Hyundai has pulled the covers off an all-new Tucson, giving the family SUV a rugged 4×4-flavoured redesign and a size increase that moves it into a bigger class altogether.
Unveiled overnight in Korea, the fifth-generation model is pitched by Hyundai as “bolder and more robust” than the car it replaces. That is no small statement given the outgoing Tucson’s success: the Toyota RAV4 rival has featured among the UK’s ten best-selling cars for four years on the trot, ranks among the most popular mid-sized SUVs on sale, and was the world’s seventh-best-selling car in 2025.
The new car’s squared-off styling is the latest expression of Hyundai’s Art of Steel design language, which made its debut on the second-generation Nexo hydrogen SUV and will spread across the rest of the range over the next few years.
Out goes the current car’s curvy form, replaced by an upright, two-box silhouette. The lighting is just as distinctive, with a new H-shaped motif at both ends created by a slim, wraparound light bar and vertical daytime-running lights.
There is a healthy dose of off-road attitude too. Dramatically swollen wheelarches, lower body cladding and a prominent skid plate lend the newcomer what Hyundai calls the “stable stance characteristic of an SUV”.
Bigger footprint, bigger cabin
The styling is only half the story, because the new Tucson has grown substantially. At 4700mm long, it stretches 180mm beyond today’s car, effectively promoting it from the C-segment into the D-segment, where it will square up against the Skoda Kodiaq, Honda CR-V and Renault Austral.
The wheelbase has grown by around 100mm to 2785mm and the body is 40mm wider, gains that Hyundai says translate into “best-in-class interior space”.
Rear passengers are better served as well. Head room in the second row is up by 29mm, most likely thanks to the flatter roofline, while the back doors now open wider to make getting in and out easier.
Inside, the new Tucson is a world away from the button-heavy current car. The cabin follows Hyundai’s new Ioniq 3 in adopting a cleaner, more minimalist layout built around a substantial central touchscreen, with a slim digital display sitting above the squared-off steering wheel that Hyundai says will “minimise driver distraction”.
What remains under wraps is what will power it. Hyundai has given no details yet on the new Tucson’s engine line-up, though the current car is offered with mild hybrid, full hybrid and plug-in hybrid options alongside a cheaper pure-petrol engine, and the plug-in version has been a key part of its appeal to British buyers.
UK prices and an on-sale date have not yet been announced. In the meantime, Hyundai’s electrified momentum on these shores continues, with the Kona Electric recently securing Electric Car Grant approval to sharpen its pricing against similarly sized electric rivals.
