At the Automobility LA 2025 in Los Angeles, Hyundai Motor America unveiled the globally-first presentation of the Hyundai Crater Concept, a compact adventure-oriented SUV concept developed to signal a new direction for the automaker’s rugged-mobility vision. This adventure vehicle, with its wide stance, knobbly tires, and suicide doors, would even appeal to Mad Max’s War Boys, especially as it does not run on gasoline (while Hyundai describes the Crater as an EV, they have not yet provided full technical details or confirmed a production version with an electric powertrain).
The Crater Concept stems from the design studio at the Hyundai America Technical Center in Irvine, California. With its sculpted steel surfaces and an exterior aesthetic influenced by severe terrain, the vehicle aims to represent Hyundai’s next evolution of its “XRT” design language, which already includes models such as the IONIQ 5 XRT, Santa Cruz XRT, and Palisade XRT Pro.
Hyundai states that the Crater Concept began with the question “What does freedom look like?” and positions the vehicle as an answer—a design intended to inspire exploration. The exterior architecture is compact yet purposeful, featuring steep approach and departure angles, 33-inch off-road tires, and 18-inch hexagonal wheels that evoke asteroidal impact forms in tribute to the vehicle’s name. Underpinning the design is the brand’s “Art of Steel” philosophy, in which formability and structural strength combine to create flowing volumes and precise lines that express both strength and elegance.
In terms of protection and rugged utility, the body features a pronounced skid plate spanning the underbody, broad fender shoulders, rocker panels styled to suggest protection and utility, and a removable roof platform optimized for off-road accessories such as lighting and extra storage. Notably, the Crater Concept features a pair of so-called “limb risers”—cables extending from the hood to the roof—to shield the roofline and windshield from low-hanging branches during trail drives. Of all the features on this vehicle, the limb risers are the most likely to be discarded—possibly not even offered as an optional extra—as these cables are impractical unless you frequently travel along unused forest trails and also pose a potential hazard to pedestrians. Wouldn’t it be cool if the limb risers retracted into the roof rack?
Inside the vehicle, Hyundai has adopted a design that emphasizes both rugged functionality and material quality, which is very appealing to the adventurous. The concept’s cabin uses durable materials suited to outdoor use—leather, Alcantara, brushed metal, and topographic patterns etched into surfaces—that speak to a vehicle that can handle boots, sand, grit, and gear without abandoning refinement. The interior also features a full-width head-up display incorporating a rear-view camera feed, a curved crash pad that visually links the exterior and interior, and a roll-cage-style cabin structure that provides both a visual sense of safety and a tactile element of ruggedness.
On the technology front, the Crater Concept includes terrain-mode buttons embedded in the squared-off steering wheel, allowing modes such as snow, sand, mud, auto, and XRT, supported by front and rear locking differentials, traction and braking management, downhill-brake assist, and trailer-brake control. Additional touches include removable side-mirror cameras that also function as flashlights, and one of the recovery hooks doubles as a bottle opener.
In terms of color and material palette, the exterior paint is a matte “Dune Gold” green-gold finish inspired by California’s coastal terrain, where sagebrush and golden grasses meet rugged cliffs. Highlights of anodized orange accent key touchpoints, injecting visual contrast. Inside, the “Black Ember” theme uses black leather and Alcantara with orange trim touches evoking desert sunsets and campfire embers, a nod to the outdoor lifestyle.
Hyundai says the Crater Concept will be viewable throughout the public days of Automobility LA (and the adjoining Los Angeles Auto Show) through Sunday, November 30. While the company does not indicate immediate production plans, the concept signals an intent to deepen its off-road capability offerings within the XRT sub-brand and to explore future iterations of the compact rugged SUV architecture.
For industry watchers and overland-travel enthusiasts, the Crater Concept presents a noteworthy shift in design intent from Hyundai: rather than simply offering an urban electric SUV, the emphasis here is clearly on trail capability, outdoor accessory integration, and what might be termed “functional aesthetic” for adventure use.
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