Hyundai Santa Fe: Twenty-Five Years Since the Birth of a Saga

Around the late 1990s, Hyundai embarked on a transformation, heavily investing in quality, design, and manufacturing to become the globally recognized Korean brand it is today.

The automotive market since the 1980s had been dominated by minivans. The Chrysler Voyager and Renault Espace had reshaped the automotive landscape. However, as the saying goes, "fashion is what goes out of fashion," and in the new century, vehicles with a rugged appearance and family character began to emerge, conquering cityscapes and highways rather than jungles and deserts.

This was a new trend, and gradually, many car manufacturers without experience in this sector opted for these "light" off-road vehicles known as crossovers and now as SUVs. Hyundai had some experience—since 1991, it had been producing the Galloper, a second-generation Mitsubishi Montero—but it had not created its own model in this segment.

At the 1999 Detroit Auto Show, the Korean brand unveiled the Santa Fe to the public, a model with a Spanish name that evokes the capital of New Mexico, symbolizing escape and grand adventure, but also the desert and thus the off-road environment. Its European debut came at the 2000 Geneva Motor Show, at a time when Hyundai dealerships in the Old Continent only sold the Sonata sedan and the small Pony, the predecessor of the Accent. The arrival of the Santa Fe not only drew attention and changed perceptions of the brand but also opened the doors to a new type and style of automobile.

Based on the Sonata platform of the time, it measured 4.5 meters in length, with a body featuring rounded lines and integrated bumpers, a strikingly bulging hood, and a rear hatch with independent glass opening. Although its design was not a masterpiece, that blend between family car and off-road vehicle hit the mark: it was the car many European customers were waiting for daily family use.

Inside, it boasted ample space and eye-catching equipment, far beyond what one might expect for its price at the time: air conditioning, electric windows, mirrors and sunroof, or a CD player, among others.

And then there's safety. It's worth noting that the Santa Fe was preceded by its good results in American safety tests, NHTSA (the equivalent of the European EuroNCAP), where it outperformed many of its direct rivals.

Mechanically, under the hood, it carried the same gasoline engines as in the American market. The first was a 2.7-liter V6 engine producing 179 horsepower. The second was a 2.0-liter four-cylinder block with 136 horsepower. But in Europe, there was a diesel craze (Brussels had not yet begun its demonization), hence it included a 2.0-liter diesel with 116 horsepower, accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in 13.3 seconds and reaching 172 km/h. Depending on the versions, these engines could be paired with a 5-speed manual transmission or a 4-speed automatic, and a permanent four-wheel-drive transmission.

By the way, this first generation of the Santa Fe served as the basis for a very special unit. Hyundai had begun developing fuel cell vehicles in 1998, and in 2000 it presented its first prototype, the Santa Fe FCEV. It featured a 350-bar hydrogen tank (located under the trunk) and incorporated a 75 kW fuel cell, placed under the rear seats. Its range was 180 kilometers, and it reached 124 km/h. At the 2001 Challenge Bibendum, the Santa Fe FCEV won gold medals in both the emissions and noise tests and received silver medals for its performance in slalom and fuel efficiency tests.

The FCHEV variant, presented at the 2003 Challenge Bibendum, featured a system for recovering energy lost during braking to provide greater fuel efficiency.

This was a first step in a journey that will make Hyundai the first car manufacturer to apply fuel cell systems to all commercial vehicle models by 2028, expecting the price of a fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) to be comparable to that of a battery electric vehicle (BEV) by 2030. The Group will apply fuel cell systems to all types of mobility and bring the technology to all other aspects of society, including homes, buildings, and power plants as energy solutions.

But let's return to our story. In January 2006, a second generation of the Santa Fe was launched, also at the Detroit Auto Show, a very important market for the brand.

Its exterior style had completely changed, and the interior took a significant leap in quality. But there were even more innovations. One of them was that, for the first time, a third row of seats was available as an option. In terms of equipment, it came standard with electronic stability control (ESC), ABS, curtain airbags in all rows of seats, tire pressure sensor, and active headrests. Hyundai, from the beginning, wanted to set itself apart at this level, even in its entry-level versions.

The third generation of the Santa Fe arrived in 2012, featuring a very different aesthetic design that responded to the brand's new stylistic direction called "Storm Edge."

Available in a five-seat and seven-passenger configuration, the Santa Fe offers emergency braking assistance, among other features.

In 2019, building on the success of its previous generations, Hyundai launched the fourth, which stands out for its original exterior lines, spacious seating, and increasingly extensive equipment, including the Rear Occupant Alert (ROA) to detect any movement of children or a pet in the rear seat when the driver leaves the vehicle.

Another safety feature was the Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Alert (RCCA), which scanned the area behind the vehicle 180° and activated the brakes if necessary to avoid a collision. And for the first time, a head-up display...

And now, twenty-five years after that first Santa Fe, we are at the wheel of a new generation, the fifth, just a few months old: it was unveiled late last year. Spectacular in terms of dimensions, no less than 4.83 meters long (six centimeters more than the previous one), and aesthetics, along with many other changes, including a new range of engines.

At first glance, it stands out with an appearance different from all its rivals. Parallelepiped shapes, right angles, a knife-cut rear, a long and horizontal waistline, a straight hood, a long rear overhang, and "H"-shaped front and rear daytime running lights... Bold, no doubt, but balanced, this design signed by the team of Spanish Eduardo Ramírez, Chief Designer of Hyundai Design Europe.

The new Hyundai Santa Fe is available, always in a 7-seater version, as a plug-in hybrid PHEV with 253 horsepower (standard all-wheel drive and "0" label) or as a hybrid HEV with 215 horsepower, with front-wheel drive or 4x4: the latter corresponding to the tested unit.

Having 215 horsepower for 1.9 tons may seem just enough. Fortunately, the 265 Nm of torque from the 1.6 turbo gasoline engine and the synchronous permanent magnet electric motor of 264 Nm result in 367 Nm that do their job well. Although we might have wished for a slightly more generous electric "assistance" than these 64 horsepower, which are a bit timid at the moment. Everything is associated with a 6-speed automatic transmission with management that prioritizes flexibility and driving comfort.

In fact, the onboard atmosphere is relaxing, the seats are excellent, the habitability is generous, and its storage spaces are as numerous as they are spacious. The fact that the gear control has migrated to the steering column has freed up space for a very wide central console, capable of accommodating two smartphones side by side, each with its own ventilated induction charger. The second-row seat (60/40) slides generously, and its backrests are adjustable in inclination. Not to mention the trunk space, at least in the 5-seat configuration, capable of accommodating everything when going on vacation. But we bet that, loaded to the roof, the Santa Fe's gasoline/electric engine combination will have to work hard, especially if the terrain is mountainous or rugged. Because when used under heavy load, the 4-cylinder engine makes itself heard, and its sound is not refined. Likewise, consumption can vary significantly. However, after a week of testing, mostly empty and conducted at a reasonable pace, we managed to stay around 7 liters per 100 km, a good result considering its size.

Certainly, the Hyundai Santa Fe is not cheap (we're talking about prices exceeding 58,000 euros in the most accessible versions). But those who can afford to overcome this hurdle will discover a great SUV that dares to be different and also offers genuine objective qualities. Among them are its spaciousness, ride comfort, onboard comfort, trunk space, attractive interior presentation, and standard equipment, whether for comfort or safety.

But beware, it does not have pure off-road capabilities, especially in the two-wheel drive (front) configuration, and its towing capacity is limited to 1,150 kg (with brake). It prefers to play the card of a beautiful, calm, and practical family off-roader. And it does so very well, continuing the saga of a model whose success and history are closely linked to the Korean giant's foray into Europe.