Ford Maverick dominates compact pickup segment over Hyundai Santa Cruz

Ford is seeing significant market dominance in the compact pickup segment with the Maverick, while Hyundai’s Santa Cruz faces declining sales. In August, Ford sold 13,680 Mavericks in the United States, representing a 14.4% year-over-year increase. In contrast, Hyundai has sold only 13,191 Santa Cruz units year-to-date, marking a 30% decline.

In Canada, the performance gap is even more pronounced. The Maverick saw sales jump by over 100% last year, whereas the Santa Cruz experienced a decline of approximately 36%. The Santa Cruz is no longer offered in the Canadian market, partly due to tariff issues.

Analysts attribute the Maverick’s success to its hybrid powertrain, which offers an industry-leading 38 mpg, and its lower price point. While Hyundai’s overall brand performance remains robust—driven by high demand for hybrid Tucson and Santa Fe models—the Santa Cruz is an outlier. Consequently, Hyundai is reportedly accelerating the discontinuation of the Santa Cruz and intends to pivot toward developing a larger pickup to compete with the Toyota Tacoma.