The refreshed Hyundai Tucson is under development, but the engineering team doesn't want the world to get a good look at it. The company covers the model with a mix of black fabric and blocky panels for concealing the revised design. Still, this is the first time we're getting a look at the updates.
It's hard to see revisions at the front because the concealment covers so much. It looks like there's a new design for the grille mesh with a mix of thick and skinny portions. There are no obvious revisions to the headlights, but we can't see much of them. The lamps are still split into upper and lower portions. Blocks underneath the camo hide the hood's shape.
Gallery: Hyundai Tucson Facelift Spy Photos
In profile, the development team covers the doors and the hatchback. The fabric completely hides any design changes. The crossover rides on wheels with spokes that go from being narrow at the hub to being wider at the rim.
Similarly, the heavy camouflage makes changes at the rear very hard to see. Not enough of the taillights are visible to discern whether there are design changes. The exhaust pipes have a rectangular outlet and a trapezoidal opening, which is a visually interesting look.
The current Tucson arrived for the 2022 model year, which makes these updates surprising because it's so soon. The current vehicle has design similarities to the latest Elantra, especially in front.
The current Tucson is available with purely combustion powertrains, in addition to hybrid and plug-in hybrid options, giving buyers lots of variants to pick from. The standard powerplant is a 2.5-liter four-cylinder that makes 187 horsepower and 178 pound-feet of torque. There's also a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder with an electric motor producing 226 hp and 258 lb-ft. The plug-in version has 261 hp. The N Line has a turbocharged version of the 2.5-liter mill making 290 hp.
Inside, the Tucson is available with a standard 8.0-inch infotainment screen, and buyers can upgrade to a 10.3-inch display. The safety tech includes front collision monitoring with pedestrian detection, lane-keeping assist, automatic high beams, driver attention warning, and rear seat alert.
Check out our review of the Tucson PHEV:
