Hyundai Tucson - Practicality, comfort and boot space

Passengers won’t be disappointed with the amount of interior space on offer in the Tucson, while the driver’s seat has plenty of adjustment, as does the steering wheel, for rake and reach.

Hyundai has added a lot of features, even to entry-level cars, to make the Tucson a truly versatile family SUV. The rear seats fold in a 40:20:40 configuration, while there are front and rear armrests with cupholders and extra storage for assorted oddments. You’ll also find useful USB ports front and back, along with standard parking sensors and a rearview camera.

If you want to pay for it, you can also have luxuries such as an electrically-operated tailgate, three-zone climate control and heated and ventilated seats to make longer journeys that bit more comfortable.

Size

The Tucson measures 4,500mm in length, 1,865mm wide (excluding door mirrors) and has a maximum height of 1,651mm. As a comparison, the Volkswagen Tiguan is ever so slightly longer at 4,509mm, although the Tucson is 26mm wider.

Leg room, head room and passenger space

The latest Tucson’s wheelbase is only marginally longer than the previous model’s, but Hyundai has been clever with the car’s packaging to ensure that the cabin can easily accommodate four six-footers, with plenty of knee, leg and headroom. There is space for a third rear passenger, but the raised central floor prevents them from finding a truly comfortable position. The seats themselves are supportive, and there’s plenty of space under the front seats for rear passengers’ feet.

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Boot Space

The Tucson offers 620 litres of maximum boot space, making it family-friendly. That's around 30 litres more than you get in a Kia Sportage and a whopping 116 litres more than the Nissan Qashqai can manage. However, it’s worth noting that the plug-in hybrid Tucson has a reduced boot capacity of 558 litres. 

If you fold the rear seats down, the Tucson can carry up to 1,795 litres, or 1,737 litres if you get the plug-in hybrid version. 

We think a few more hooks and individual storage compartments would be helpful, but overall, the space and flat floor should be fine for most day-to-day needs. The Tucson also has a modest amount of under-floor boot storage, which is always handy.

Towing

Almost all Tucson models have a maximum braked towing weight of 1,650kg, which is the same as the best Toyota RAV4 model, but not as good as the maximum 2,500kg the Volkswagen Tiguan is capable of.

The only exception is the Tucson Plug-in Hybrid which has a maximum towing capacity of 1,350kg.