There are two types of people in this world: those of us who measure money in loaves of bread and bottles of milk, and those who have people to go and buy that stuff for them.
This is the sort of car that appeals to the former - it’s the Hyundai Santa Fe Active diesel, a coin-conscious seven-seat SUV with a frugal drivetrain and plenty of goodies fitted.
This generation of the Santa Fe has been around since late 2012, and has won over plenty of buyers during its time on sale. And with fresh competition, Hyundai has been pushed to add new equipment to its model range, starting at this entry-level Active.
Unlike plenty of its competitor SUVs, the base model Santa Fe is all-wheel drive only: you can have it with a four-cylinder petrol, or the impressive turbo-diesel we’ve got here. We’ve got it because it’s impressive. More impressive than the petrol.
Let me tell you what’s impressive about it.
Hyundai Santa Fe 2018: Active (4x4)
Safety rating
Engine Type
2.4L
Fuel Type
Regular Unleaded Petrol
Fuel Efficiency
9.4L/100km
Seating
7 seats
Price from
$29,150
Does it represent good value for the price? What features does it come with? 7/10
Until recently, the Hyundai Santa Fe Active diesel could be had with the choice of a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic. Officially the manual is no longer on sale, but there may still be some stock around.
Hyundai has, for a long time, been a value brand, and there’s no exception to that rule when it comes to the Santa Fe range. In its 2018 models the brand added a whole heap of extra equipment, including loads of safety goodies that sweeten the deal. See the safety section below for more info on that. but the best bit is that the additional safety kit didn’t add anything to the list price.
This Active auto, diesel, all-wheel drive version is listed at $44,850 plus on-road costs. If you prefer petrol, you could consider the Active AWD petrol, which is three grand less.
The Active spec is generously equipped.
The Active spec is generously equipped, with a 7.0-inch touchscreen media unit that features Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring technology, as well as USB connectivity, Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, and there’s a new 4.2-inch colour driver’s information display. It misses out on sat nav, but you can map your way on your phone, and of course there’s a reversing camera with active steering guidelines, and rear parking sensors.
The Active rides on 17-inch alloy wheels and has a full-size alloy spare wheel, has cloth seat trim and manual front seat adjustment but gets a leather-lined steering wheel and gear-shifter, and it has three drive modes to choose from - Normal, Eco and Sport.
You get roof-rails, too, but while some competitors have LED headlights on all models (we’re talking chiefly about the CX-9, here), Hyundai has halogens on the low-spec Santa Fes, albeit complemented by a set of LED daytime running lights and fog-lights.
It does, however, get niceties like an electronic park brake, auto-dimming rearview mirror, power folding side mirrors and puddle lights in the side mirrors.
Is there anything interesting about its design? 7/10
If there’s one thing that can be said about the current-generation Hyundai Santa Fe, it’s that it’s an inoffensive looking SUV.
It isn't particularly good looking, nor is it ugly.
It isn’t particularly good looking, but nor is it ugly. It doesn’t have any particularly unlikely elements to its exterior design, but nor does it offer much in the way of driveway desirability.
That’ll either be your thing, or it won’t - and let’s face it, there are plenty of SUVs in this segment that do little to inspire those of us who consider ourselves aesthetes. For what it’s worth, I don’t consider myself one of those.
The small 17-inch wheels aren’t as arch-filling as you might want.
But there are things that can be pointed out about the Active model’s styling - the small 17-inch wheels aren’t as arch-filling as you might want, but it still gets lower LED daytime running lights, twin exhaust tips and roof-rails.
It certainly hasn’t aged poorly. The inside, however…
How practical is the space inside? 7/10
Okay, let me just put this out there: those tacked-on fake wood sections on the dashboard are old Hyundai.
Those tacked-on fake wood sections on the dashboard are 'old Hyundai'.
By 'Old Hyundai' I mean it used to be a brand that had to try and tart its cars up to make them feel primo - but it doesn’t have to anymore, and that 'wood' should go straight in the bin.
That aside, the cabin is largely inoffensive… just like the exterior. It was pretty much the benchmark when the Santa Fe launched, with plenty of great storage options like cupholders in the front (between the seats) and back (flip-down armrest in the second row and two in the third row), bottle holders in all four doors, and a clever storage area in front of the gear-shifter.
It remains among the best for cabin goodie-holders, and it looks pretty smart apart from the wood, too. The centre stack has seen some changes in recent times, with the touchscreen media system supporting smartphone mirroring but there’s no sat nav and only one USB port, which isn’t great by today’s standards. Happily, the media system is super simple to use.
One thing I wasn’t very happy with was the air-conditioning controls. An individual temperature increment (of which there are 10) can mean the difference between feeling flustered and warm or freezing cold.
On the plus side, the Santa Fe’s sun-visors are extendable, so while you may struggle to get the right temperature, at least you won’t be blinded by the sun in the process.
There are dual ISOFIX anchor points in the middle row.
For parents there are dual ISOFIX anchor points in the second row, and three top-tether points too. The third-row seating doesn’t have any child-seat options, but that’s not unusual. The back row is tight for adults - you get more space in a Kia Sorento, Mazda CX-9 or Nissan Pathfinder.
The boot space on offer is 516 litres (VDA) with five seats in use, and 1615L with the rear five seats folded down. The boot isn’t overly useful with all seven seats in place, but then again, none of the SUVs in this class are super thoughtful in that regard.
The Santa Fe provides 1615-litres of space with the seats folded down.
What are the key stats for the engine and transmission? 8/10
Under the bonnet is a willing 2.2-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine with a strong 147kW of power and chunky 440Nm of torque. It has the choice of a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission, and both are all-wheel drive.
The 2.2-litre turbo-diesel puts out 147kW/440Nm.
There are competitor large SUVs out there with more torque, but they’re also running bigger engines and more serious four-wheel drives than the Santa Fe could ever dream of being.
That said, the Santa Fe (and its cousin, the Kia Sorento) are among the only family-focused models in their segment with diesel and petrol drivetrain options - the Kluger, CX-9 and Pathfinder can’t claim the same.
Being diesel, there’s good towing capacity on offer, mainly for the manual (if you can find one): it’ll lug 2500kg if the trailer has brakes, and 750kg if not. The auto claims 2000kg braked/750kg unbraked.
The manual is better again, with a miserly claim of just 6.6L/100km.
On test in our auto model we saw an impressive 7.9L/100km across a mix of urban and highway driving with one or two occupants on board. You’ll see a little higher than that if it’s loaded up, but even then you’ll be impressed.
What's it like to drive? 7/10
If you’ve read a lot of Hyundai Santa Fe reviews you will no doubt have noticed the diesel models are lauded for their strong engines, and that’s still the case - even by class standards, and even after more than six years on sale.
The 2.2-litre turbo-diesel is a strong and refined engine, easily offering enough gusto to keep you and your family moving along without hassle. It is a little noisy at lower speeds, but never to the point of annoyance.
There can be a bit of turbo lag to contend with from a standstill, too, but it’s easy enough to negate that. And the six-speed automatic does a good job of keeping things moving and getting things going from a halt, offering smooth shifts and good shift logic (at high and low speeds).
Hyundai’s local tuning team has had a hand in making the Santa Fe suitable for local roads, and while it is reasonably inoffensive (there’s that word again!) in most situations, it isn’t as well sorted as its cousin, the Kia Sorento. The ride can be a little terse at lower speeds, with the rear suspension in particular feeling jittery at times, and while the steering is accurate enough, it can be inconsistent in its weighting at times.
Even so, it is easy to live with, whether you spend a lot of time on the open road or just battle traffic on the daily.
Warranty & Safety Rating
Basic Warranty
5 years / unlimited km
warranty
ANCAP Safety Rating
What safety equipment is fitted? What safety rating? 8/10
It has been a while since the Hyundai Santa Fe was tested by ANCAP, but back in 2012 it scored the maximum five-star rating.
That’s in addition to items such as a reversing camera with active parking guidelines, rear parking sensors, stability control and hill-start assist.
Perhaps the biggest question mark for buyers is the lack of third-row airbag coverage for the Santa Fe - every other big-name model in the segment has third-row airbag coverage. As it is, the Santa Fe has airbag coverage for the front two rows, plus it has dual front and front side airbags and a driver’s knee airbag.
What does it cost to own? What warranty is offered? 9/10
Hyundai backs its cars with a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty - not the best you can get (that honour goes to Kia), but it’s still one of the better ones out there.
Hyundai sweetens its ownership plan with lifetime capped-price servicing if you maintain the car in-house. Servicing is due every 12 months/15,000km, with the average cost over a five-year/75,000km period working out at $409 per go.
If you service your car with Hyundai, you’ll also get up to 10 years of roadside assist.
Verdict
The Hyundai Santa Fe is ageing gracefully - and the latest raft of safety additions make it pretty appealing for family buyers. But those very same buyers must be aware of the lack of third-row airbag coverage.
If that isn't a concern for you, then you could do a lot worse than the Active model, which has a lot of standard kit for the money, and a strong diesel all-wheel drive powertrain to boot.
Would a lack of third-row airbags in a seven-seat SUV rule it out for you? Let us know in the comments section below?
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