The 2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz is one of the new class of subcompact pickups. What these small trucks lack in size and brute power, they make up for in efficiency, economy, and nimble driving dynamics. The Santa Cruz provides a standard four-door layout and a four-foot bed. It makes the most of this space with a lockable, rolling tonneau cover, a lockable in-bed trunk, a wall-style in-bed power outlet, and LED in-bed lighting. For 2023, the Santa Cruz gains a new Night trim, as well as additional standard safety features.

Trims for the 2023 Santa Cruz are SE, SEL, Night, SEL Premium, and Limited. Standard features on the SE include 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, a multi-function (assisted open/close) tailgate, integrated rear bumper side steps, cloth upholstery, a six-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, and an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Moving up to the SEL adds SiriusXM satellite radio, heated side mirrors with integrated turn-signal indicators, an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, heated front seats, auto up/down front power windows, remote start, and push-button start.

The Night Edition adds dark touches inside and out, as well as wireless device charging, a fully digital instrument panel, LED interior lighting, LED in-bed lighting, and wireless device charging.

Selecting the SEL Premium upgrades the infotainment system to a larger 10.25-inch touchscreen and adds navigation, dual-zone automatic climate control, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, and additional driver-assistance features.

The range-topping Limited includes leather upholstery, heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, a Bose premium audio system, rain-sensing windshield wipers, and a 64-color ambient cabin lighting system.

The base engine in the Santa Cruz is a 2.5-liter inline-four that makes 191 horsepower. An upgraded turbocharged four-cylinder engine puts out 281 horsepower. Both engines route power through an eight-speed automatic transmission. The base engine can be had with front-wheel drive (FWD) or available all-wheel drive (AWD). The turbocharged engine routes power through standard AWD.

The Santa Cruz with the 2.5-liter engine and FWD returns 22 mpg city, 26 highway, and 23 combined. The least-efficient configuration of the Santa Cruz is the turbocharged AWD version, which returns 19 mpg city, 27 highway, and 22 combined.

Standard driver-assistance features for the 2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz include forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, lane-keep assist, automatic high beams, and driver-attention monitoring. The truck also comes standard with Hyundai’s helpful Safe Exit Assist, which uses sensors to determine if there is oncoming traffic and will alert the driver or occupant before exiting the vehicle.

Base MSRP for the 2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz is $25,450 for a FWD truck in the SE trim. SEL trim with FWD starts at $27,790. Night Trim starts at $35,810 and the SEL Premium starts at $37,350, while the range-topping Limited trim starts at $40,320. The Hyundai Santa Cruz is backed by a generous 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty.