Casper the Friendly... Off-Roader? Hyundai's Tiny Terror Tackles the Trail (Sort Of)
Image Credit: Hyundai.
Hyundai has taken their already ridiculously cute Casper EV – you know, the one that looks like it should be ferrying cartoon characters around – and slapped some chunky plastic bits on it, called it the "Cross," and is now trying to convince us it's ready to conquer the Rubicon Trail. Or, at least, the slightly bumpy parking lot at the local farmers market.
I gotta say, this Casper Cross… well, it's certainly something. It's a Hummer EV that shrunk in the wash, got accidentally dyed green, and then decided to market itself as an off-roader. Kudos to whoever came up with this idea.
Image Credit: Hyundai.
The Casper isn't exactly a Jeep Wrangler rival, nor does it want to be. We're talking about a front-wheel-drive city car with a slightly raised ride height. It's a Chihuahua in hiking boots. Sure, it looks the part, but I wouldn't recommend taking it rock crawling anytime soon. Unless, of course, the rocks are pebble-sized, and the crawling involves navigating the flowerbeds in your front yard.
But you know what? I kind of love it. It's so unashamedly cute, so utterly impractical, that it can't help but charm you. It's a puppy that constantly trips over its own paws – you know it's a disaster waiting to happen, but you can't help but smile.
Image Credit: Hyundai.
Hyundai has graced this miniature monster with a 49-kilowatt-hour battery pack – which is about enough juice to power your toaster for a week. A mighty 113-horsepower electric motor takes care of driving duties, which I'm guessing results in this little tyke going from zero to sixty in… well, let's just say it's not going to be setting any land speed records.
But Casper has spades of style. The "Amazonas Green Matte" paint job is particularly fetching, making it look like a shrunken-down military vehicle. It's the kind of car that makes you want to put a tiny helmet on your dog and let him drive it around the neighborhood. (Please don't actually do that).
Image Credit: Hyundai.
Inside, the Casper Cross is surprisingly spacious, considering its diminutive dimensions. Hyundai claims it can comfortably seat four adults, although I suspect "comfortably" is a relative term here. Unless your adults are particularly fond of close contact, I'd recommend sticking to two passengers and maybe a couple of small children in the back. Or, better yet, use the extra space for groceries. It's ideal for that.
Hyundai claims the Casper Cross can travel a whopping 177 miles on a single charge. Which, in the world of EVs, is about as impressive as a snail winning a foot race. But this car isn't designed for cross-country road trips. It's a city car meant for zipping around town, picking up groceries, and generally looking adorable. And for that purpose, 177 miles is probably more than enough.
Image Credit: Hyundai.
The price tag for this pint-sized powerhouse? Around $21,950 in Hyunda's home market - South Korea. European customers have the Hyundai Inster and it looks it’ll have its own Cross version coming out soon. Sadly, it seems unlikely that the Casper Cross will ever grace our shores. Which is a shame, really. I can just imagine the hordes of hipsters lining up to buy one, customizing them with roof racks for their fixie bikes and ironic bumper stickers. It would be a cultural phenomenon.
The Hyundai Casper Cross. It's cute, it's quirky, it's utterly pointless. And I kind of want one.
