COVER Hyundai Santa Fe
FIRST PICTURES Hyundai releases official images of bigger and safer flagship SUV that will be centrepiece of brand’s Geneva Motor Show stand
Our first chance to see new seven-seat SUV
Kona-inspired looks for tech-packed premium seven-seater UK models to get new engine when they arrive in the autumn
AN all-new version of Hyundai’s flagship SUV, the Santa Fe, will be the Korean manufacturer’s headline act at the Geneva Motor Show next month. The marque claims the newcomer is larger, more spacious and safer than the model it replaces, and it will arrive in UK showrooms later in the autumn.
It’s a car our spy photographers have spotted several times over the previous 12 months, but more recently Hyundai has been open and official about the latest version of its flagship SUV.
These first official images reveal the new Santa Fe ushers in a sharper look, inspired by the recently-launched Kona. The slim LED headlamps and large hexagonal grille, flanked by two large lighting clusters, are straight out of the latest Hyundai design playbook. A chunky front bumper with an integrated bash plate gives it a tougher look, as do the new, overemphasised wheelarches.
The one exterior shot released by Hyundai only showcases the car from the front, but a teaser sketch of the rear end (below) hints at a short, rakish back window with new horizontal tail-lights, that appear a bit more evolutionary compared with the car’s brand new face.
Hyundai promises that the latest Mk4 Santa Fe will boast class-leading roominess in the seven-seat SUV segment, and the new model is both 80mm longer and 10mm wider than the outgoing version, measuring 4,770mm long and 1,890mm wide.
Inside, the dashboard has been overhauled, with a floating tablet-style infotainment system, as found in many other recent Hyundais, new switchgear and vents, a new steering wheel and a fresh instrument cluster which features a digital display. Hyundai says that the new, horizontal-style layout has been developed with an added emphasis on creating a premium feel, too.
On safety and driver-assistance tech, the Santa Fe builds on Hyundai’s current suite of Smartsense features by introducing rear cross traffic alert, plus a new feature called Safety Exit Assist. This temporarily locks the doors when it senses a vehicle approaching from behind and removes the chance of a passenger opening the door into the path of a passingsing car.
The current Santa Fe getss just one engine option in the UK: a 2.2-litre four-fourcylinder diesel delivering 194bhp to the standard all-wheel-drivee system. It’s been around since the second-secondgeneration model, so the nextnext Santa Fe will switch to a newer, cleaneraner and more efficient power unit. A 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol motor will remain a part of the global line-up and could be offered to UK buyers for thee first time.
It’s also possible that hybrid technology could appear in the latest version of the Santa Fe furtherther down the line. Bosses will introduceduce 31 new low-emission models across the Hyundai and Kia line-up by 2020, with plans to expand the hybrid range to include SUVS and large vehicles. ehicles.
The new Santa Fe is expectedcted tto arrive in UK showrooms this autumn, with a minor price premium over the outgoing model. The range will kick off from around £34,000.
“Teaser shot hints at short, raking back window, while inside, Hyundai says new, horizontal-style dash is developed to create a premium feel”