On Sunday July 21st, 2019, we picked up our 3rd car at the local Hyundai dealership. Our car, a Gemstone Red 2019 Tucson Limited and our first Hyundai! We picked up the car exactly 7 years from the time we picked up the wife’s 2012 Toyota Prius c 4. We decided to pick up a compact SUV for practicality reasons. Our son is growing bigger and we plan to add a European Doberman Pinscher to our family later this year. The wife’s Prius c will not cut it. My Prius Four will be a tight squeeze by then for a mid-size dog like a Doberman.
The purchasing process was actually very smooth and the best car buying experience I’ve encountered. I contacted the local Hyundai dealer and asked if they had a Gemstone Red 2019 Tucson Limited. They didn’t but acquired it just for us to test drive. We went in for a test drive and then took a week to test other vehicles of the same class.
After driving other SUVs of the same class (including 2019 Toyota RAV4, etc.), I negotiated the deal strictly over e-mail, including sales price and monthly total. When it came to picking up the car, we submitted a credit application the night before, went in the next morning, signed a couple of standard dealership paperwork and then drove off within 45 minutes.
Besides getting a fantastic discount off the MSRP, we also received about $3,750 in Hyundai summer incentives and rebates. The total sales price of the Limited dropped to almost the Value trim MSRP price point.
Fate of Our Prius
Our two Prius isn’t leaving us anytime soon. Tucson will now be our primary road trip vehicle and day to day errand runner. My Prius Four will still be my daily driver while the wife’s Prius c will be on stand-by. The five seater Tucson fits our life style, fits inside our garage and is perfect for our family of three. Plus dog, soon.
The Tucson is quite an upgrade in comfort and technology. I said the same thing about my 2012 Prius Four when I picked her up 7 years ago. I was comparing the Prius to my then 2005 Acura RSX Type S. But hey we can’t complain about comfort features in the Tucson:
- automatic smart power-lift gate,
- lane assist, surround view monitor,
- rear view camera,
- dual climate control,
- front driver + passenger power adjustable seats,
- wireless Qi phone charger,
- Apple CarPlay,
- Blue Link with remote start, door lock/unlock, locator, etc. via iOS app,
- dual level rear cargo floorboard,
- reclining rear seats,
- rear AC vents,
- rear traffic cross-collision warning and 10-year / 100,000 mile
- power train warranty.
We paid far less for a brand new 2019 Tucson Limited than I did the Prius Four, 7 years ago! This makes the Tucson an incredible value vehicle that’s modern and equipped with the latest technology and safety features.
Fuel Efficiency
Fuel efficiency definitely took a huge hit on the city, averaging about 15~22 mpg, depending on where we take it. Highway is different. While Hyundai advertises 28 MPG highway, I was able to get the fuel efficiency way up to 38 MPG. This occured on a recent 35 mile drive cruising at 70 mph. We’ll find out how the Tucon’s fuel economy perform on long road trips loaded with cargo. Starting with a trip to our Doberman Pinscher breeder in Northern California later in the month.
First Mod: LED Upgrades
First order of business was to switch out the all incandescent lights with LED equivalent.
In seven years, the market for LED lights has matured. LED bulbs of all shape, size, color output, luminosity are available at affordable prices. I started out by replacing 8 bulbs. 2 are front fog light H11 bulbs and the rest are festoon dome and 168 wedge bulbs.
Accessories for the Tucson, Hyundais in general, is also noticeably cheaper than Toyotas. Subsequent mods will include Hyundai genuine accessories:
- Hyundai side window deflectors, D3022-ADU00
- Hyundai interior LED mood lighting, D3068-ADU00
- Hyundai illuminated Tucson door scuff plates D3045-ADU01 and
- Yakima JetStream roof rack setup with RidgeLine towers and clips using existing 60″ JetStream crossbars (may consider Hyundai factory cross bars)