2024 Hyundai Santa Fe Review: Weird, But It Works

- I'm driving the 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe for the first time. And this is a drastically different vehicle than its predecessor. It is blocky, it is long, it is low. It is a very different vehicle. And you may think, oh, it looks like the new Lexus GX. Or, oh, it looks like the Land Rover Defender. Good company to be in. But really what I see is, they've given the Santa Fe the Ford Flex effect, and that is not a knock. We love the Ford Flex. We wish it was still around. And you know what? The Santa

Fe may have that family friendliness locked down. And some of the reasons that we love the Flex are actually apparent in the Santa Fe. And a lot of that has to do with its shape. So let's go through some of the things that we love about the Santa Fe. And why, even if the looks aren't doing it for you, you may still wanna consider it. There are two versions of the Santa Fe. One is the XRT off-road that is lifted and has larger diameter tires. What most people will be buying however, is just the

regular Santa Fe. And it's actually quite low to the ground. Even with all-wheel drive. Its seven inches of ground clearance is lower than its predecessor, and that makes entry and exit very easy. And I imagine once I get my kids in the car, who are under six years old, it'll be easy for them to get in and out too. And that's not the case with something like the Lexus GX. Once you're inside, it's clear that this shape has benefits for passenger comfort, because there are now standard three rows

of seating and nearly as much passenger volume by the specs as the larger Hyundai Palisade. The front row has a very different feel than other Hyundai SUVs. And a lot of that is just the shape. First of all, you have great visibility. And all the windows are tall, including the windshield. So, over both shoulders you have really good visibility. And then there's just the impression that this shape gives you, which, it drives like a much bigger car than you would guess. This technically fits in b

etween the compact Hyundai Tucson and the three-row Hyundai Palisade. But it feels like a much more substantial vehicle when you're driving it. And I think a lot of that has to do with just the shape. The hood is very squared off, the windshield is very squared off. And then you're also getting that vibe from all the windows when you're looking around. So it's a very different experience than other Hyundai SUVs. Now we didn't get the full experience of the Santa Fe because we were only driving t

he top trim Calligraphy. And why that's important, especially for the second row, is because this is the only trim level that comes with captain's chairs. So the captain's chairs are power folding, but other versions will get a manual folding bench seat. And I actually think that's gonna be the better way to go. I found the power seats cumbersome to fold, especially if you are giving access to the third row, or using the full cargo area. Yes, it's nice that there are power folding switches in th

e cargo area. But, when you're on the side of the vehicle, in those back doors, it's a bit slower than I would like to have that fold, or to fold and give access to the third row. Now, onto the third row. Which is really interesting because you would expect something that's a little bigger than compact, and a little smaller than something like the three-row Palisade to have a third row that's more of a jump seat, or an occasional use third row. But I actually think there's a lot more usability h

ere than you would expect. Now my knees were highly elevated off the ground 'cause the seat was so low to the floor, but I had a lot of head room and leg room was certainly manageable because of that squared off shape. And, perhaps more importantly, there are lower latch connectors on both rear seats, as well as tether anchors on the back. So, if you needed to put a booster seat or a child safety seat back there, it can accommodate it in both seats in the third row. Where the Santa Fe shape real

ly pays off is in cargo room. 'Cause most SUVs, the roof line will slope down, and that cuts into cargo room. Well, the Santa Fe's cargo area is very square, which gives you a lot of room. And it's also really great with how big the cargo opening is. It's much wider and taller from top to bottom than the previous Santa Fe, and that lets you fit a big variety of items. Home Depot weekend warriors will love it. And also, if you're going to your kids' sports game, baseball, soccer, you can just bac

k the car up, sit in the cargo area, and see everything. Because the cargo area is so big and tall, you can actually sit up in the cargo area without any problem. And that's pretty rare for something this size that is that in-between size between a compact SUV and a proper three-row, like the Palisade. At the root of all of this extra room is a longer wheel base. Now that's the distance between the front and the rear wheels. And when those are spaced farther apart, there's more room for stuff in

between them. And that pays off in room, but that also pays off in the benefit of improving ride comfort. And the ride quality of the Santa Fe is really good. And that's impressive because I was driving the top Calligraphy trim level that has 21 inch wheels. And Hyundai really hasn't done ride quality that well with big wheels like the Palisade, and its top trim and top wheels. But the Santa Fe does ride quality really well. And, you know, I'm gonna reserve final judgment until I drive it back

home in Chicago. But, on these Tennessee roads where we were driving, I was really impressed by how comfortable it drove. There's more to like in the Santa Fe simply than a lot of passenger room and cargo room, because there are some slick features that I think families will really like. One of those is the entire center console. So in this exposed area you have a wireless phone charger, availability for dual wireless phone charger, and this just nice tray to put stuff. And then, underneath that

, there's an open compartment too for larger items. But what's really trick is how the center console storage opens. You can open it from the front like a traditional center console storage, but it's also hinged on the opposite side. So if anyone in the back seat needed to get something, they can just open it from the back seat. And there's more. There's this little compartment on the backside of lower, near the floor, that opens up, and it's kind of like a trash can. Put a plastic bag in there,

you can put junk in there. And I know families will love that because it's something I would appreciate when I'm hauling the family, and there are all sorts of straw wrappers and granola bar wrappers. And basically anything that ends up on the floor you can put in there. Would really appreciate that on the next trip I take with the family. The Santa Fe Calligraphy I was testing was $50,000. And that's the top trim level. But, you're gonna get a lot of what's great about the Santa Fe, even at it

s $35,000 starting price, with front wheel drive. I really like how it has standard front and rear parking sensors, as well as a power lift gate. And you get that third row, and a turbocharged 2.5 liter four cylinder engine. As a family car, the Santa Fe might be one of the most exciting considerations in recent years. And if you like the way it looks, it's really gonna be a no-brainer. And even if you don't like the way it looks, you might still wanna consider it, because yes, it's that good. (

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