Rather less than a 12 months in the past, I had the chance to rise up shut and private with the fifth-generation 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe in its namesake metropolis in New Mexico. Unfortunately, I wasn’t capable of drive it on the time, however now that has modified — I simply bought again from driving Hyundai’s newest “compact” crossover in Tennessee, experiencing the way it conducts itself each on and off the highway in addition to how all of its options work in the actual world. And I’ve gotta say, rattling this factor is nice. No matter what state of affairs you end up in with the brand new Santa Fe, it’s greater than as much as the duty, particularly if that job is delivering Land Rover Defender styling for about half the worth.
Few automobiles actually ship on what their seems to be and spec sheets promise, however the 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe is totally a type of automobiles.
Full Disclosure: Hyundai flew me out to Franklin, Tennessee, put me up in a really good resort and fed me scrumptious meals all so I may check out their latest car that was already on sale.
If I have been a unique sort of man — somebody who didn’t know his viewers — I’d in all probability bury how the Santa Fe drives on the finish of this story. After all, who the hell cares how a crossover with a turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-four engine and 6 comfortable seats truly drives? Well, nerds, I do know all of us do.
Starting with the boilerplate details, the brand new Santa Fe’s normal engine is the aforementioned turbo 4, which is nice for 277 horsepower and 311 pound-feet of torque. All that torque is routed via a particularly responsive 8-speed dual-clutch computerized transmission. If you’re seeking to go electrical (type of), it’s also possible to go for a turbocharged 1.6-liter inline-four hybrid paired up with a 6-speed computerized transmission. Both powerplants could be had with both front- or all-wheel drive (an $1,800 choice) on each trim degree within the lineup aside from the off-road-focused XRT trim.
I drove two Santa Fes throughout my testing, a top-of-the-line Calligraphy ($50,375 as examined) on-road and a middle-of-the-range XRT ($43,205 as examined) off-road. Both automobiles have been fitted with the two.5-liter engine, and it proved to be an excellent robust energy unit regardless of the terrain. I wouldn’t precisely name it quick, as a result of it isn’t, nevertheless it’ll get the job achieved for anybody who’s shopping for one of these car.
On pavement, the Santa Fe is extraordinarily quiet and stress-free. You hear the grumble of the two.5-liter engine sometimes — it’s the character of a four-popper, in any case — nevertheless it’s not precisely intrusive. Wind and highway noise is saved to a minimal, even when the floor is less-than-ideal. The eight-speed dual-clutch was surprisingly snappy for one of these software. It fired off up- and down-shifts as shortly as you may ever actually need them to be, even when utilizing the steering wheel–mounted paddle shifters.
The Santa Fe’s cornering isn’t something to put in writing residence about, however what precisely did you anticipate? This is a 4,500-pound crossover in any case. It isn’t offensive by any means, however a nook carver the Santa Fe will not be. I suppose you are feeling one thing via the leather-wrapped steering wheel, nevertheless it isn’t the highway. There’s a Sport mode you possibly can choose, nevertheless it’s principally simply there for vibes. I suppose the steering will get a little bit bit heavier and the throttle response is a bit snappier, however that’s about it. Again, what did you anticipate? Leave it within the “Normal” and also you’ll be tremendous.
When it involves leaving the pavement, the Santa Fe actually surprises. Hyundai constructed the XRT trim to have the ability to maintain its personal off-road, and it did — I’m not going to take a seat right here and let you know the XRT is healthier than one thing like a Jeep Wrangler, Ford Bronco or Defender off-road, nevertheless it’s strong, and I did a far more intense off-road course than any Hyundai Santa Fe proprietor would ever dare to do.
All of the Santa Fe’s off-roading is finished with out fancy modes. There are solely two issues you possibly can change to make the Santa Fe extra off-road prepared: locking the all-wheel-drive system and enabling hill descent management. Everything else is completed via the Santa Fe’s pure willpower.
The XRT does get quite a lot of precise modifications to higher assault the paths. It’s fitted with 18-inch wheels and chunkier all-terrain tires, and its general journey top is raised to eight.3 inches, a 1.3-inch bump over the usual Santa Fes. Hyundai additionally says the XRT can tow as much as 4,500 kilos, whereas common Santa Fes can solely muster 3,500 kilos.
On the skin, the Santa Fe has gone via one of many largest generational glow-ups I’ve ever seen. The previous-gen crossover wasn’t bad-looking, however the brand new automotive simply seems to be distinctive. Gone are the curved traces and gentle edges of the earlier Santa Fe. In their locations are boxy shapes, exhausting traces and proper angles. Damn, does it look good, and the actual fact it’s so strong off-road is a aid — I’d hate if this factor didn’t ship on what its seems to be promised.
Aside from the styling, the Santa Fe’s measurement is the largest (I’m so sorry) change. It has grown in each dimension over the fourth-generation automotive, and it’s now solely six inches shorter than its Palisade stablemate, however Hyundai is adamant the 2 SUVs don’t compete with one another. Please disregard the actual fact they’ve related costs, seat the identical quantity of individuals and at the moment are principally the identical measurement. Okay, to be truthful to Hyundai, the next-generation Palisade is rumored to be getting each larger and boxier to make room for the brand new Santa Fe. Still, Hyundai doesn’t even contemplate the Santa Fe to be a mid-size crossover. It nonetheless classifies the car as a “compact crossover.” Sure, Jan.
At final 12 months’s occasion, Hyundai’s Design Chief SangYup Lee advised us the design course of for the brand new Santa Fe began with its extremely extensive tailgate on the again, and every thing else in regards to the automotive was designed with that function in thoughts. If you’re considering the taillights are type of low, properly, you’re not incorrect. They are, however that positioning serves a goal. With the taillights mounted decrease on the physique, it permits for a thinner tailgate strut, which makes the housing for the tailgate thinner as properly. All that allowed the designers and engineers to make that vast rear hatch opening. It’s additionally meant to harken again to SUVs of years passed by that had low taillights. Love it or hate it, it’s actually distinctive.
The remainder of the outside design is tremendous cohesive, and it doesn’t seem like a lot else on the highway (in the event you ignore Defenders). There are little “H” easter eggs in every single place, together with the headlights, taillights, bumpers and grille, simply to call just a few. They’re a little bit corny, nevertheless it’s cute. There’s one little function of the outside that actually caught my consideration: the bizarre little rectangle on the C-pillar. As it seems, it’s a deal with, which Hyundai explains makes it simpler for folk to climb up onto the roof to entry their energetic life-style gear strapped upon it.
The themes of the outside proceed when you step contained in the Santa Fe particularly the “H” motif and clear traces. Hyundai is providing 5 inside colours to select from; the one attention-grabbing coloration choices are Pecan Brown and Forest Green. It could be cool if these two may very well be mashed collectively, however alas. That’s proper, you possibly can spec an “Earthy Brass Matte” or “Terracotta Orange” Santa Fe with a inexperienced inside, which has shortly made this one in all my favourite automobiles ever. Despite its utilitarian nature, all of the supplies contained in the Santa Fe really feel fairly premium and every thing appears properly put collectively.
Anyone who has hung out inside Hyundai or Kia’s EVs will really feel proper at residence within the Santa Fe. Similarities embody Hyundai’s trick “Relaxation Seat” with a leg relaxation for front-row occupants. I simply at all times assumed they have been only for EV drivers ready for his or her automobiles to cost. The “H” theme continues via the cabin with the dashboard air vents, however take discover that there isn’t any lettering or Hyundai brand on the steering wheel. Instead, there are simply 4 dots that designers famous symbolize the letter “H” in Morse code. How cute.
Hyundai additionally moved the gear shifter from the middle console to the steering column, which freed up a ton of area that the designers stuffed with plenty of different issues. For instance, there at the moment are two wi-fi charging pads that’ll each get your cellphone decently scorching, although it does cost them shortly. Underneath that space is a big cubby gap to throw your junk in.
Above that middle console is a 6.6-inch touchscreen local weather management show that does embody some bodily buttons. I suppose it’s good which you can management temperature via a dial, however I want the entire thing could be actual buttons reasonably than a display, because it did require me to take my eyes off the highway to function.
The major focus of the inside are the twin 12.3-inch curved shows that function the gauge cluster and middle infotainment display. Both shows are pretty customizable and simple to make use of, they usually’re normal on the Limited and Calligraphy fashions. Lower trims just like the SE, SEL and XRT preserve the 12.3-inch middle show however lose the digital gauge cluster in favor of a small 4.3-inch display flanked by two gauges. On the tech facet of issues, Hyundai was very proud to share that its designers and engineers included a UV sanitizing tray within the inside, which was apparently a choice introduced on by the pandemic. It’s undoubtedly distinctive and never one thing I’ve come throughout in a automotive earlier than, although I’m undecided precisely how helpful it’s. There’s additionally a digital rear-view mirror with a digital camera to higher help drivers, particularly when there’s an excessive amount of junk within the trunk.
It is not going to come as an excessive amount of of a shock to be taught that the Santa Fe comes with each driver help and security function presently available on the market — lane-keeping help, ahead collision avoidance, and adaptive cruise management are all right here and accounted for. Also, as is a rising pattern within the trade, you possibly can use your cellphone as a automotive key within the new Santa Fe. Hyundai may also present over-the-air updates to verify the automotive is as much as snuff for consumers.
Roominess is the secret relating to the Santa Fe’s inside, and that makes a complete of sense — it’s a household car on the finish of the day. Hyundai says the Santa Fe now has class-leading inside area due to its 110.8-inch wheelbase and 190.2-inch general size. That roominess is clear the second you fold the rear seats flat. There’s almost 80 cubic toes of inside cargo quantity behind the entrance seats, and that quantity shrinks to a still-respectable 14.6 cubes of cargo room with all of the seats up.
The Santa Fe additionally has class-leading second- and third-row legroom, in accordance with the Korean producer. Second-row residents within the gas-powered crossover are handled to 42.3 inches of legroom. If you’re piloting a hybrid, although, second-row passengers should make do with a barely smaller 41.5 inches. As for these caught within the third row, don’t fear. You’ve bought loads of area with 29.9 inches of legroom, and you may even recline the third-row seats by 10 levels. All that’s to say my 6’1” self matches extraordinarily comfortably within the second row, and the third row is bearable.
After spending a complete lot of time — and a pair hundred miles — with this new “compact” crossover, I can say surely in my thoughts that Hyundai has a winner on its palms with the 2024 Santa Fe It doesn’t matter the way you spec your Santa Fe or what trim you go along with, the Santa Fe is as strong at its $35,455 (together with $1,395 for delivery) base worth as it’s absolutely loaded at $50,695.
Whatever you intend to do with the brand new Santa Fe, whether or not it’s carrying all your pals and their stuff or blasting up what looks as if an impossibly steep and muddy highway, it delivers. This is a good car via and thru — simply don’t name it a compact crossover.
Source: jalopnik.com