Hyundai’s bold-looking new Tucson compact SUV will arrive in showrooms in the new year with prices starting at around £28,500. The fourth-generation car comes with a brave exterior design and added technology to match, including new hybrid and mild-hybrid powertrains.

When the first cars arrive in the UK, they will form a three-tier range that rises from entry-level SE Connect through Premium and Ultimate models. There’s a choice of engines available, too, with mild-hybrid power complementing more powerful ‘full hybrid’ models.

2022 Hyundai Tucson Exterior

The starting price of £28,495, however, just gets you the SE Connect model, which comes with 17-inch alloy wheels and privacy glass, as well as two-zone climate control and rear parking sensors. There’s a reversing camera, too, and you get cruise control, autonomous emergency braking and lane-keeping assistance to help keep you safe.

Every Tucson in the range is equipped with a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster and a 10.25-inch touchscreen, through which the driver can access Hyundai’s Bluelink connected car services. Those include a smartphone app that allows the driver to lock or unlock the car remotely, as well as viewing information such as fuel levels.

2022 Hyundai Tucson Interior

Moving up to the Premium model increases the price to just over £30,000, but you get 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and heated front seats, as well as a heated steering wheel. Front parking sensors are also thrown in, along with keyless entry, a Krell premium audio system and a wireless charging pad.

Finally, the top-end Ultimate model starts at £32,895, which buys you 19-inch alloys, leather seats and electric seat adjustment. The high-specification model also provides heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats and three-zone climate control with separate rear seat controls, not to mention a panoramic sunroof and an electrically-operated tailgate.

2022 Hyundai Tucson Exterior

All three models come with a choice of four 1.6-litre petrol engines with varying degrees of electrical assistance. At the foot of the range, the standard engine is a 148 bhp unit with a six-speed manual gearbox and no hybrid assistance at all. However, you can upgrade to a mild-hybrid motor with the same power output. Make that change, and you also get a choice of six-speed manual and seven-speed automatic gearboxes.

Alternatively, you can opt for the 227 bhp full hybrid powertrain, which comes with a six-speed automatic gearbox as standard. The only way to find a halfway house between those two outputs – and the only way to find a four-wheel-drive example – is to choose the range-topping Ultimate model, which is offered with a 178 bhp, 1.6-litre mild-hybrid petrol engine and seven-speed automatic gearbox.

Gallery: 2022 Hyundai Tucson