On the road, the 2019 Hyundai Tucson is solid, but far from spectacular.
Here's what we liked. We found the Tucson's chassis and suspension to be really well done. Around town and on the interstate, we found the ride to be soft and comfortable. In the corners, our 3,700-pound test car felt confident and composed.
Here's where it fell short in our opinion. The 181 horsepower, 2.4-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder, is a solid engine and the six-speed is geared to deliver responsive low-end acceleration. However, 2.4 lacks the low-end torque of the outgoing 175 hp, 1.6 turbo engine. At the same time, the transmission tries to spend as much time as possible in the overdrive gear to save fuel. The result is a decided lack of passing power for the driver, especially at high speeds. There were a few times, while cruising on the highway, where I'd floor the gas pedal to change lanes and the Tucson simply couldn't muster up enough grunt to make the pass happen.
According to Motor Trend, the 2.4 is 0.5 seconds to 0.9 seconds slower to 60 mph than the discontinued turbo-powered Tucson.
The 1.6 turbo is still available as an option on the subcompact Hyundai Kona, a vehicle we thoroughly enjoyed.
Finally, there's the fuel economy. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, our all-wheel-drive test car should deliver 21 mpg of fuel economy in city driving, 26 mpg on the highway, and 23 mpg in combined driving. However, we struggled to top 20 mpg in mixed highway and city driving.