2025 Hyundai Tucson Hybrid review

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2025 Hyundai Tucson Hybrid

As Australia's motoring landscape evolves, hybrid sales are up by over 60 per cent compared to this time last year.

It's a market shift more brands are catching onto. A decade ago, Hyundai didn't even sell a hybrid car, but now alongside the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid it has hybrid versions of the i30, Santa Fe, and a good chance there are more on the way soon.

The motivation is obvious. Australia's top-selling medium SUV is the Toyota RAV4 and, whereas you used to be able to get it with non-hybrid petrol models, it's now hybrid only. It makes sense that Hyundai wants to emulate that success.

Hyundai joins the hybrid fray alongside rivals from GWM, Honda, Kia, Nissan, and more. I spent a week behind the wheel to find out how the hybrid version of the Tucson fits into this fast-growing market segment.

How much is a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid?

The Tucson range is a little intimidating at first glance. There are three grades – the entry-level Tucson, mid-spec Tucson Elite, and range-topping Tucson Premium. Then there's a choice of engines: a non-turbo 2.0-litre petrol, a 1.6-litre turbo petrol, or a 1.6-litre turbo petrol hybrid.

From there you can also option an N Line styling pack across all grades, just not on the 2.0-litre models, and all-wheel drive is available on the turbo and hybrid models, just not on the base spec. It's an intimidating model matrix with 17 variants to choose from.

The cheapest hybrid you can buy is the one shown here, simply called the Tucson Hybrid. It matches Hyundai's hybrid system to front-wheel drive and starts from $45,100 plus on-road costs. The non-hybrid version kicks off from just under $40,000, while the top-spec Tucson Premium N Line hybrid all-wheel drive is priced at just over $61,000.

Standard equipment includes features like LED headlights and tail-lights, a new running light signature and new look grille, 18-inch alloy wheels, keyless entry and start, a 12.3-inch infotainment screen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a wireless phone charger, six-speaker stereo, Bluelink app access and connected services, dual-zone climate control, fabric seat trim, and a hefty list of safety and driver assist features – but more on those a little further down.

There are a lot of rivals priced around the Tucson Hybrid, and specs and features vary greatly.

At the budget end of the scale, the GWM Haval H6 Hybrid Ultra gives you a top-spec model with a long list of included features priced from a sharp $45,990 drive-away. Over the Tucson you’ll find features like a panoramic sunroof, powered tailgate, heated steering wheel, and heated and ventilated front seats.

The Nissan X-Trail e-Power is more expensive at $50,490 plus on-road costs. Nissan lacks a true base model in its hybrid range, so the ST-L offers some additional features over the Tucson too, like a powered driver’s seat, leather-look seat trim, and all X-Trail hybrid models feature all-wheel drive.

Then there’s Australia’s favourite medium SUV, the Toyota RAV4. Pricing starts from $42,260 for the base-model GX, or $45,810 for the GXL. The RAV4 GXL brings cloth trim, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, privacy tint, and an interior that has a playfully rugged design theme running through it.

How big is a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid?

Because the updates to the 2025 Tucson range are midlife updates to an existing model, most key dimensions are the same as in earlier versions. Externally the base Tucson measures 4640mm long, 1865mm wide, 1665mm tall and rides atop a 2755mm wheelbase.

On the inside, the reworked interior has been given a much more thorough overhaul than the exterior. The dashboard design is new, with a higher-placed infotainment screen and extra storage, including an open shelf ahead of the passenger.

The gear lever has been moved from the centre of the car to the steering column, the centre console hosts a wireless charge pad and cupholders, jutting out over an expanded open space that offers room for a bum bag, purse, wallet, keys and more – all at the same time. Regular storage space including generous door pockets and a reasonably deep lidded console are also available.

The front seats feel incredibly roomy, helped in part by the dash design that makes the car feel wider, and the cut-away sections of the console. The seats themselves are well proportioned, but the manual adjustment for the backrest left me with a too-upright or too-reclined compromise with the gap between notches just a little far apart to be ideal.

In the rear seat, there’s plenty of leg room and all but basketballers are likely to find the right fit for them. The rear backrest can be reclined, but with the rear cargo blind in place this movement can be fouled. The centre seat is firmer and higher than the outboard positions, so three-across is best saved for at least one shorter or younger passenger.

Rear riders get air vents to help keep cool, and a pair of USB-C charge ports. There are map pockets in the backs of the front seats and these have moved from a net-type to a fully-fabric pocket to help keep small items hidden from view. A pull-down armrest yields two small cupholders, and the doors contain bottle holders.

For parents with an eye on support seats, there are three top-tether mounts and two ISOFIX mounts.

The rear seats are split 60/40 and have a lever within the boot to quickly fold the seats when loading longer items. An LED boot light, tie-down points, and small bag hooks are also present. Boot space measures a maximum of 582 litres with the rear seats in place or 1903L when folded. Crucially, those measurements are larger than non-hybrid models (539L/1860L) but those cars are equipped with a full-size spare while hybrids get a space-saver.

The boot floor has a two-position function (again, thanks to that slimmer space-saver spare tyre), and the cargo blind can be stowed away, but both actions are a little more fiddly than they could be.

Does the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto?

In line with other new and updated Hyundai models, the Tucson adopts the brand’s latest infotainment platform. This brings a more responsive interface and a cleaner, easier-to-use menu structure.

The 12.3-inch touchscreen is blended in a single panel with the instrument cluster, but rather than full-screen instrument display, the base Tucson cleverly blends a small trip computer with light-up alarm clock-style LCD numerical displays to look more techy than it really is.

The infotainment system features wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the option to use both via a wired connection if you’d prefer. Bluetooth connectivity and AM/FM/DAB radio are also included, as is embedded satellite navigation. All Tucson models come with access to Hyundai’s connected services, dubbed Bluelink, with access to over-the-air updates, SOS call, and app compatibility for access to vehicle location, remote lock, and other functions.

Hyundai deserves praise for including a row of physical buttons below the screen to jump between functions easily. There are also knobs for volume and tuning, making for quick and easy access.

Placement of the wireless charge pad high on the console seemed to put it in full view of the sun, meaning on bright days both the heat from charging and the heat through the windscreen quickly led to my phone overheating. With such a large shaded area just a little further down on the console, it feels like Hyundai could have picked a better place for this.

The six-speaker stereo sounds decent without setting any particular benchmarks. Overall, in terms of ease of use and accessibility, though, the Tucson’s infotainment system really delivers.

Is the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid a safe car?

The Hyundai Tucson was safety-rated by ANCAP in 2021, lining up with when this generation Tucson went on sale. Despite not launching with a hybrid model in Australia at that time, the hybrid versions approved for sale in New Zealand are covered by the rating that extends to the facelifted version.

At the time of testing, the Tucson achieved an 86 per cent score for adult occupant protection, 87 per cent for child occupant protection, 66 per cent for vulnerable road users, and 70 per cent for safety assistance systems.

What safety technology does the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid have?

The array of standard safety and driver assist features in the entry-level Tucson includes autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane-keep assist with switchable lane-centring assist, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go, blind-spot monitoring with braking support and door exit warning, rear cross-traffic alert with braking support, traffic sign recognition (including speed and traffic control signs), rear occupant alert, and crosswind stability control.

It’s a long list of features, and one that offers even more if you dive deeper. The adaptive cruise control, for instance, can be adjusted for things like acceleration aggressiveness and the speed it responds to a departing lead vehicle. This means you can match the way the cruise control responds to the way you drive for a more natural feel.

The intelligent speed limit assist uses a camera-based sign recognition to display stop, give way, rail crossing, and school zone signs in the instrument cluster. It also reads speed signs, and while it’s more accurate than past iterations, it still sometimes gets things wrong. The alert chime can now be more easily muted through a single press and hold of the steering wheel mute button, with the sign display still active.

Overall it’s a pretty decent system, and while it can tug at the wheel a little for lane centring where markings overlap, or are indistinct, on the open road, where the system is arguably most useful, it behaves well.

How much does the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid cost to run?

Hyundai’s warranty term for the Tucson aligns with the rest of the Hyundai range, at five years with no kilometre limit for private use. Buyers who use their vehicle commercially, as a taxi, ride share, or delivery vehicle, are capped at 130,000km. The hybrid battery also carries its own eight-year/160,000km warranty.

Capped-price servicing is available. The first five services will cost $340, $340, $560, $410 and $340 respectively. Service intervals are every 12 months or 10,000km, whichever comes first. The distance interval feels a touch lean – the national average distance travelled per year is closer to 14,000km, and most rivals offer 15,000km intervals.

Over three years of servicing, a Tucson Hybrid 2WD adds up to $1240 and over five it tallies $1990. Compare that to a GWM Haval H6 that costs $1650 over five years, or the Nissan X-Trail at $2353 for the same timeframe, and the Hyundai just about splits the difference.

A 12-month comprehensive insurance quote for the Tucson Hybrid came to $1760 using a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.

Looking at similarly priced hybrid rivals, the Haval H6 Ultra was quoted at $1491, an X-Trail e-Power ST-L at $1790, and a RAV4 GXL 2WD at $1651, putting the Tucson at the higher end of its competitive set.

Is the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid fuel-efficient?

The fuel consumption of the Tucson Hybrid is interesting. Like most cars, your useage and driving conditions will have an impact, but I noticed that the length of time I drove seemed to have an impact too.

Officially the Tucson carries a 5.3 litres per 100 kilometres fuel consumption rating. In situations where you spend 15–20 minutes behind the wheel this was easy to match, but short hops (say, five minutes at a time) could see that figure almost double. It may be because the petrol engine needs time to reach its optimum operating temp, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

Regardless, because my commute is usually a longer one, and even quick trips across town aren’t quick, I actually showed as-tested consumption lower than Hyundai’s claim at just 4.8L/100km. Most of that was clocked up in peak hour too, though I also did a highway run out of town on the weekend.

Regular 91-octane unleaded is all that’s required to fill the Tucson Hybrid, with no need for premium petrol. The 52-litre tank allows a theoretical driving range of over 980km between fills, and you could potentially drag that out slightly further based on the as-tested consumption we recorded.

What is the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid like to drive?

Hyundai’s hybrid system is slightly different from that found in Toyota’s range thanks to the use of a regular six-speed automatic in place of Toyota’s E-CVT, and a turbocharged petrol engine in place of the less torquey non-turbo unit.

Why is that a top-line callout? Because on the road the Hyundai manages to be both quiet and smooth, but also surprisingly punchy when you push it for performance. At the same time, the conventional torque converter auto is free from droning and delayed responses.

Hyundai has also moved the gear selector from the console to the steering column with a little wand that you twist forward for drive and backward for reverse. It’s a bit different from most cars that have a P-R-N-D layout, instead having a D-N-R format with P as a button on the end of the stalk.

It may take time to adjust – I kept finding myself selecting the wrong direction as I tried to unmap years of conditioning. It’s also very finicky about coming to a complete stop and firmly pressing the brake pedal to change direction. In a hurry this can leave you motionless in the middle of the road if you try to pull off a rapid three-point turn.

Hyundai claims 172kW combined from the hybrid system with 132kW from the petrol engine and 37kW from the electric motor… and another 6kW unaccounted for.

Hyundai’s hybrid system leans heavily on the electric side of the system, so it’s pretty common to accelerate on electric power alone up to speeds of 50 or 60km/h without assistance from the petrol engine. If you floor it off the line, both systems will contribute. Even at highway speeds, in the right conditions the petrol engine will shut down, and the Tucson can run in EV mode briefly.

The punchy turbocharged engine means that rolling acceleration is brisk, and the decisive six-speed auto is both smart and predictable when it comes to finding the right gear to overtake or tackle an incline. While the Tucson isn’t exactly an enthusiast’s dream, it’s more responsive and engaging than others in its class.

I found the suspension decent over dips and bumps in the road, but over corrugated surfaces and repeated hits, it could start to lose composure a little.

Still, the refinement is impressive. It’s quiet on the open road with only coarse pavement feeding noise to the cabin.

Drivers can pick from Eco and Sport driving modes, plus a ‘My Mode’ setting that you can set up with a predetermined Smart mode, which will automatically adapt between Sport and Eco depending on the driver’s inputs. Or one I hadn’t seen before called Baby mode, which is designed to soften initial acceleration inputs and make progress smoother and calmer.

An interesting idea in theory, and not dissimilar to what a ‘winter’ driving mode does. While it felt a bit more restrained under acceleration, the difference wasn’t immediately apparent unless you were consciously looking for it.

Can a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid tow?

For a medium SUV, the Tucson Hybrid has a decent maximum tow rating of 1900kg with a braked trailer, but a slightly limiting 100kg ball weight capacity. Unbraked capacity is 750kg. Although the car we drove wasn’t fitted with a towbar, the strong turbo petrol engine with electric assistance feels like it would make a decent lighter-duty tow vehicle.

Of course, weight and aerodynamic drag will take their toll, so don’t expect the same lean fuel consumption when hitched up.

Should I buy a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid?

The great thing about the Tucson Hybrid is that it doesn’t feel like an entry-level model. Yes, you get more features and equipment as you move up through the range, but there’s no sense that key equipment has been stripped out of this variant.

For anyone hesitant that a car geared toward economy may not perform well, the Tucson tackles those fears head-on. Vitally for family buyers the roomy interior, and no impact on useable space from the added hybrid system, add further reassurance.

While it is a decent step up in price over the non-hybrid version, the boost in performance coupled with the more frugal fuel use makes the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid worthy of serious consideration.

How do I buy a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid? The next steps.

Hyundai dealers already have a healthy buffer of stock, so if you’re interested in checking out a Tucson Hybrid in person, you should be able to find one near you. You can locate your nearest Hyundai dealer, or browse available stock without leaving home at Drive Marketplace.

For most buyers, the eponymous Tucson comes with a generous list of standard features, but the sportier style of the N Line may catch your attention. You can look further up the range if your budget allows, but you’re only adding nice-to-haves, there’s no key equipment that feels like it’s missing in the base model.

The hybrid market is competitive, however, so the Nissan X-Trail, Toyota RAV4, or Kia Sportage hybrids could also be worth a look. Each has some detail differences when cross-shopping, so your wants and needs may determine the best fit for you.

If you want to stay updated with everything that’s happened to this car since our review, you’ll find all the latest news here.

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