I've got a friend who's set on getting a Hyunda Santa Cruz or a Ford Maverick. I'm very skeptical of the Maverick so I'm inclined to suggest he go for the Santa Cruz since its really just the existing Tucson with an open bed, but I'm not very familiar with whether or not these vehicles are particularly reliable. From what I've read about the 2.5L Smartstream engine itself it seems like in theory it should hold up better than the hybrid or ecoboost maverick. Is the Santa Cruz the lesser of 2 bad ideas?
What a toss up. 2 untested vehicles.
Hyundai does have a longer warranty.
Yeah unfortunately my "just buy a Tacoma" advice when he first asked didn't sound good to him lol
The additional warranty + more conventional powertrain seemed like advantages to the Hyundai to me, but I'm not really familiar w/ the Hyundai 2.5L or the Tucson it's based on
Lol. It mattered a lot less 30-40 years ago when transmission rebuilds were $350.
I hope he is planning on leasing: both are not good vehicles to keep especially out of warranty. The Maverick is first year of an all-new model and there will invariably be links/bugs to work out, plus Ford quality has been on a decline and they don’t stand behind their products. As for the Hyundai Motor Group - we are currently not recommending any of their products. Also their famous 10 year/100,000 mile warranty is not what it is cracked up to be: they try to find a way out of a warranty claim more times than people realize. If there was any doubt about Hyundai Motor Group, see below:
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/why-all-the-hyundai-hate/
I would recommend to your friend to look at a Honda Ridgeline instead (similar class of vehicles, albeit slightly larger).
I would recommend a Huffy, Schwynn, or a good pair of Nike's over a Hyundai.
Not a fan of anything Ford either.
The Santa Cruz is worse than the Maverick. Although the Maverick hasn't been out for a while, wait.
I think the Santa Cruz is one of the most overstyled cars on the market just like the new Tucson. I would trust the Ford Maverick, but I would lease it since they haven't been out for long enough.
