The Hyundai Tucson is a popular SUV, especially the hybrid version. It is now also available as an N-Line.
Popular hybrid SUVs with labels
Mid-range SUVs are the cars par excellence that marketers like to label. At Hyundai they praise the sporty qualities of the Tucson with the N-Line, while Toyota uses the Adventure on the adventure with the RAV4. We find out whether any of it is correct in a double test.
Is the Hyundai Tucson N-Line a real N?
A few years ago, Hyundai came up with the quite brilliant i30 N, which immediately established the good name of the N label. As it goes, then come versions that look a bit like a real N, but in fact aren’t. Behold the Tucson N-Line: the looks, not the power. Or the chassis, because unlike some other brands, Hyundai does not bother to screw a sports chassis under the Tucson. The sporty qualities of this SUV are therefore no more or less than with other versions.
Toyota also has a GR Sport of the RAV4, right?
Toyota also has such a sporty version of the RAV4: the GR Sport. It has the advantage that there is actually a different chassis underneath. The downside: it is currently not available. But Toyota has another special version of the RAV4, the Adventure. Quite the opposite actually, because the Adventure is aimed at people who sometimes go off the beaten track with extra large protection plates under the bumpers and black wheel arch edges to ward off minor damage. And to underline the adventurous character, the Adventure version is only available with four-wheel drive.
Are the hybrid Hyundai Tucson and the Toyota RAV4 technically evenly matched?
This also distinguishes the RAV4 from the Tucson, which is only available as a hybrid with drive on the front wheels. Those front wheels are powered by two engines in the Hyundai via a six-speed fully automatic transmission: a 180 hp 1.6-liter four-cylinder turbo engine and a 60 hp electric motor. The maximum system power is 230 hp, making the Tucson effortlessly smooth. When accelerating, the powertrain reacts spontaneously through the electric motor, after which the high torque of the turbo engine ensures that the Hyundai continues to accelerate effortlessly without hearing that a combustion engine is at work. Connecting and disconnecting the 1.6 is also almost seamless under normal circumstances. Only when you suddenly kick down do you feel that a transmission has to work. Fine! And that also applies to consumption, because almost 1 in 17 is a neat score for a medium-sized SUV with 230 hp.
Extremely efficient Toyota RAV4
Nevertheless, Toyota benefits from the decades of experience that the brand has with hybrid technology in terms of consumption, because even with four-wheel drive, the RAV4 scores more than 1 in 18. The powertrain is extremely efficient, especially in built-up areas. As mentioned, you can opt for front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive at Toyota. In both cases there is a 177 hp naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder in the front, which, together with a 120 hp electric motor, drives the front wheels via the well-known planetary gear system that functions as a CVT. In the front-wheel drive version, that package is good for 218 hp.
Do you have to go for the AWD with the Toyota RAV4 or will a 2WD suffice?
In the AWD variant, a second, 54 hp electric motor is added to the rear axle and the system power increases to 222 hp. The second electric motor is therefore not mechanically connected to the motors in the front and can only help at low speeds due to its limited power. Fine for the terrain, but if you never get there it is of little use. Anyway: with Toyota you at least have the choice. As we have come to expect from Toyota, the engines work together seamlessly, so you hardly notice that the combustion engine is helping. Unless you ask for solid power, because then the 2.5 will run at a decent speed and the CVT will then hang at an almost constant pace. Because the system power is very decent these days, it rarely really takes long, but taking big steps is less calm and self-evident than in the Tucson.