months/10,000 miles.
Related reading: New car review: Kia Sportage ticks all the family car boxes
Technology
All Tucsons come with a 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, which with all but entry-level models is placed alongside a 12.3-inch driver display. In a neat piece of design, these screens are curved, which has the effect of angling the infotainment screen towards the driver. The screens have a good level of graphical detail and the touchscreen is usefully responsive. N-Line Edition spec also comes with a head-up display, which does a really good job of placing important info in the driver’s eyeline
In an aid to usability, the Tucson features not only physical climate controls, but even some physical media controls – although tasks like adjusting the volume and skipping tracks are still easier for drivers via the controls on the steering wheel.
Safety
The Tucson comes with driver assistance systems such as forward collision avoidance assist with pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane follow and keep assist, downhill brake control, trailer stability assist and tyre pressure monitoring. Black Line and N-Line Edition specs also come with a forward collision avoidance assist junction turning function, and highway drive assist (the latter with autos and hybrids only).
You also get front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera – and a steering wheel that vibrates should a pedestrian walk past the rear of the car when reversing.
Should drivers wish to turn off audible overspeed warnings and the lane assist system, they can do this by holding down buttons on the steering wheel; unlike with the Sportage, this also has the effect of removing potentially irritating speed limit change notification noises.
The facelifted Tucson is yet to be tested by Euro NCAP – the pre-facelift version was tested in 2021, when it received a full five stars.
Driving experience
The hybrid powertrain has a propensity for electric running at low speeds which contributes to a feeling of easy refinement around town – not that it’s very noisy when the petrol engine does come in. Acceleration is more than decent for a family SUV, with 0-62mph officially possible in 8.2 seconds.
We averaged 44.6mpg during our time with the Tucson – a little worse than we got recently from the Sportage, although more of our mileage in the Hyundai was done on motorways. The Tucson’s official 48.7mpg figure is a fair bit down on the Qashqai e-Power, and also slightly inferior to the Jaecoo 7 hybrid.
The Tucson changes direction well – the handling feels very controlled and predictable without being leaden or unresponsive, and body roll is limited. The ride over bigger bumps and road undulations is impressively cushioned, although this is less so over potholes and pockmarks.
Practicality
The cabin design features a chunky front centre armrest section, with cupholders, wireless charging and even some driving settings controls. It is separated from the main centre console, helping to create a sense of spaciousness – to facilitate this, gear selection is via a stalk on the steering column.
The interior trim includes a good amount of leather and other soft touch materials, along with gloss black plastic. As part of the N-Line look, red stitching is applied to parts such as the steering wheel, which brings a bit of colour to what would otherwise be a very grey and black interior.
N-Line seats, despite their sporting pretensions, are comfortable and supportive – although we found the trim piece below the headrest had an annoying habit of lightly snagging the back of our shirt when driving. Also at this point in the range it’s perhaps disappointing for all the seat adjustment to be manual, save for electric driver’s seat lumbar support.
Rear seat legroom is fairly good, and headroom is impressive – the latter especially so if rear passengers take the option to recline their seats, airliner-style, which can create a highly relaxed posture. Rear passengers also benefit from two USB-C ports, their own climate controls, and window blinds (the latter two features with N-Line Edition trim only).
Boot capacities of 620 litres for a petrol Tucson and 616 litres for a hybrid are bigger even than those of the impressively capacious Sportage, and a long way ahead of the Qashqai and Jaecoo 7. The Tucson’s boot comes with an adjustable floor – when this is in its higher position there’s a flat loading lip. The rear seats come with practical 40:20:40 split folding capability, and with N-Line Edition trim can be dropped using levers next to the tailgate.
