Words by Ganesh Murthy
Hyundai has given the Tuscon the all-wheel drive treatment, slotting it as the range topping variant in India, priced at Rs 25.19 lakh.
Hyundai terms it as ‘Intellimatic 4WD system’, which comes with the on-demand 4WD option, which powers the wheels depending on the traction requirements. This means that the SUV will be on two wheel drive mode, most of the time to aid fuel efficiency. It also has 4WD lock mode which helps to activate the 4WD function manually based on user demand, resulting in a torque split of 50:50 between front and rear wheels and the ATCC (Advanced Traction Cornering Control) feature helps to transfer torque to the wheel that carries the most grip resulting in improved cornering performance.
The Tucson is powered by a 2-litre 4 cylinder engine producing a max power of 182.5bhp at 4000rpm and peak torque of 400Nm at 1750 – 2750rpm.
The Tucson 4WD has no direct rivals as both the Jeep Compass and the VW Tiguan are priced at Rs 21.37 lakh (top end) and Rs 27.49 lakh (base variant) and it comfortably slots between them. On the other hand, the entry level RWD variants of the Toyota Fortuner and Ford Endeavour are priced at Rs 25.71 and Rs 25.08 Lakh, ex-showroom Delhi.