As we've seen from spy shots of prototypes, Hyundai is preparing to unveil the next-generation Tucson SUV. We're very curious about the styling, because Sangyup Lee, the vice president of styling at the Hyundai Design Center, has previously claimed the revamped design will make you "freak out."

The mid-sized Tucson hasn't lived up to Hyundai's sales expectations, so a radical redesign could help boost sales. "It can't come soon enough," Hyundai's product planning manager Andrew Tuatahi, told WhichCar. "It's very interesting visually, it's going to appeal to a very broad audience, I think. Probably the biggest shift for the car is going to be style and design."

Compared to the current model, the new Tucson will be more luxurious and high-tech and will share materials and technology with the Santa Fe. "Expect to see materials more in line with the Santa Fe [below] across the Tucson range. We'll introduce some new elements with our material design in terms of layout and configuration, things like entertainment and [instrument] clusters will be quite different in that vehicle."

While the current Tucson is only four years old, customer expectations and safety standards have changed significantly since then. As a result, the new Tucson will be updated with new standard safety tech such as automatic emergency braking and collision avoidance systems to meet new crash testing criterias.

Tuatahi wouldn't confirm which platform will underpin the new Tucson but it's likely to be the automaker's new Third Generation Platform that will support a variety of hybrid drivetrains and front- and all-wheel-drive options. Camouflaged prototypes have shown the new Tucson will have a revamped front fascia and a split headlight design matching other current Hyundai models like the new Santa Fe and Venue.

As for when the new Tucson will break cover, Tuatahi confirmed that final design reviews have already been approved, so a worldwide debut next year seems likely.

Read the full Hyundai Tucson review.