Hyundai Santa Fe
On sale mid April

The Cinderella of the sports utility vehicle sector has donned a new ball gown, taken speech lessons and had a complete de-tox.

Hyundai’s second generation Santa Fe which goes on sale mid April, with its new styling, upmarket quality interior, new engines and lots of standard equipment definitely will go to the ball. However, although still more affordable than the competition from the BMW X5, the Land Rover Discovery and the VW Touareg, the new Santa Fe will cost a bit more than its predecessor.

But then if a lady is to look her best, you would expect to fork out a little money and the benefits, in the form of style, performance and handling are well worth the extra expense.

Personally, I have always liked the styling on the Santa Fe. It was the first SUV to incorporate a handle to open the rear tailgate, which I thought gave it a very distinctive look. The new Santa Fe is 50mm taller than the outgoing model but I still found it easy to get into. It is also wider and longer to accommodate all 7 seats, which costs £600 more than the standard 5 seater. I would suggest it would be well worth paying the extra, because the two rear seats fold flat into the floor of the boot, totally out of the way. If you opt for the 5 seats, there is useful under the floor storage. There is also a full spare wheel, not the current popular run flat tyres. Roof rails add 65mm to the height and are a standard feature.

The Santa Fe is prettier on the inside, as well as the outside, with new quality trim GSI, CDX or CDX +. There is lots of head and leg room, many useful storage spaces, some covered and an air conditioned box between the seats for cool drinks. The instrument panel has a beautiful blue lighting and air conditioning or dual zone climate control are available. There is also sat nav, and a DVD compatible with Playstation and X Box consoles.

There is however, one item, which I think mars the whole interior look. That is the strip of dark or light wood trim across the dash. The design of which looks scratched. At the Santa Fe’s launch on voicing my comments to the UK MD, I was told that designers were going to look at phasing in a new more refined trim.

Safety equipment includes a full complement of front, side and roof curtain airbags and braking systems, with ABS and electronic brakeforce distribution. ESP, traction control and active head restraints came into force at the launch, when a solo driver launched his Santa Fe into the air and it hit a tree. Trying to navigate from a map whilst driving round Valencia’s mountainous countryside doesn’t really work too well. The embarrassed motorist walked away from what was a complete write off.

There are two engines available, a new 2.2 litre common rail diesel and a revised 2.7 litre petrol. 86% of sales in the UK will be the diesel engine, which has a 5 speed manual gearbox or a CVVT auto. The 2.7 litre petrol isn’t as torquey as the diesel, which I much preferred. I also preferred the manual gearbox, only because the CVVT groans very noisily when you press your foot on the accelerator. Inside the cabin though, with NVH improvements, it is actually very quiet. The diesel accelerates very strongly to 62mph in 11.6 seconds and goes on to a top speed of 111mph. Combined fuel consumption is an excellent 38.7mpg and CO2 emissions are 193g/km, better than some saloons.

Whereas the previous Santa Fe used a fixed four wheel drive set up, the all new Santa Fe employs a ‘torque on demand’ system. Normally it will drive using the front wheels only, but when conditions demand it, all wheel drive engages. It can also be engaged manually by pushing the 4WD button, for off road conditions.

The Santa Fe is very comfortable for cruising and has a turning circle small enough to allow it to be easily manoeuvrable. Costing from £20,995 otr. The Hyundai Santa Fe will be a lady that you will be proud to be seen with. With the extra benefits of Hyundai’s unique five year unlimited mileage, manufacturer backed warranty, that is fully transferable from owner to owner, the competition had better polish up their glass slippers!

By Sue Cooke