Hyundai Santa Fe

The interior narrates a similar tale. The technologically modern environment is achieved by dual 12.3-inch displays (driver supervision instrument cluster and center infotainment screen). Climate control buttons are not part of the primary infotainment (a difference between this car and the integrated system of BMW), and dual wireless charging pads with display charge-status indicators. 

Nevertheless, the material development shows economy concessions: door cards and lower dashboard surfaces use harder-touch plastics that are not in line with the promised high-end positioning. The shift-by-wire gear lever, no longer placed on the floor but on the steering column, is less comfortably placed than a conventional lever, but packs better inside the car and allows reverse/park changes to be made by thumb pressing instead of a finger press, which is ergonomically awkward to the first-experience driver.

The three-row cabin is intelligently designed for space efficiency. Middle-row seats are reclining and sliding separately, providing 6-7 passenger capacity and third-row seating that can be used by children or by occasional adult passengers on shorter journeys. The interior width of 1,900 mm is wide enough to seat three adults in the middle row with sufficient shoulder clearance; the headroom and knee room are also spacious up to the second row. With all seats in place, boot capacity is 413 liters folding middle row provides 1098 liters full third-row fold provides 2046 liters- a convenient family duty cycle storage architecture. It is worth mentioning that Hyundai also includes 18 cup holders in the cabin (another 4-5 than its category competitors), seat back document folders, under-seat sliding storage, and two glove boxes, one with UV sterilization capability on higher-end models.

Practical Implications: Excess Storage, Lack of Towing

The number of cup holders (eight), sliding tray compartments, door-mounted sun shades, and two glove boxes (one of which has UV sterilization) is far beyond most competitive features. The boot area slides under the tonneau cover with no pronounced lip-loading heavy objects to be loaded without the risk of damaging the curb. The interior panels are removable, and the cubbies are modular, allowing different cargo setups- a practical way of family-friendly utility.

​However, towing capacity is a useful point of distinction in the negative: Hyundai claims a maximum 1.1-ton towing range throughout the Santa Fe range, which is far below Nissan X-Trail (2.0 tons), Škoda Kodiak (2.4 tons), and Land Rover Discovery (3.5 tons). This limitation effectively rules out the Santa Fe in families that need caravan /horse-trailer capability, no matter how well it performs in other respects. Absence of built-in rear-camera washer means that it has to be washed manually after bad weather- a quality of life loss to cars that are priced between Audi Q7 models.

The SmartSense package of Hyundai includes forward-collision avoidance (FCA), lane-departure warning (LDW), lane-following assist 2 (LFA 2), parking collision avoidance (PCA-Reverse), and blind-spot collision avoidance, which is available in all models. The quality of the implementation seems to be sufficient: collision systems are shown to be sensitive enough to avoid nuisance notifications and to be responsive enough, adaptive cruise is shown to be smooth, and camera-based parking assistance offers a useful spatial awareness. Active/passive safety integration is complete with comprehensive airbag architecture (front, side, curtain, center) and electronic stability control.

​The said attention-assist aggressiveness, however, implies that software calibration is skewed to false positive alerts as opposed to smart context interpretation. Contemporary SUV competitors (Toyota Highlander, Lexus RX) adopt the same functionality with better restraint and learning algorithms. The strategy used by Hyundai to increase the number of warnings with every start-up that needs to be deactivated is a way of losing trust in the driver instead of improving the safety culture.

The exterior of the Hyundai Santa Fe is a sharp departure from the design vocabulary used by Hyundai in the past. The low, horizontal hood (flat in comparison to conventional SUV geometry) offers real forward visibility benefit over boxier rivals, and the 20-inch alloy wheel standard on most models and roof rails are indicative of design deliberateness, not cost reduction. The 4,830 mm length, 1,900 mm width, and 1,780 mm height (including roof rails) dimensions create the visual presence that is comparable to those of vehicles priced between 20,000 and 30,000 dollars higher. The design team consciously borrowed the visual language of the Land Rover Discovery, especially the door shape and upper body musculature, to form a unified narrative of the idea of rugged elegance.

This is the main engineering contradiction of the Santa Fe. EPA estimates of 36 mpg combined (hybrid, all-wheel drive) are best-case scenarios in controlled federal laboratory conditions, essentially not representative of real ownership. 

The priorities of optimization of the hybrid system at Hyundai are clear: the urban stop-and-go driving (5.1 liters/100 km or 46.1 mpg US) proves the dominance of the electric motor, the motorway driving (140 km/h highway speeds) at 100 km/h (100 miles per hour) proves the dominance of the turbo four-cylinder, leaving the electric system in an intermediate functional position. 

The conventional Hyundai Santa Fe with turbocharging achieves 20-24 mpg in similar drive cycles- i.e. the real-life benefit of the hybrid is reduced to 3-5 mpg in mixed driving, which is hardly worth paying the extra 1000+ to buy it.

The 17.7-gallon fuel tank and 637-mile range (front-wheel drive) give the car sufficient highway range; the difference between the projected and actual efficiency only adds to the frustration of data-conscious consumers used to the honesty of fuel consumption.

Driving Dynamics: Effective, Not Refined

The Santa Fe provides good on-road behaviour, inclined to passenger comfort, and not chassis virtuosity. The ergonomics of town-driving are really handy: the flat hood and sitting position (1,436 mm hip point) give the car great forward and downward visibility. The 360-degree parking sensors of the surround-view cameras (standard on all trims) and the new digital rear-view mirror (mid-trim) provide a technological safety net that is useful in offsetting the 3.5+ ton curb weight of the vehicle. 

Suspension tuning Independent double-wishbone front, multi-link rear, is based on comfort in ride, not cornering. Independent testing shows chassis behavior similar to that of Land Rover Discovery: smooth rocking action over greater vertical action, smooth brake modulation (they do not have a hard initial bite like regen-heavy hybrid rivals), and general composure that is more suited to long-distance cruising than mountain canyon carving. 

Nonetheless, the default behavior is frustrating when integrated safety systems are used. Attention-assist monitoring (detecting eye-gaze of the driver out of the road) is aggressive, and alerts are given after several seconds of looking at the instrument panel. The lane-departure warning and speed-limit vigilance systems are activated by default every time the car is started, and must be turned off by navigating a submenu. This is inconvenient and happens every time the car is started. This bad human-factors design causes cumulative frustration for drivers.

Hyundai provides the Santa Fe in four different powerplant architectures, each of which signifies various priorities of buyers.

The traditional 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-four is the performance flagship with 194 horsepower and 250 Nm torque at 4,000 rpm. Combined with an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, this engine provides 0-60 mph in 6.3 seconds, which is good but not exciting performance, but it is faster than the previous generation objectively. The test fuel economy shows 20 mpg city/28 highway with all-wheel drive, or 21 city/29 highway with front-wheel drive. This translates to actual combined numbers of about 23-24 mpg- good in a 4,830 mm three-row car.​

The volume strategic bet is the hybrid powertrain, which is a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder combined with an electric motor generator with 235 combined horsepower and 370 Nm of torque. EPA estimates stand at 35 mpg city/34 highway with all-wheel drive (36/35 with front-wheel drive).

The practicality of Hyundai is reflected in test results: in a one-week test, one extensive independent test reached 37 mpg, and at an average speed of 22 km/h (13.5 mph), city driving gave 5.1 liters per 100 kilometers (46.1 mpg US equivalent). 

However, wider testing shows the unpleasant truth: several independent automotive experts recorded a real combined fleet economy of 26-29 mpg, a 6-10 mpg difference with EPA figures. This deficiency, which is usually explained by the fact that the hybrid system is not optimized to suit North American driving habits and violent EPA test cycles, compromises the main value proposition of hybrid choice.

​The acceleration feature indicates performance compromise: the hybrid takes 7.8 seconds to reach 0-60 mph, compared to 6.3 seconds in the turbo gasoline model. The gap is underlined by low-speed rolling acceleration (5-60 mph) 9.1 seconds (hybrid) and 6.7 seconds (turbocharged). The behavioural smoothness of the conventional transmission with light throttle body and parking moves is arguably more important than raw acceleration numbers, especially when it comes to family-duty driving, but enthusiast drivers view throttle response as sluggish compared to competitive offerings.

The dual-screen design, 12.3-inch driver display, and about 12-inch center touchscreen bring cohesion to the modern dashboard. Graphics rendering is crisp and better than most 2024 competitors; menu navigation is logically organized; physical shortcut buttons flanking the main display provide tactile access to frequently-accessed functions (camera, climate preset) without tedious menu diving. The wireless smartphone projection (Apple CarPlay/Android Auto) feature comes as standard, and the Lightning/USB-C adapter charge cycle scourge is removed. The electrical infrastructure is thoughtfully planned with eight USB-C ports spread all over the cabin (in addition to the 12-volt outlets).​

The wireless charging feature, though, shows engineering oversight: charging activates only until cabin doors are completely closed, an unintuitive feature that does not allow one to confirm that they are actively charging when making short stops or handoff situations. Functionality, of course, is perfect when the driver gets used to the power-door-close need.

Adaptive cruise technology with navigation-based functionality, which automatically slows down when turn-in points are near, improves the comfort of the motorway, but is sometimes overly aggressive in estimating the braking force needed on a low-grade curve, resulting in unnecessary braking interventions. 

The 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe is a capable, well-developed three-row SUV that meets real family-transportation needs with surprising design realness and technological thoroughness. The traditional turbocharged model is respectable performance-per-pound; the hybrid offers practical efficiency benefits in the urban environment, even though the highway fuel consumption difference is less than EPA claims. The safety systems work with care; the interior space is intelligently distributed; the integration of the technology works reliably.

But real restraints check unmerited recommendations. The reality gap between EPA claims and actual ownership is a material product integrity issue. The lack of towing capacity makes this vehicle unqualified for caravan-dependent owners. Uncivilised driver-assistance malfunctions are annoying and a daily source of frustration for owners. 

The Santa Fe is finally a highly capable generalist SUV not the fastest, most efficient, or luxurious three-row car on the market, but perhaps the most balanced. Potential consumers must compare this car to category expectations as opposed to premium-brand aspirations- accepting great midsize utility at the cost of recognising that no single car mastery can be used to offset this dual-compromise strategy to family transport.

The Santa Fe deserves serious consideration by fleet-minded family buyers who are more concerned with design language, interior versatility, technology integration, and value preservation than with ultimate capability. Competitive options are worth further research by enthusiasts, or those who believe in efficient-driving, or those who need serious towing capacity.