Hyundai Tucson (2015 – 2021) Review

Few people buy an SUV because they want the sharpest driving car, which is just fine where the Hyundai Tucson is concerned. You might be a little more aware of the bland interior design, but you’ll also notice the solid build, comfort and space. It all adds up to a car that wins more minds than hearts compared to the likes of the Volkswagen Tiguan, the popular Ford Kuga or stablemate the Kia Sportage. Read on for our full Hyundai Tucson review.

Stylish outside and good value, the Hyundai Tucson is a family SUV that has lots of appeal. Much of that is down to its large interior, refined ride and affordable price.

The Hyundai Tucson offers more space and equipment than its Hyundai ix35 predecessor. It has a more purposeful look, with an aggressive design featuring an imposing front grille, large wheelarches and bulging bodylines. 

The Hyundai Tucson is well-equipped and all models came with alloy wheels, a rear spoiler, automatic headlights, LED daytime running lights and steering wheel controls.

The cabin is durable and spacious, but slightly let down by the occasional splash of dull and scratchy plastics.

The large comfortable seats have lots of lower leg and upper back support though, while the wide base allows up to three adults to sit across the rear bench. There’s no shortage of legroom either, which means the driver can push their seat back a considerable distance without squashing the legs of those behind.

There are five engines to choose from – two petrols and three diesels – and the most economical option is the 1.7 CRDi with 116PS which returns a claimed 61.4mpg. If your annual mileage doesn’t warrant diesel power, then there’s an entry-level 1.6-litre petrol which is also front-wheel drive.

The Tucson is never involving or fun to drive, due to its overly light steering and lack of feedback in the corners. That said, the Hyundai Tucson is a good value choice that's practical and easy to live with.

What’s more, if you opt for one of the lower trim models – such as SE Nav – you’ll get a well-equipped car that will give all of the practicality, comfort and refinement of a premium car for much less money. 

If you’re looking for the newer version, check out our Hyundai Tucson review. 

The vast majority of Hyundai Tucson models will never leave the road, and it is here that it impresses, with a refined ride which is smooth and supple.

Admittedly, rough A-roads or potted motorways will unsettle the ride a little, making things a touch bumpy for those in the back. But for the most part, the Hyundai Tucson is a comfortable car in which to while away the miles.

A slick six-speed manual gearbox is standard on all models, although a six-speed automatic is available as an option.

The only real downside is the handling, with lifeless steering that returns little in the way of feedback. As a result, the Hyundai Tucson isn’t as fun or engaging to drive as a Ford Kuga or Nissan Qashqai.

But the Hyundai Tucson shouldn’t be marked down too much. Indeed, it is safe and predictable, while body lean is kept to a minimum on all but the tightest of B-roads.

They Hyundai Tucson is available with five engines – two petrols and three diesels – and uses two-wheel or four-wheel drive, dependent on how powerful the engine is. 

The best – and cheapest – option is the 1.7 CRDi, which is front-wheel drive and produces 116PS with 280Nm of torque. It’s quiet, refined and economical, with up to 61.4mpg according to the official figures.

The engine does need to be worked hard for overtaking, but is more than adequate for general motorway driving and has plenty of low-down torque for smooth acceleration in and around town. 

If your annual mileage doesn’t warrant diesel power, then you can opt for the 1.6-litre petrol with either 136PS or 177PS. The petrols are powerful enough – especially the 177PS – but as you’d expect, economy isn’t as good.

The 136PS returns a claimed 44.8mpg and the 177PS version – which has four-wheel drive – is more expensive to run, with a claimed 37.2mpg and 177g/km. We also noted that the petrol engine gets rather noisy on the motorway, especially at higher revs. 

The 2.0 CRDi with 185PS, on the other hand, is quiet and smooth at all speeds. It’s also packed with 400Nm of torque from 1750rpm, which means it’s ideal for overtaking or towing, with a braked limit of 2200kg. The 2.0 diesel is also available with 136PS, but this reduces towing capacity to 1900kg. 

However, as they’re all four-wheel drive, the 2.0 CRDi models are not as efficient as the 1.7 CRDi, with the 136PS and 185PS units returning a respective 58.9mpg and 47.9mpg.

The four-wheel-drive system gives the Hyundai Tucson some off-road potential, with a locking differential, but it’s not suited to serious mud-plugging due to its relatively poor ground clearance.

When the Hyundai Tucson was launched in 2015, it scored a full five-star rating in Euro NCAP crash tests. There are twin front, side and curtain airbags, ABS and ESP, plus Isofix rear child seat mounts and an active bonnet to better protect pedestrians.

As an option, Hyundai Tucson customers could have optional automatic emergency braking (standard on the top Premium models) and lane assist technology was included with all but the base trim S model.

A Smart Parking Assist System was part of the Premium SE trim, while this model and the Premium came with rear cross traffic alert.

Connect the Hyundai Tucson to an unbraked trailer and you can tow up to a maximum of 750kg. With a braked trailer, that rises to a legal max of 1600kg, which is enough for a small family caravan.

The Hyundai Tucson might be one of the firm’s smaller SUVs, but you wouldn’t think it when sitting inside the large and airy cabin. There’s lots of head and legroom for all passengers.

What’s more, most models get a flat 513-litre boot that can be extended to a useful 1503 litres by lowering the rear seats.

Using the boot is easy, with a low entry sill that prevents you from having to lift heavy items high to load up. 

Families will find the Hyundai Tucson particularly useful, with lots of storage. There are plenty of areas to keep loose items, with deep door pockets, large cup holders and a handy set of hooks in the boot that lets you hang shopping bags without worrying about them falling over and scattering their contents over the floor. 

The seats are comfortable, with good levels of support across the wide base and lower back. The cabin’s long length also allows tall drivers to push the front seat quite far back, without hindering legroom in the rear.

The attention to detail is high, with a solid feel throughout the interior. As a result, there are no worrying creaks or squeaks as you navigate bumpy roads.

The dashboard layout is also neat and simple, with soft-touch materials covering the upper layer.

However, the interior ambience is spoilt a little by dull and scratchy plastics that cover the lower dashboard and surround the climate controls and window switches.

The Hyundai Tucson comes with a clear infotainment screen in all models that is set high in the centre of the dash. It’s easy to read and operate, and it comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as Bluetooth.

Such easy integration with your smartphone negates any concerns about most models of the Hyundai Tucson not coming with sat-nav.

There are also useful shortcut buttons on either side of the screen to take you to the most commonly used menu pages. In addition, rotary controls for the volume and radio tuning make it simple to work while driving, if you don’t use the steering wheel controls.

An eight-year old Hyundai Tucson with around 70,000 miles on the clock that’s in good condition and has a complete service record will cost from about £9500.

A four-year-old with 30,000 miles under its wheels will require an outlay of £15,000 for the smartest examples. This will also see you enjoy the remainder of the original warranty, plus any used warranty supplied with the car.

Going by the official fuel economy claims when the Hyundai Tucson was new, the 1.7 CRDi turbodiesel engine is the most frugal, with 61.7mpg combined consumption.

Unfortunately, our Real MPG data shows that works out to 44mpg in normal driving, although this model’s 119g/km carbon dioxide emissions do mean reasonable road tax payments on cars registered prior to 1 April 2017.

After that date, all Hyundai Tucsons are liable to the same £180 Vehicle Excise Duty cost.

If you want to go down the petrol route, you’ll have to brace yourself for much worse fuel economy around the 30mpg mark, according to Real MPG numbers.

Couple that to higher CO2 emissions and the petrols are to be avoided, unless you cover a relatively small annual mileage.

What the Tucson might cost you extra in fuel compared to some rivals, it returns with low costs in other areas.

Insurance is very affordable, with the Hyundai Tucson sitting in groups 12 to 25, while servicing for the diesels comes every 20,000 miles and the engines are extremely reliable.

Petrols, though, need a service every 10,000 miles, so again you would have to be very determined to choose one of these over a diesel.

The Hyundai Tucson S is the base trim and features 16-inch alloy wheels, body-coloured door handles, mirrors and bumpers, a rear spoiler with integrated LED brake light, LED daytime running lights and electric and heated door mirrors.

Buyers also get cloth seats, air-conditioning, automatic headlights with dusk sensor, Bluetooth, DAB, steering wheel audio and phone controls, luggage hooks and a tyre repair kit.

Choose the Hyundai Tucson SE and it adds 17-inch alloy wheels, front foglights, LED rear lights, projection headlights with static cornering lights and rear parking sensors. Move inside, and you find heated front seats, driver’s seat electric lumbar support, dual zone climate control, a luggage net and a full-size alloy spare wheel.

For the Hyundai Tucson SE Nav, there was an eight-inch touchscreen satellite navigation system, reversing camera, TomTom Live services and a shark fin antenna.

Also included was a speed limit information system which uses the front camera and information from the navigation system to identify road speed signs and display the speed limit in real time.

Pick a Hyundai Tucson Premium and you’ll find it has 17-inch alloy wheels, leather upholstery, heated rear seats, front parking sensors, rear cross traffic alert, automatic windscreen wipers with rain sensor, autonomous emergency braking, blind spot detection and heated outer rear seats.

At the top of the tree sits the Hyundai Tucson Premium SE with its heated steering wheel, keyless smart entry with engine start/stop button, smart parking assist system (automatic transmission only), smart electric tailgate, LED headlights, a panoramic sunroof with electric tilt and slide function, and ventilated front seats.

From 2018, Hyundai added the Hyundai Tucson Go! SE model based on the SE Nav but with 19-inch alloy wheels, gloss black door mirror caps and rear privacy glass. It also had automatic wipers. At the same time, the range was revised to do away with the S in favour of the Hyundai Tucson S Connect and the SE trim was dropped.

In 2019, the Hyundai Tucson N Line offered a sporty option for buyers with its 19-inch alloy wheels, headlights with black surrounds, unique daytime running lights and dark door window trims. Inside, the N Line offered front sports seats and leather upholstery, alloy pedals and N gearlever.