Ford is ruling the segment with its brand new pickup truck, the Ford Maverick. Another automobile giant, Hyundai, also wants a piece of that cake, and with its all-new Santa Cruz, it is getting there. Santa Cruz is the fastest-selling new car in the market. At the same time, some people might believe that these aren’t exactly 'trucks,' which might be true because the Santa Cruz is essentially a Hyundai Tucson, and the Maverick is a Ford Escape underneath. These cars have a diverse design language, interior, payload, and towing bits. These cars were designed for people who never needed a pickup truck in the first place. It is pronounced in terms of pricing, and these vehicles stand to be an entry point in the pickup truck segment.

The 2022 Ford Maverick and the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz resurrect a small truck segment dormant for more than a decade. The idea of both these vehicles is to give the buyers a truck-like experience while not sacrificing the essential fuel economy bit.

RELATED: This Is The Best Feature Of The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz

2022 Ford Maverick Vs 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz: Design

Ford Maverick Hybrid 2022 XLT Front Right Quarter View
via Ford

The Maverick and the Santa Cruz are unibody designs based on SUV platforms. The Maverick shares its platform with the Bronco Sport and the Ford Escape, while the Santa Cruz shares it with the Tucson. In essence, one can think of these pickup trucks as longer cargo versions of their respective SUVs. In the case of Santa Cruz, it is much more evident, as it looks very much like a Tucson upfront. It isn’t necessarily bad, as the Tucson is an appealing SUV and Santa Cruz benefits. On the other hand, Maverick looks like a small pickup truck from the Ford lineup, rather than looking like an SUV with a bed.

Ford claims that the Maverick is longer by 4 inches and taller by 2 inches but is narrower by 2.6 inches compared to the Santa Cruz. Both these pickup trucks feature all-LED headlights. The bed of the Maverick is more accommodating than that of the Santa Cruz. It can store bigger and longer items with ease. The Santa Cruz, on the other hand, provides a little more space for the rear seat occupants than that of the Maverick. What is also worth noting is that the Maverick has a bigger trunk opening door, which helps ease cargo adjustment and moving. In terms of design, the Maverick is more inspired by a truck than the Santa Cruz.

2022 Ford Maverick Vs 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz: Interior

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz

The Santa Cruz has more of an SUV-like look on the inside, while the Maverick is attractive in its way, as it has simple lines and good use of contrasting colors. As both these vehicles are crew cabs, both feature full-sized rear doors, and rear seats. Hyundai has cut 4.8 inches of legroom from the Tucson to design the Santa Cruz, leaving 36.5 inches of rear legroom. The Maverick isn’t much different in the same rear legroom of 35.9 inches.

Maverick offers a standard 8-inch touchscreen display across all models when talking about infotainment. The Santa Cruz does the same with an 8-inch display as standard, while the top trim gets 10.25-inch units. Both the systems come with Android Auto and Apple Carplay with built-in navigation. The Maverick has a slight upper hand in overall cabin practicality, as it can store 1.5 liters bottles in the door bins easily. Also, the Ford has rear under-seat storage, which can be used to store small stuff. The Santa Cruz, on the other hand, is more tech-loaded as it shares most of its parts with the Tucson, like the digital dials, captive controls, and 360-degree cameras.

RELATED: How The 2022 Ford Maverick Hybrid Exceeds All Expectations

2022 Ford Maverick Vs 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz: Engine

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Side View
Via: Hyundaiusa.com

The biggest upper hand the Maverick has over the Santa Cruz is its engine and fuel economy, as it offers a Hybrid engine as standard. The standard engine in the Santa Cruz is a 191 HP 2.5L, four-cylinder engine. It produces 181 lb-ft of torque and is mated to an 8-speed transmission. The optional engine in Santa Cruz is a 2.5L turbocharged engine that produces 281 HP and 311 Lb-Ft of torque. This configuration is paired with an 8-speed DCT. With its electric motor and a 2.5L, four-cylinder engine, the Hybrid Maverick produces 191 HP and 173 lb-ft of torque and is mated with a CVT. The Maverick's optional 2.0L Ecoboost engine comes in 31 HP less than the Santa Cruz at 250 HP and 270 lb-ft of torque and comes with 8-speed automatic transmission. In terms of Fuel economy, the Maverick is rated at 40MPG city and 33 MPG highway. Santa Cruz is a low 21 MPG city and 27 MPG highway.

The Santa Cruz can tow up to 3,500 lbs in its standard configuration, and the AWD version maxes out at 5,000 lbs. The standard Maverick can handle 2,000 pounds, and the AWD can haul up to 4,000 lbs. The payload capacity of the Maverick is 1,500 lbs, while the Santa Cruz can go up to 1,748 lbs, out of which Ford claims only 660 lbs can be used in the truck bed.

The Maverick starts at $21,490 for its base FWD trim, while the Santa Cruz is priced slightly higher at $25,215. As one adds in more options, the price gap widens with the Santa Cruz, an already pricey proposition. The Maverick is a no-nonsense pickup truck and offers a more truck-like feel. The Santa Cruz, on the other hand, is more of an SUV which is made to feel like a truck. None of these vehicles are hardcore off-roaders, but they can get the job done with optional AWD. These cars excel at being modern-day vehicles with extra utility and do their best to fit in the urban jungle seamlessly.