New Hyundai Pickup To Use Ladder-Frame Chassis

Hyundai’s new pickup truck is far enough into its development that we already know the chassis it will use.

Hyundai Australia CEO John Kett told WhichCar that the new Hyundai pickup will use a ladder frame as opposed to a unibody chassis. The concept that previewed the upcoming Hyundai pickup, the Santa Cruz unveiled in Detroit in 2015, used the latter.

A ladder-frame chassis is more rugged and more solid than a unibody chassis. For off-roading and towing, the ladder frame is a better choice. Kett said Hyundai is serious about its upcoming truck and wants to make sure that it is as functional as possible.

“What’s clear to us is that if we’re going to bring a ute out, it had better be a ute,” he said. “We’ve got past the first hurdle of what it needs to look like, but it needs to be functional as well. That’s the important part. We’re going down that pathway and we’re working towards it. We just have to make sure that when it arrives, it’s a bloody ute.”

A ute in Australia is anything vehicle with a box in the back.

The Hyundai pickup will compete with the Ford Ranger, Toyota Tacoma, Honda Ridgeline, Nissan Frontier and Jeep Gladiator in the mid-size truck segment.