This is a rendering of the 2011 Hyundai Tucson that the Korean carmaker plans to unveil at next month's Frankfurt Motor Show.
There’s little doubt that Hyundai is on a mission to rebuild its image. Forget “cheap and cheerful,” the South Korean carmaker’s products are moving steadily up-market, even as the brand’s latest offerings show a distinctive design flair that wouldn’t have been imaginable just a few years ago.
Days after confirming that it will enter the premium luxury segment with the Equus sedan, Hyundai has released a pair of renderings giving a clear hint of what it has in store at next month’s Frankfurt Motor Show. What you see here is the 2011 Hyundai Tucson – the vehicle the rest of the world knows as the Hyundai ix35.
Hyundai says the shape is part of its new “fluidic” design language, though a quick glance suggests the influence of such competing Japanese CUVs as the Nissan Murano or Infiniti FX. The crossover/ute was penned by chief stylist Tomas Buerkle, at Hyundai’s European design center, in Russelsheim, Germany.
The 2011 Hyundai crossover also will be sold in Europe under the ix35 badge.
For the moment, the Koreans are holding back the specific technical details of the new CUV, though as the European name hints, it is likely to boast a 3.5-liter V-6 as its primary powertrain. A diesel could be one of the additional offerings for Europe, where fuel-efficient oil-burners have become the norm, rather than the exception.
Hyundai officials insist they are planning to maintain the carmaker’s presence in the entry-level market segments, despite their push upwards with products like the Genesis sedan and the upcoming Equus. But there is little doubt that the ambitious automaker will no longer be content to stay with bland, me-too styling.