Winter Tested: 2022 Ford Maverick vs Hyundai Santa Cruz

In the past month or so, I’ve spent over 3,000 kilometres apiece testing the 2022 Ford Maverick and 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz extensively in highway, rural, backroads and trail conditions with no shortage of severe winter weather in the process.

First, I drove the Maverick — a non-hybrid model with 2-litre turbo engine and AWD running a set of Falken Wildpeak tires, themselves a 3PMSF-rated all-terrain tire.

Next, I drove the Santa Cruz, complete with its sole 2.5-litre turbo engine offering, AWD, and a set of dedicated Continental winter tires.

Here I’ll share my key impressions of the experience with you, while focusing on the key differences (and similarities) between these new-for-2022 compact pickups and how they drive in the snow.

First, let me introduce you to the machinery.

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2022 Ford Maverick Photo by Justin Pritchard

My Maverick FX-4 tester was priced in the low forties, while my loaded Santa Cruz Ultimate rang in at the better part of $45,000. The Maverick is available from the mid-twenties with a fuel-sipping front-drive hybrid version on offer, though my tester ran the 2-litre, 250-horsepower turbo-four turning 277 lb-ft of torque. Santa Cruz goes the upscale route, starting at $38,600 in Preferred trim and offering 281 standard horsepower and 311 lb-ft of torque from a 2.5-litre turbo-four.

That’s Santa Cruz in the lead for performance and acceleration, both on paper and from the seat of this writer’s pants.

The Santa Cruz can tow 5,000 pounds, the Maverick can tow 4,000 pounds. Maverick has the longer box, at 4.5 feet. Santa Cruz’s box is shorter at 4.3, though it has some hidden storage beneath the bed, where Maverick does not.

Between the two machines, the only winter weather-related issues I noted were on the Santa Cruz.

First, the accessory tonneau cover became inoperably frozen after a snow-melt-freeze event, and it was impossible to open without risk of damaging the latch or slider mechanism. An overnight defrost in a warm garage would solve this problem, if available. Second, the Santa Cruz’s windshield wiper system proved disappointing, especially at highway speeds on salty roads where I found the washer fluid spray to be aimed too low, and the wipers to lack a strong ‘bite’ against the windscreen. This results in lower-than-expected performance from the wiper/washer system, with generous spraying and wiping often required to clear the forward view. New Santa Cruz owners should confirm acceptable operation of the wiper washer system in this setting upon delivery. Upgraded blades may be a solution here.

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Ultimate Photo by Justin Pritchard

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Ultimate Photo by Elliot Alder

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Ultimate Photo by Justin Pritchard

The Santa Cruz has more headroom but less rear seat legroom than the Maverick, and elsewhere, key measurements are fairly similar. Neither of these machines is head-and-shoulders better than the other when it comes to interior volume and passenger space.

Dimensions aside, I think it’s the interior design where shoppers will find one of the biggest differences between these two machines. In the Maverick, I did wish for some more upscale materials in some areas, and complained of some control interfaces and button consoles that look dated. Still, I think it’s Maverick with the more easy-to-use infotainment system of the pair, and an interior that quickly communicates signature truck styling elements to its driver via blocky shapes, a multi-colour palette, exposed fasteners, textured surfaces. More of what’s going on inside of the Maverick is more fun to look at , and more of the interior scenery looks more truck-like.

The Santa Cruz takes the opposite approach. Its cabin is more sleek, modern, minimal and clean — a unique and distinctive take on a more modern design. There’s nothing truck-like to be seen — no rugged design cues, chunky dials, or exposed fasteners. Everything is smooth and sleek, just as you’d find in the Tucson SUV.

In the Maverick, you feel like you’re sitting in a little truck. In the Santa Cruz, you feel like you’re sitting in a tall, upscale car. That may be exactly what you want for the interior of your pickup, but given what I’d call the more impressive exterior styling of the pair, I was hoping for something more exciting and rugged from the Santa Cruz’s interior. So, if you want a pickup interior that feels like a pickup interior, the Maverick is the better choice. If you’re a bigger fan of ‘upscale and car like’, the Santa Cruz has you covered.

2022 Ford Maverick Photo by Justin Pritchard

On functionality, a key testing note comes down to some of the driver controls.

You’ll have to control more of the Santa Cruz’s functions, including climate controls, using a touch-screen and capacitive interface that responds poorly to gloved fingers. Though the Maverick’s controls look more old-school, many are chunky dials which are easy to operate, even with winter mitts.

The Santa Cruz presents drivers with an impressive digital instrument cluster that boasts great graphics and even animates and changes in response to the selected drive mode, themselves selected by a console-mounted toggle. That interface is one of several where the Santa Cruz demonstrates more seamless integration of various controls into their more modern surroundings — an edge over the Maverick where interior design is concerned. Santa Cruz even has turn-signal cameras that pop into action for additional, digital lane-change check when you signal.

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Ultimate Photo by Justin Pritchard

When it comes to wowing drivers with interior tech and style, Santa Cruz has no trouble satisfying. Ditto on performance.

Here, the Santa Cruz is really impressive. The big four delivers big power and hard-hitting torque at low revs. Opened up, acceleration is pleasing, and maybe even a little much. This truck is highly responsive in city driving, with plenty of jam in reserve for merging and passing. If you’re hoping for a small truck with plenty of power, I think you’ll be quite happy with how the Santa Cruz performs.

The Maverick trails the Santa Cruz in power, though it’s absolutely no slouch. I prefer the sound and character of the Maverick’s engine, too. It’s smoother, more pleasant more of the time, and nicer to listen to when you get it working hard. I found the engine, transmission and driveline in the Ford to have the more polished and refined feel in more situations, despite the Hyundai’s more robust pulling power.

At the controls, I’d tell you the Maverick is the sportier and sharper-feeling machine, too. Specifically, there’s an athletic steering feel and an eager ride and handling equation that seems carefully calibrated to be comfortable but also pleasantly responsive. Specifically, in many situations the Maverick reminded me of driving something like a Mini Cooper or Volkswagen GTI, with a sharp and precise brake pedal feel and quick, heavy, sporty steering response. I think driving enthusiasts will appreciate some of the fine tuning at work in the Maverick’s drive, that intends to make it feel more responsive, eager, and composed.

Further, the Maverick’s powertrain feels more on the ball, more of the time, in deep snow and challenging conditions. There’s less wasteful wheel spin, and in situations where the Santa Cruz holds on to high engine revs or lights up a tire or two when moving from snow to pavement under heavy throttle, the Maverick operates more quietly, and with less drama. Translation? Ford’s built some value in to the Maverick in the form of superior calibration and integration of its various driveline systems and engine, to make better use of the hardware equipped. The result is a more premium, polished feel dialled right into the DNA of the drive.

After plenty of testing in heavy snow and winter weather, I found the Maverick more refined more of the time. Specifically, I noted less wasted wheel spin, less engine noise, improved manoeuvrability and response via torque vectoring, and better performance in deep snow, using less revs.

In sum, I think test-driving shoppers will likely find the Santa Cruz more impressive for power output than driving and handling dynamics. And if you’re a driving enthusiast whose found themselves after a small truck, I’ll bet you’re more impressed by the acceleration of the Santa Cruz, but that you’ll prefer the way the Maverick drives.

Perhaps the biggest difference i noted in snow-day driving was the maneuverability in tight spaces. Maverick can do some clever rear-axle torque vectoring that helps drag a single rear wheel as a pivot point to shrink the turning circle in deep snow, mitigating the tendency of AWD vehicles to plow wide while you’re making a tight turn at low speed in a foot of powder. In this same setting, you’ll find the Santa Cruz likes to push wide and needs more room.

2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Ultimate Photo by Justin Pritchard

Hitting the backroads in heavy snow reveals a few key differences between these machines, as well as a few important similarities. If there’s one area where both of these machines impressed me the most, and the most consistently, it was rough-road ride quality.

Both Maverick and Santa Cruz boast suspensions that stand up very nicely to abuse from the road beneath, and even on the roughest backroad surface I regularly use to test ride comfort, both machines did a bang-on job.

Both handle this sort of driving with less noise and harshness than most crossovers available today, and both trucks feel dense, solid, durable, and remain quiet under fire, with suspension noise kept to a minimum. Both machines have steering systems that fight the negative feedback on rough roads, staying straight and smooth in your hand while bumps and potholes and frost heaves pass beneath. Test-driving shoppers will likely find that the Santa Cruz rides softer and more smoothly over more surfaces, specifically because its ride is a touch smoother and softer, with suspension that feels like it’s making better and more controlled use of its entire range of travel.

The Maverick’s rough-road ride is sportier and a little busier and more abrupt at times, but feels even more dense and solid beneath you. It’s not smashy and doesn’t crash into potholes, but the suspension feels a little more athletic, dense, and firm when the going gets rough.

Aside from some character differences dialled into the drive, both machines can happily cover rough ground quickly, without stressing out their occupants.

2022 Ford Maverick Photo by Justin Pritchard

Good headlights contribute to stress reduction when driving after dark. Maverick’s lights are potent and powerful, blasting the forward scenery with clean white light that reaches into the roadside, saturates the way ahead, and ultimately reduces driver stress and discomfort by making it easier to see more comfortably when the sun goes down.
Santa Cruz? Same thing: clean white light and plenty of it, good control over the beam pattern, lots of lumens where you need them, few where you don’t, and solid peripheral illumination for early warnings of possible hazards approaching from roadside culverts and forests.

The caveat in the Maverick is that its lighting system saw plenty of oncoming motorists flashing me than I like, assuming my brights were on when they weren’t. I experienced none of this in the Santa Crus, however. For that reason, I’d tell you both lighting systems perform very well, but that the Santa Cruz’s is ultimately the better of the pair.

2022 Ford Maverick vs Hyundai Santa Cruz Photo by Elliot Alder

Finally, two common questions from readers and viewers are worth answering here.

First: do you need winter tires?

Maybe so, maybe no. Many Canadians prefer to run a single tire on their trucks all year long. For them, the Falken Wildpeak tires fitted to my Maverick tester are sufficient. Even on two separate snow days driving in up to a foot of powder, these proved more than adequate for day-to-day around-town driving, and performed better than I expected when it came to stopping and steering. Still, the Santa Cruz’s dedicated winter tires made a big improvement, much of which becomes apparent during higher-speed driving on snow-covered highways. Here, I experienced much less squirming and unsettling of the vehicle beneath me while passing over snow, slush and ice. The vehicle feels more locked on, more of the time. Stopping distances and ABS activation are also significantly reduced with dedicated winter rubber installed.

Neither truck felt light in the rear end like other trucks often do, and I found both to exhibit winter driving characteristics very similar to the crossover SUV’s on which they’re built.

My choice? The Maverick.

I’d miss some of the Santa Cruz’s features, tech, and power output, and I much prefer the way it looks. Still, to me, the character dialled into the way the Maverick drives and its more polished powertrain make a stronger connection with this driver.

At the end of the day, here are two very worthy choices, and having to choose between the two is a pretty good problem to have.

Keyword: Winter Tested: 2022 Ford Maverick vs Hyundai Santa Cruz

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