Preview: 2016 Hyundai Tucson

Concepts are one thing; commodities are another. Any car show has a plethora of attractive sheetmetal that's meant for the imagination only, but a good-looking car you can actually buy? That's a little more like it.

Calm down Hyundai, you aren't Porsche.

Meet the attractive little Tucson, an entirely new version of Hyundai's smallest crossover. Right off the bat, Hyundai's knocked one out of the park with the looks of this car; it has all the rightness of the Santa Fe, just in a smaller package.

Just before we delve into the details on the Tucson, a brief overview of Hyundai's light truck strategy. During the presentation, Hyundai touched on their core strategy for controlling a slice of the growing crossover market (three sizes of crossover), and trotted out their Santa Cruz concept trucklet once again. As a sidebar, they really should build this thing – with the Tacoma, Frontier, and Canyon/Colorado as large as full-size trucks used to be, a light-duty pickup that's small enough for city use could have the kind of success the old Datsun pickup trucks had when they first rolled out.

As for the Tucson, that's intended to be a flexible vehicle as an entry-level offering for those who don't need the family-carrying capacity of the two sizes of Santa Fe. But don't think of it as entry-level in terms of pricing: the Limited trim of this is jam-packed with stuff.

The Tucson's new front end features LED lighting surrounding the handsome Hyundai grille, and there are LEDs around the back and hidden in the doorhandles as well. The wheelbase is slightly up, and the raked wheel arches give it a bit more aggressive look without overdoing it. The one concern is the 19" alloy wheels - sure, they look great now, but just cost out replacing a set of tires. Calm down Hyundai, you aren't Porsche.

The interior of this car is very well done indeed. Restraint has been used with regards to piano-black trim, and the overall effect is pleasing to the eye. Lots of soft touch materials surround driver and passenger, and there are all kinds of gee-whizz features like ventilated front seats and a giant panoramic sunroof. The switchgear has little chrome accents to match the knobs for the stereo - praise be! real knobs! - and the seats are quite comfortable. Cargo space is up over the old Tucson, and now stands at a plenty-roomy 513L. The rear cargo floor can be recessed for maximum carrying capacity, or raised to stand flat when the seats are folded.

A single USB outlet is flanked by twin power outlets, and there's a space below it that's big enough to store a heap of smartphones. A backup camera and a 5" LCD touchscreen are standard on the car.

Other technology on offer for the Tucson includes an 8" touchscreen if you option the navigation, backup sensors, and a proximity activated rear liftgate. This last pops open if you just stand behind the car for three seconds and yell "Open Sesame" at the top of your lungs. Remember, you have to yell "Open Sesame." Won't work otherwise. Nope.

A large suite of safety features extends to blind-spot detection and lane-departure warning system, and autonomous emergency braking. I was surprised to see that smart cruise-control wasn't an option, but only really because the Limited trim Tucson feels like such an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink kind of car.

Power comes from either the standard 164 horsepower, 151 lb-ft of torque 2.0L four-cylinder engine, or a new 1.6L turbocharged four. The latter is attached to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, something Hyundai was quick to point out would be more fun than vehicles equipped with a CVT. That might not be just marketing mumbo-jumbo as the so-equipped Hyundai Sonata Eco has been praised for a surprisingly zippy feel. The 1.6T makes 175 hp and 195 lb-ft of torque, plenty for a smallish crossover.

One thing Canadians don't get yet, annoyingly, is Hyundai's Bluelink system. This smartphone and smartwatch based app lets you open your Tucson remotely and turn on the air-conditioning from your office and honk the horn from your bedroom window to frighten the neighbour's cat. Lack of coverage in Canada is the problem, although we may see the tech start a slow roll-out in built-up areas at some undetermined point in the future.

Overall, the Tucson is a great-looking little crossover that's packed with features that buyers will love. One of the launch editions was painted a blue not far off the colour of that Lincoln Continental Concept, and you have to marvel at the dichotomy of the pair. The Continental Concept is important to Lincoln; the new Hyundai Tucson should be important to consumers.