Hyundai Crater Concept Makes A Big Impact As A Small Electric Off-Roader That Wants You To Play

It feels like every company used to produce several concept cars each year that fueled the imagination of burgeoning car enthusiasts everywhere. Every auto show you went to was littered with imaginative, daring, futuristic concepts that we all knew would never make it to production, but boy were they cool. It seems that these imagination-stoking creations have dwindled in numbers as the heyday of the auto show is behind us, but fortunately Hyundai is keeping the tradition alive with the new Crater concept that debuted Thursday at the Los Angeles Auto Show. It’s a compact yet rugged electric SUV that focuses on something else that modern cars tend to lack: fun.

From its adorable little mascot named Crater Man, who’s featured in Easter eggs throughout the interior and exterior, to the trunk-mounted record player and video games you can play while it charges, the Crater concept doesn’t take itself too seriously, which is refreshing. Hyundai says the Crater serves as a preview of the direction that its rugged XRT models might be heading in the near future.

Before you ask, Hyundai is not sharing details about any projected timeline for the Crater to hit the market, so it remains a concept car for now, but look out for future Hyundai XRT and XRT Pro models to draw from the Crater’s robust design. Despite its imposing looks, the Crater is quite small, and it’s begging for you to play with it.

On the outside, Crater’s 33-inch all-terrain tires are wrapped around wheels that were designed to look like a hexagonal block of metal caused a concave crater to form at their center. Its four windshield-topping spotlights are a play on the traditional smiley face Hella headlamp design, and they incorporate an animated Crater Man face chomping when prompted. One of the bright orange front-mounted recovery hooks features another Crater Man face, and it has a bonus function as a bottle opener, and the vertical vents you see on the outer edge of the front and rear bumpers hide speakers. The concept is finished in a matte yellow-ish color called Dune Gold that’s meant to mimic the color of dried, sun-faded sage leaves.

Once the electronically opening coach doors glide open, you’re greeted with one of the coolest interior concepts I’ve seen in a long time. The design team developed the Crater’s interior using the concept “The Curve of Upholstery,” so naturally it has lots of curved elements. From the artful seat design that features cylindrical cushions, head rests, and bolsters to the arched center arm rest that looks a bit like something you’d order from a butcher but in the coolest way possible, curved elements are definitely the theme here.

The dashboard has a crash-pad inspired beam that runs the entire width of the interior, with perforations that allow a warm orange glow to permeate the cabin. The center of the beam houses some chunky looking physical controls that operate the four-wheel-drive system, and other helpful off-road readouts like a compass and an inclinometer. As a whole, the Crater’s interior looks futuristic, rugged, architectural, and generally badass.

Hyundai says the concept’s interior features a “bring your own device” or BYOD approach. Above the dashboard beam are four small centrally mounted touchscreen displays that are removable and configurable, so you can choose which screens you want to see. The primary display is actually a full-width head-up display that projects important information onto the windshield but also hides some fun tricks that are meant to make its occupants smile. There’s a Crater Man video game that’s built into the car and uses those removable touchscreens as remote controls. 

It’s set up in a “Super Mario World” fashion where players choose their character and run and jump through different maps and obstacles, and there’s also a game where you can make your own music. The Hyundai engineers were very excited about these features, and they do seem like a fun way to kill time when you’re charging your Crater.

Logan K. Carter/ Jalopnik

Beyond the game, I really appreciated the full-width head-up display because it allows the interior to feature more exciting designs and avoid having the focal point be a massive screen. I don’t know how annoying it would be while driving, but the idea is really cool.

The Hyundai Crater Concept is a preview of what to expect from the brand’s off-road oriented XRT division. The U.S. market loves ruggedized versions of cars, and the XRT division will continue to deliver that moving forward in new and exciting ways. One reason the U.S. market in particular is so fond of off-roadified models is due to our country’s geography. 

A Hyundai engineer pointed out that Americans always have access to snow and off-road adventures in a way that a smaller country like South Korea doesn’t; South Koreans have to wait for winter to get snow, and apparently off-roading isn’t anywhere near as popular as it is in the U.S., so XRT has the American market in mind.

Logan K. Carter/ Jalopnik

The Crater Concept is supremely cool, and though Hyundai could offer no official comment regarding the future plans for the Crater, it shows that Hyundai is taking the U.S. market and the off-road segment seriously moving forward, while retaining a sense of whimsy. I, for one, am eager to see what comes next for the burgeoning off-road arm of the South Korean carmaking giant.