Hyundai may be getting much more serious about taking on rugged SUVs such as the Ford Bronco, Jeep Wrangler, and Toyota Land Cruiser. Earlier this year, the automaker used the 2026 New York International Auto Show to reveal the Boulder Concept, a boxy, body-on-frame off-roader that Hyundai officially described as a preview of its first body-on-frame pickup for the U.S. market. At the time, Hyundai stopped short of confirming a production SUV based on the Boulder, but recent comments from company CEO José Muñoz make that possibility look increasingly realistic, as the Australian Drive outlet discovered during a chat with the CEO.
Speaking with Australian media, including CarExpert, Muñoz said Hyundai does not see its upcoming body-on-frame architecture supporting just one vehicle. Instead, he described plans for a broader “family” of products built around the platform, with several models potentially sharing the same basic bones. That is a significant clue because Hyundai has already confirmed that a midsize body-on-frame pickup is coming, with the company’s U.S. site saying the truck is due in 2029. If Hyundai wants to maximize the investment required to develop a new ladder-frame platform, adding an SUV alongside the pickup would be a logical move.
The Boulder Concept certainly looks ready to fill that role. Hyundai says the concept rides on body-on-frame architecture and was designed with serious off-road hardware, including 37-inch mud-terrain tires, aggressive approach and departure angles, safari-style roof glass, and a trick double-hinged tailgate. Its upright proportions and adventure-focused design put it directly in the same conversation as the Bronco and Wrangler, even if Hyundai has not yet committed to putting the Boulder nameplate into production. Car and Driver also noted when the concept debuted that its mission was clearly aimed at the growing market for rugged lifestyle SUVs.
There could be another clue coming relatively soon. According to Muñoz’s comments reported by CarExpert, Hyundai may show another body-on-frame product at next year’s New York auto show. He did not reveal exactly what that vehicle will be, but the most obvious candidate would be a closer look at the production-bound midsize pickup that the Boulder was created to preview. With the truck scheduled to arrive before the end of the decade, Hyundai has enough time to show a concept or near-production version before sales begin.
The platform could potentially stretch beyond Hyundai as well. Genesis has already shown that it is interested in the idea of a more adventurous luxury SUV through the X Gran Equator Concept, which debuted in 2025. Genesis officially describes that vehicle as its first adventure concept, blending upscale design with overlanding themes, huge wheels, significant ground clearance, and rugged proportions. Hyundai Motor Group has not confirmed that the Genesis concept will share hardware with the upcoming body-on-frame platform, but using one architecture across Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis would follow a familiar industry strategy and help spread development costs across several higher-volume and higher-margin models.
For now, the pickup is the only production body-on-frame Hyundai that is firmly confirmed for the U.S., while a Boulder-inspired SUV remains unofficial. Still, Muñoz’s talk of building an entire family of vehicles makes the idea considerably harder to dismiss. Hyundai has spent years expanding beyond its traditional passenger-car roots into performance models, EVs, three-row SUVs, and increasingly capable XRT variants. A legitimate body-on-frame SUV would represent another major step, and if it carries even half the visual attitude of the Boulder Concept, Ford and Jeep may eventually have another serious competitor to worry about.
Sources: Drive, CarBuzz, CarExpert
