Are you excited about the compact trucks that are on the way? Both the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz and 2022 Ford Maverick will be here soon. Only, which little truck is worth waiting for? Also, is Hyundai cheating off the new Maverick design? 

The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz might have four doors 

According to Auto Evolution, there are 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz renderings that show the little truck with four doors. However, these images are purely speculative. They aren’t official. So it was unclear if the Santa Cruz will have four doors, like the Ford Maverick or not. 

But, The Fast Lane captured spy shots of the Santa Cruz beginning tested in the desert, and even with all the camouflage, the Santa Cruz looks like it does in the rendering. You can clearly see four doors and a grille that is reminiscent of the Santa Fe. 

The 2022 Ford Maverick was recently caught in spy photos as well by Motor1, but they were too hot to handle. They were asked to be taken down. But I caught them just in time to see that the Maverick has four doors too. 

The Maverick was expected to be similar to the original Ford Ranger, with only two seats, so it’s surprisingly bigger, just like the Hyundai Santa Cruz is. So based on what we know about both compact four-door trucks so far, which option seems better? 

The Santa Cruz vs. the Maverick 

Both the Hyundai Santa Cruz and Ford Maverick are expected to be similar to the Honda Ridgeline. They will have a unibody frame and offer all-wheel-drive. They won’t rival the Ridgeline because they will be smaller and have less power. 

So, it’s a little unfair to compare these compact trucks to a midsize truck. Still, the Ridgeline is the only example to reference unless we explore foreign options such as the Mitsubishi L2 Trition or Mazda BT-50, which only has two doors. 

According to AutoBlog, the Maverick could have a small bed that’s as much as 24 to 30-inches shorter than the Ford Rangers’ bed. The Ford Ranger SuperCrew has a 61-inch bed, so the Mavericks’ bed could be around 42-inches. 

According to CNET, the Santa Cruz is about a foot longer than the Tucson. This would put it at about 194-inches long while the Honda Ridgeline is 210-inches long and the Ranger Double Cab is 211-inches long. 

Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz power 

Speculation for the 2022 Maverick suggests that it could have a 1.5-liter three-cylinder engine. The Ford Bronco Sport has the 1.5-liter EcoBoost 13 engine that provides 181 hp, so that’s pretty sufficient. However, the Ford Focus ST has a turbocharged 2.3-liter engine with 280 hp, so that would be a lot more exciting. 

The 2022 Santa Cruz may share engine options with the Tucson. The 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine provides 161 hp, and the 2.4 four-cylinder engine pumps out 181 hp. But there are rumors floating around about a hybrid powertrain option that could provide up to 230 hp. Also, the Santa Cruz is currently expected to tow up to 2,000 lb.