Hyundai Motor is expanding its push into the North American off-road market with a new design studio dedicated exclusively to its growing lineup of XRT (Extreme Rugged Terrain) vehicles.
The company’s U.S. design arm, Hyundai Design North America (HDNA), recently opened The Sandbox, an off-road innovation space located inside its Redlands, California facility, Hyundai said on Nov. 18. The studio serves as a hands-on creative lab where designers can test outdoor gear, study real-world rugged-vehicle use cases and rapidly prototype concepts for future XRT products.
Originally launched as a small internal project, The Sandbox has since evolved into a standalone development space equipped with design workstations, A/V tools, material and color libraries, and a wide range of off-road equipment and apparel. The goal is to allow designers to directly experience outdoor environments and translate those insights into practical vehicle design.
The first project to emerge from the studio will debut on Nov. 20 at Automobility LA 2025: the CRATER Concept, a compact off-road SUV inspired by extreme terrain and built around themes of durability and adventure.
Hyundai sees The Sandbox as a strategic hub as demand for rugged, outdoor-focused vehicles continues to surge across North America. Off-road utility models and adventure-lifestyle trims have grown rapidly since the pandemic, prompting automakers to expand specialized lineups and customer-experience offerings.
Hyundai has been accelerating its XRT strategy throughout 2024 and 2025. At this year’s New York Auto Show, the company rolled out an expanded XRT portfolio—including the Palisade XRT Pro, Santa Fe XRT, Tucson XRT, Santa Cruz XRT and Ioniq 5 XRT—signaling a stronger bid to compete in the fast-growing segment.
The company says future XRT production models will increasingly integrate ideas, tested components and design elements validated inside The Sandbox, strengthening the brand’s competitiveness.
“The Sandbox was created to serve as the creative hub for all future XRT product development,” said Brad Arnold, head of exterior design at HDNA. “This ‘by us, for us’ approach allows our designers to infuse every XRT model with true durability, meaningful user interaction and practical solutions for real off-road environments.”
