Most people who buy an SUV will never venture off-road or tow a heavy load. They might need the interior versatility of an SUV, and like its image, but they do not need its heavy truck frame. Over the past few years every major manufacturer has introduced car-based SUVs to serve this common mix of needs. The promise: the interior versatility and image of an SUV, but with ride and handling more like that of a car. Hyundai introduced such a vehicle, the Santa Fe, a couple of years ago. I recently test drove one to provide a basis for comparison with the Kia Sorento, a conventional SUV from the same Korean corporation. (Click on the hyperlinks to read my reviews of related vehicles.) With so many other choices in this segment these days—Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Saturn VUE, and so on—is the Santa Fe worth considering even with its low price?

Update: Late in 2003 Hyundai made a 3.5-liter V6 available in the Santa Fe. My review of the 2004 with this engine can be found here.

Hyundai Santa Fe Reliability

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Styling and Accommodations

The main reason I did not test drive a Santa Fe sooner is that I have always found it an unusually ugly vehicle. From the front, side, and rear the Santa Fe awkwardly juxtaposes a wealth of quirky aesthetic elements. Most notable are the bulges in the hood over each wheel, the concave surfaces around the wheels, and the squat proportions of the tailgate. On the plus side, I will grant that it is certainly distinctive.

The weirdness continues inside. Generally I was impressed with the quality of the materials inside given the price. However, the interior design like the exterior is simply too much weirdness. I especially don’t care for the gratuitous extra bump in the dash over the instruments.

The interior is much roomier than the exterior appearance suggests. Based on conversations I have had with people shopping for an SUV, I suspect that many people discount compact car-based SUVs because they are not aware of how roomy these are. Losing the truck frame and live rear axle permits these vehicles to be packaged much more efficiently than conventional SUVs. In the Santa Fe, as in the CR-V and Escape, there is plenty of room for two adults in both the front and rear seat.

I did have some issues with seat comfort in the Santa Fe. With the leather seats at least the front seats’ lumbar support is excessive for my back. The rear seat could be a bit higher off the floor, as in the CR-V and Escape, for optimal thigh support. Overall, though, these seats are comfortable. I had more issues with the front seats in the Escape and the rear seats in the VUE. Looking to the Kia, I found its front seats better but its rear seat surprisingly more cramped in terms of kneeroom. The Kia is wider, and thus can better handle three people in the rear seat. Unlike the Kia, the rear seat in the Santa Fe reclines in steps (a common feature with car-based SUVs).

The driving position will not disappoint those who want an SUV for visibility. The seating position is high and the view clear in all directions. Those who like to seek the entire hood of the vehicle will be very happy hear—those hood bulges over the wheels are very visible from the driver’s seat.

Cargo space is impressive, clearly superior to that of the competition as well as that of the larger-heavier Kia Sorento. In fact, cargo volume approaches that of mid-sized SUVs such as the Ford Explorer and Chevrolet TrailBlazer. One weakness: as with the Escape folding the rear seats is a three-step affair: remove the headrests, tip the cushion forward, then fold the seatbacks.

On the Road

Engine power is only adequate. Just about any direct competitor feels—and is—quicker. At low speeds the Santa Fe’s 173 horsepower 2.7 liter V6 feels fairly punchy, but as speed rises it feels and sounds increasingly strained. I drove the all-wheel-drive version. The front-wheel-drive Santa Fe, which weighs a couple hundred pounds less, should feel stronger. Taken together with the $1,500 premium charged for all-wheel-drive, the front-wheel-drive Santa Fe probably makes more sense for most people. The four-cylinder in the base Santa Fe most likely feels weak.

The all-wheel-drive system, unlike those in the Escape and CR-V, always sends power to both ends, splitting torque 60/40 to match the weight distribution. In the Ford, Saturn, and Honda the front wheels get all of the torque until they slip, and only then is some torque directed to the rear. In theory this difference should lend the Santa Fe a more balanced feel when cornering, especially when engine braking. However, the Ford's and Honda's front-wheel-drive chassis designs (but not the Saturn's) are good enough (and the clutch packs controlling torque to the rear engage quickly enough) that this advantage is not what it once would have been. Still, the Hyundai system, more similar to that used in all-wheel-drive cars, is the type I personally prefer. None of these vehicles is suited to hard core off-roading, but for light off-roading and inclement weather all should be adequate.

The strong suit of the Santa Fe, unexpectedly for a Korean vehicle, is refinement and a very car-like feel for an SUV. Aside from the engine note under load, I was surprised by the vehicle’s smoothness and generally upscale feel. The Escape feels trucky in comparison. The ride is very smooth, and up to 50 miles per hour it is also very quiet. At highway speeds tire noise becomes evident, but not obtrusive.

Despite the bias towards ride quality, typical of Korean vehicles, the Santa Fe also handles fairly well. The steering has a moderate amount of heft to it, and reacts with reasonable quickness. The Escape feels sportier, but then it also does not feel as smooth. The biggest eye-opener was driving the Kia Sorento after driving the Santa Fe. The Kia has extremely light steering and has the hefty, slightly disjointed feel typical of conventional SUVs. In comparison to that vehicle, the Santa Fe felt very car-like, nimble, and even sporty.

Pricing

For quick, up-to-date pricing, and especially user-specified price comparisons, check out the website I created: www.truedelta.com. Why yet another vehicle pricing website? Well, I personally lacked the patience to keep using the others. They were too slow and required too much effort, especially when trying to compare prices. So I taught myself some programming and created a site where there is no need to dig through option packages, prerequisites, and the like one by one -- the TrueDelta algorithm figures these out for you in one swift pass.

The following is from when the review was originally written:

With the sunroof (the only factory-installed option with the LX trim), the Santa Fe LX AWD stickers for $25,239. According to Edmunds, the typical dealer discount and a $1,000 rebate bring this down to about $22,800. As everyone knows by now, Hyundai includes an extensive warranty to overcome the public's lingering quality concerns (although the reliability of Hyundais improves every year, and in the latest Consuemr Reports appears to have pulled even with Honda).

A similarly equipped Ford Escape XLT Premium lists for about $800 more, and after the typical dealer discount and a $1,000 rebate runs about $500 more. A couple of features standard in the Hyundai are not available in the Escape, most notably heated seats and automatic climate control. Adjusted for these features, the price difference is roughly a grand. Based on this yardstick, the Santa Fe isn’t quite a bargain, at least not in the loaded trim I tested, but is very reasonably priced.

The GLS trim is probably the better value, but if you want leather the LX, with all the bells and whistles (automatic rearview mirror, universal garage door opener) is your only option.

Last Words

The interior volume and refined, car-like feel are the Santa Fe’s strong points. Engine power could be better, but the real show-stopper for me remains the styling. If cargo volume and refinement are important to you, and you can deal with or even like the looks, then this is a strong choice.

To learn more about my reliability research and sign up to participate in it, or to perform thorough up-to-date new car price comparisons, visit www.truedelta.com. A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.

Amount Paid (US$): 25,239
Model Year: 2003
Model and Options: LX AWD