I can relate. Supply is so limited during our recent car shopping we joked about asking random strangers in parking lots if we could test drive their cars. We were able to test drive most of the contenders at dealerships finally, but the Tucson HEV remained elusive. We were able to see and sit in a sold one, but couldn't drive it. We were able to actually drive a Santa Fe hybrid, so got a good idea how the engine, transmission, hybrid system worked. We were only able to test drive a non-hybrid Tucson around the dealer's lot as it wasn't PDI'd yet and they couldn't get it into the shop in time.
Based on that, we made our decision to reserve a Tucson HEV. No regrets. I certainly wouldn't call it light on it's feet or jittery. I can tell you that my wife liked it better than the Santa Fe during our limited drives as the Santa Fe felt big to her. We also have an Expedition that she really doesn't like to drive (it's huge). She felt the Santa Fe was more Expedition like in it's driving and the Tucson felt right. I liked them both, but also prefer our Tucson. Since we never took the non-hybrid Tucson out for a drive I can't tell you how different it handles than the hybrid, though everything should be the same other than the engine and possibly weight distribution. I'm sure the driving experience is much better with the hybrid as has more hp and better acceleration. Quieter too.