Hyundai Santé Fe
Frame it any way you like – sales figures, top seven-seat SUV, top diesel SUV – Hyundai’s Santa Fe undoubtedly has a very special place in the hearts of a lot of Kiwi families. Damien O’carroll explains why.
Frame it any way you like - sales figures, top seven seat SUV, top diesel SUV – the Santa Fe undoubtedly has a very special place in a lot of Kiwi families.
When Hyundai first launched the current generation of Santa Fe back in 2012, a lot of local motoring scribes questioned whether New Zealand buyers were ready for a top-spec Limited model that cost $70K.
But most certainly seemed that they were, as the Limited has been an incredibly popular member of an incredibly popular line up ever since.
And it is actually very easy to see why; despite costing S69,490, the Santa Fe Limited represents extraordinarily good value for money.
Its standard equipment is impressive and, while it is not at the absolute cutting edge in terms of technology anymore (things are moving staggeringly fast there these days), it more than holds its own thanks to the regular updates Hyundai bestows upon it.
The Limited comes standard with 19-inch alloy wheels, HID xenon headlights, LED taillights and daytime running lights, leather upholstery, a 12-way powered driver’s seat, heated seats in the front and second row, dual zone climate control with a chilled glovebox, a premium Infinity audio system, a touchscreen infotainment system with phone mirroring (unless you go for the optional satellite navigation system with excellent SUNA live traffic updates) and a huge panoramic sunroof, just to name some of its equipment.
But above all else, the Santa Fe is, even in its very base form, a handsome, comfortable and extremely competent vehicle that has no particular vices and just feels very right.
At the heart of that “rightness” is Hyundai’s impressive 2.2-litre R Series turbo diesel four-cylinder engine. Pumping out 147kw of power and 440Nm of torque, the diesel engine is impressively linear in the delivery of that power and torque.
While it isn’t the quietest diesel on the market, it is smooth and refined, plus the noise it does make is somewhat characterful and
Kiwis certainly love their SUVS, none more so than Hyundai’s Sante Fe.
even in its very base form, a handsome, comfortable and extremely competent vehicle that has no particular vices.❞
certainly not intrusive in any way.
Out on the open road the engine is a delightfully flexible and willing unit, while the six-speed automatic transmission is equally amenable.
The strong, smooth power delivery is nicely complimented by the Santa Fe’s relaxed ride. The chassis is tightly controlled, but never so much that it could be considered firm and does, in fact, always err on the side of comfort. But, it must be noted, not at the cost of handling, which is surprisingly agile for such a large vehicle, with impressively well controlled body roll.
So that, in dryly technical motor writer-terms, is why people like the Santa Fe – put more simply, it does everything well and nothing terribly wrong. It’s as simple as that.
But why do we all seem to be so in love with SUVS in general?
That’s an even easier question to answer. As much as it their room and practicality, the SUV offers the idea of freedom.
Most punters may never actually use the extra ground clearance or off road electronics in a modern crossover-style SUV, but they love the idea of the freedom to do it.
During our time with the Santa Fe we headed out on a small adventure, something in the style of a quick weekend away on some unfamiliar roads and surfaces that your average Kiwi family might just undertake.
A trip to Raglan from Auckland offers as complete a collection of New Zealand roads, road surfaces and driving styles as you are ever likely to come across – urban city driving, motorway cruising, main roads, good back roads, awful quality back roads and, if you carry on past Raglan and out the utterly spectacular Whaanga Coast Road, even gravel and virtual goat tracks.
The Santa Fe is almost unflappable on all of these surfaces and is even impressive on the gravel thanks to its innate composure and nicely calibrated traction and stability systems that never over-react to the loose and uneven surfaces.
While ultimate ground clearance and extreme 4WD ability is never actually needed in these circumstances, even just the ability to get a wheel up on the grass to avoid a badly driven camper van is extremely useful on roads like this, and it is very much the promise of the freedom to actually tackle a road trip off the beaten track that lies at the heart of the appeal of SUVS to modern Kiwi families.
And the way that the Hyundai Santa Fe Limited handles all of that with composure, comfort and effortless ability is precisely why it is firmly one of our favourites.