Koreans cruz off-road

Hyundai has gone into 'cruz control and is introducing a bigger brother to line up alongside the Santa Fe!

Auto Express Car Reviews

New Veracruz from Hyundai has already been spotted hot-weather testing

10th October 2006

Auto Express can exclusively reveal that a new large SUV, the Veracruz, is on the way from the firm - and the good news is that it will be sold in the UK. The Veracruz has been de-signed primarily for the US market, but Hyundai Europe's vice president, Gerry Dorizas, told us: "We're 90 per cent sure it's coming to Europe, and the UK is a very important market for Hyundai." The Veracruz has yet to be officially revealed, but it has already been spotted out on test by our spies. It will replace the ageing Terracan and aims to offer the build quality and refinement of the Santa Fe in a more rugged package.

The firm claims that its newcomer has "more space than the Mercedes GL". It will also offer seven seats as standard, and aims to steal sales from Nissan's Murano and Subaru's new B9 Tribeca.

To help boost its appeal even further, the Veracruz will have an all-new diesel engine to line up alongside the 3.8-litre V6 petrol powerplant. A six-speed automatic transmission is also scheduled to appear when the SUV goes on sale in the UK early next year.