Odometer at pick-up: 559 km
Odometer Current: 4,671 km (4,112 by autoTRADER.ca)
Fuel Consumption: 9.65 L/100 km
Costs: $396.97 (Gas)
This time around I thought I’d circle back to the interior, which left Justin unimpressed (for its blandness and middling quality materials), but has me repeatedly blessing its simple ease of use and convenience.
After a couple weeks separated from the little Hyundai by our colleague Justin Pritchard, we are grateful to have our trusty Tucson back in the Yarkony driveway. Wisely, we delayed getting the summer tires put back on through April, and lo and behold, the weather turned chilly again before finally shaking off the icy grip of winter, and the Michelin X-Ices proved their worth again. The snow never got terribly deep this winter, so the Tucson’s all-wheel drive was rarely put to the test, and in what limited use it saw was faultless, having only resorted to its 4WD lock feature for the one nasty ice storm we saw in late March. Between the tires and the AWD system, it was no more dramatic than a rainy day.
But anyhow, this time around I thought I’d circle back to the interior, which left Justin unimpressed (for its blandness and middling quality materials), but has me repeatedly blessing its simple ease of use and convenience.
Switching back and forth between cars as frequently as I do may not be as common amongst the average population, but those that might regularly need to swap car seats will appreciate the Tucson’s rear seat space and adjustability. The door opening is suitably wide and the rear seats tilt (though they do not slide), allowing you to adjust the seatback to better fit the angle of your car seat if you have kids at that stage. The lower anchors are easy enough to access, and the third tether can be easily attached by removing the headrest and tilting the seat forward a bit as it’s mounted quite high.
While the Tucson is small and the rear seats are somewhat flat, the rear seats are still reasonably comfortable and spacious, and a small adult or teenager can still squeeze between two child seats in the back, and the driveline tunnel isn’t too intrusive.
From the beginning: 2016 Hyundai Tucson Long Term Arrival, Update 1, Update 2
The driver’s seat and front passenger seat are even more pleasing; we’ve yet to hear a single complaint about any aspect of them, and although they lack the cooling ventilated air of the top trims, the breathable fabric is just as good, and the shape and support are excellent even on long trips without any of the headrest intrusion we experienced in the Sorento. And with a Goldilocks ride height, the Tucson is easy for everyone to get in and out of, from my three-year-old to my short-ish wife and my tall-ish self, it’s a friendly height to easily slide into the chair or clamber over the sills, although I do wish it had doors that tucked over the sills as on the Sorento, keeping pant legs and independent kids cleaner through winter’s slushy messy months.
Finally, around back we have a decent trunk that yields 877 L of cargo space with all seats up (leaders in the segment typically hover around 1,000 L), with a small spare under the floor and two small hidden trays at the sides. The seats are split 60/40, and can fold down to yield 1,752 L, trailing leaders like the Honda CR-V at 2,007 and the RAV4 at 2,080, but ahead of something smaller like the Jeep Cherokee (697/1,555). Even if it doesn’t quite measure up on the specs sheet, it’s a wide and deep cargo space that beat out any compact or mid-size sedan.
Up next, a big road trip, where we’ll get to really test out every nook and cranny for water bottles and bags of chips and gummy bears, every litre of that cargo space for the whole family’s luggage, and every ounce of comfort and smoothness it can muster over thousands of kilometres and a foreign destination.
Pricing: 2016 Hyundai Tucson
Base Price (Base FWD): $24,399
Base Price (Premium AWD): $28,999
Options: None
Destination: $1,795
A/C Tax: $100
Price as Tested: $30,894
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