Hyundai Santa Fe 2023 review: Active diesel long-term | Part 1

When looking for a family SUV, is it better to go for a high-spec version of a mid-size SUV? Or should you spend similar coin on a more basic version of a large SUV?

Well, having spent the last six months with a Hyundai Tucson Highlander, we thought we'd give the Santa Fe Active a go to see if the trade-off in equipment is worth the increase in practicality.

The out-going car (which my family loved) was the Tucson Highlander with N Line kit, priced at $53,900, before on-road costs, while the latest addition to our garage, a Santa Fe Active, is positioned at $53,750 – so its fair to say the difference in price is negligible.

And of course, one of the key appeals of a large SUV like the Santa Fe is the size, practicality, and having the option of seven seats.

Measuring 4785mm long and 1900mm wide, the Santa Fe is certainly a sizeable ride, while the boot affords 571 litres of volume with the third-row folded flat.

With seats six and seven up, there is much more limited storage capacity (we are yet to find an official figure for volume), but you will fit in a few school bags or some groceries.

Fold the third- and second-row seats down however, and luggage capacity swells to 782L, with enough acreage to fit the usual family staples of a stroller, nappy change bag, groceries and more.

Worth noting, however, that having such a long boot floor means it can be harder to install a child seat, as you have to reach in to secure the top tether to the anchor point. Luckily, moving car seats in and out of vehicles isn't a regular occurrence for me...

And that practicality certainly extends to the second row, where there is ample room for adults and children alike.

The second row bench seat can also slide forward and backwards, as well as recline, so there's some flexibility in finding a suitable position for everyone.

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I will say, though, the seat seems to sit up quite high, and the door apertures are relatively small, meaning with a car seat in place, there's a smaller-than-I'd-like amount of space to load children.

It's certainly not a deal breaker. But funny to notice that it seemed easier in the smaller-sized Tucson than in the Santa Fe.

And with a larger vehicle, you also score a more potent powertrain.

Powering our new long-termer is a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel, which punches out a healthy 148kW at 3800rom and 440NM from 1750-2750rpm.

Drive is sent to all four wheels via an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

Compared with our outgoing Tucson, which was also powered by a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engine, the Santa Fe makes 11kW more power and a healthy 24Nm more than its smaller sibling.

And while we thought the Tucson diesel was punchy enough, the larger, heavier Santa Fe feels like it needs the extra grunt to get moving.

There is a bit of lag as the turbo spins up, but the Santa Fe never feels sluggish or underpowered coming off the line. We're keen to see how powertrain holds up in more driving situations in the coming months.

In terms of equipment and positioning in the line-up, our Santa Fe is the Active grade, which is one up from the unnamed entry variant but positioned below the Elite and Highlander.

That does mean there isn't a lengthy equipment list to keep buyers happy, though.

Standard equipment extends to 18-inch alloy wheels. (image: Tung Nguyen)

Standard equipment extends to 18-inch alloy wheels, push-button start, shift-by-wire gear selector, paddle shifters, drive-mode selector, cloth interior, rear privacy glass, dual-zone climate control and a 4.2-inch driver display.

Third-row passengers also have access to air-conditioning system with controls for fan speed.

For multimedia, the Santa Fe Active is fitted with an 8.0-inch screen that has functions for radio, Bluetooth connectivity and USB input.

However, the standout feature is wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, freeing you from having an ugly cable sticking out of the centre stack.

On paper it seems like the Santa Fe offers enough to keep family buyers happy. (image: Tung Nguyen)

This is complimented by a wireless smartphone charger, so its nice to be able to just hop in, slide in your phone and have access to Google Maps for navigation.

Safety wise, the Santa Fe Active has exactly what you need for a family hauler, with hill-start assist, rear cross-traffic alert, drive attention warning, forward collision warning, automatic high beams, lane keep assist, tyre pressure monitoring, adaptive cruise control, a reversing camera, front and rear parking sensors, and safe exit alert.

On paper it seems like the Santa Fe offers enough to keep family buyers happy, but we're keen to put a few more kilometres on the odometer before determining if it's a better buy than a smaller, but better equipped model.

Acquired: October 2022

Distance travelled this month: 485km

Odometer: 6744km

Average fuel consumption this month: L/100km (measured at the pump): 8.2L/100km