There’s a strong possibility that the Hyundai Santa Cruz pickup concept will be approved for production sooner than expected. We previously reported Hyundai would make a decision this November during the automaker’s annual product review period, but a report from The Detroit Bureau claims a thumbs up could arrive as soon as this summer.

© Provided by MotorTrend Hyundai Santa Cruz Crossover Truck Concept “It’s proven very popular,” CEO of Hyundai Motor North America Dave Zuchowski said to The Detroit Bureau. “There is a very high probability we get the approval of the truck soon.”

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Zuchowski claims 90 percent of the potential buyers Hyundai has surveyed so far have said that they “like” the truck concept.

Hyundai first unveiled the Santa Cruz pickup truck concept at the Detroit auto show last January and has since received lots of positive feedback. A production version of the truck would likely ride on a car-based platform and would be slightly smaller than the midsize Chevy Colorado and Toyota Tacoma. It would target buyers with an active lifestyle who value hauling their gear more than towing or off-road capability. The upcoming Honda Ridgeline would be its main competitor. © Provided by MotorTrend MotorTrend Image

Hyundai understands it needs to expand its truck and crossover offerings in order to increase sales. In addition to the Santa Cruz pickup, the automaker is also considering a concept crossover to compete with the Honda HR-V and Chevrolet Trax. Details on that model could come soon as well.

One challenge Hyundai faces is increasing its production capacity. While the automaker is still sorting out solutions to meet that challenge, Zuchowski hopes production of the new truck will land in the U.S.

Source: The Detroit Bureau