At the height of the boom there was a seven month waiting period for a Nissan Quashqai, a sign that when people wanted something different they were not just prepared to wait for it but to pay for it too. Now the Quashqai has been knocked off its perch by a Korean competitor with an equally obscure name, unless you're from Arizona, that is.
What both cars do prove is that the name doesn't matter as long as the car looks sufficiently different and there is no doubting their appeal - both cars have been phenomenally successful, not just here but internationally.
And that's the point about them. People don't want boring saloons and hatchback anymore. Anything that suggests ruggedness; activity; style and fun is in and pretty much everything else is going to be out pretty soon. We are now becoming a nation of crossover drivers who want to make statements of relative individuality - even if we all end up driving cars that essentially look like each other.
The Hyundai package is clever. You get all the image of a four wheel drive, with a high driving position, good, if mixed, styling that seems to blend from the best of what the competition has to offer and a pretty good finish inside.
Hyundai came in aggressively on pricing and aimed to hit the Quashqai directly. And it has worked. The latest sales figures show the Tucson outstripping both the Quashqai and the Renault Kadjar by a very healthy margin.
Where Hyundai have made the biggest difference, however, is with their engines and driving dynamics. Both are much improved on the ix35 that the Tucson replaces. Its engineering was almost rudimentary by comparison. The Tucson has a sharper feel about it and the favoured 1.7 diesel engine is offering impressive performance with good fuel economy (about 8.0 litres per 100 kilometres on average) and a welcome reduction in noise levels.
One car the Tucson does not compare favourably with is the Mazda CX-5 - the Mazda is a much more satisfying and involved drive but it is also a good deal more expensive and suffers as a result. Companies like Hyundai can easily widen the gap with competitors on price and, for most of, that is what it comes down to.
The Tucson's suspension is very adequate and there is no evidence of the rolling characteristics of earlier Hyundai models. A new chassis has definitely improved things here. The steering won't make you feel you are in absolute control but it is more than adequate and compensated for by lack of body roll.
Starting for a diesel option at €27,495 (the petrol option does not really make a lot of sense because of weight issues), the Tucson will offer the undemanding and average driver a lot for their money.
There is a choice of two and four wheel drive but the two wheel drive version is the one that makes the most sense for Irish conditions. For that price you get LED headlights; cruise control and rear parking assist. The more expensive technology that is now appearing in more expensive cars is not going to feature here at keen pricing but there is really nothing major that the Tucson is missing. Tax of €200 per annum is another plus.
The interior is also an improvement but you are not going to find it dominated by quality materials. Plastic is extensive - as it is with most cars in this price bracket - but at least the designers have made more of an effort to give it some character. The interior, however, remains indicative or price.
As a family car the Tucson makes for a very good package. It has good space and a generous boot whose capacity can be extended with folding seat arrangements. At its price level it offers pretty much what people want from a car like this - a bright ambience and functionality. More expensive bells and whistles are available, but at a price over the entry level model. You don't walk away from the Tucson feeling as you do after getting out of a new Land Rover Discovery, but you do have a deal more in your wallet. And that's the bottom line for most people, as the Tucson sales figures suggest.
In the meantime, you can expect even more dynamic and creative design on value cars from Hyundai. It has just recruited SangYup Lee, the former head of external design at Bentley.
