For some time Hyundai has been trying to decide whether to product a pickup truck. Pickups are a large percentage of the North American market, and are highly profitable for the companies with large shares of the full-size segment. But large pickups from Toyota and Nissan have barely dented the market share of the dominant Detroit companies. Could Hyundai hope to do better?

Perhaps the solution is to offer a different sort of pickup. No, not like the Honda Ridgeline. That truck, based on the Pilot SUV with its transverse, car-like powertrain, was positioned too much like a conventional pickup truck, and failed to convince buyers of conventional pickups that it was as good.

Instead, Hyundai has zeroed in on “urban adventurers,” young (or at least young-at-heart) people with highly active lifestyles. They just need to tote their gear, not heavy loads. And they want something more stylish and easier to park than a conventional pickup.

For these urban adventurers, Hyundai has create the Santa Cruz concept. It’ll seat five, but probably isn’t nearly as roomy as the Ridgeline. But it’s also much more stylish than the Ridgeline, and more compact. The bed appears too short to be useful? Well, for larger loads it has a built-in extender that “makes it competitive with conventional midsize pickups” in terms of length, if certainly not maximum payload. The Santa Cruz is intended as a lifestyle accessory, not a work truck.

Given their expressed need to offer more crossovers, because this is the part of the market that is growing, Hyundai must be considering a production version of the Santa Cruz (i.e. toned down styling and smaller wheels). Should they make it?

Note: top photo by Eric Merrill