Welcome to a story of two families, myself, my wife, my daughter, her partner, their two-year-old daughter, and another one on the way due in early 2025.
Six people, three generations, looking for a vehicle we can all agree on.
There鈥檚 a lot to choose from in this segment but as a 60+ grandfather my first inclination is to stick with the hybrid brand that I own. My wife drives an older domestic compact SUV and my daughter has a newer Hyundai Tucson.
So our must-have checklist includes hybrid power, SUV, six seats minimum, safe, reliable, affordable, comfortable on a road trip, room for strollers, stuff, more stuff, but not a minivan. A search quest that led us to the all-wheel-drive Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid with its 1.6L Turbo 4-cylinder engine. I鈥檓 sure the non-hybrid version powered by a 2.5L Turbo-GDI 4-cylinder engine is very nice but...
I鈥檓 a car person, my wife isn鈥檛. Her favourite saying is, 鈥淭hey all look the same to me鈥� 鈥� but not this time. First impression of this vehicle is a 鈥渨ow.鈥� It鈥檚 a head-turner. I would park and immediately people come up to ask, 鈥淲hat are you driving?鈥�
The aggressive lines and futuristic styling cues on the exterior make this vehicle stand out. The interior is modern, sleek, yet practical. Lots of technology with large easy-to-view touch screens but there are also switches and dials to make us older folks still feel at home.
For the driver, visibility is excellent, front and rear, with a fully adjustable seat and steering wheel anyone can find a perfect driving position.
The interior is spacious with lots of leg and head room, second row seats recline and are very comfortable. My daughter's partner is over six feet tall and he found them to have more than enough room and the third row was surprisingly comfortable. The test vehicle included a sunroof and panoramic moonroof that just added to the feel of spaciousness. There's lots of places to put your stuff, and the storage bin can be accessed from the front or middle seating with a unique lid that flips front to back or vice versa.
For the Generation Ys there's induction phone charging, multiple USB-C ports and cupholders a-plenty, to keep my daughter鈥檚 Double-Shot Gingerbread Frappuccino Extra Hot with Foam Coffee in place.
Cargo space is important even with having a seven-seat configuration. The Santa Fe can handle seven adults seated and still have room for stroller and grocery bags. Access to the third row is easy, even for those in our golden years, with a push button flip-and-fold mechanism. The ability to split the third row 50/50 and the second row 60/40 opens up almost unlimited options for a trip to Home Depot or Costco.
I鈥檝e always preferred cars to SUVs, just because of how they feel on the road to me. We鈥檝e tried a few other mid-size and full-size SUVs without being dazzled. However, what impressed me about the Santa Fe was it drives and feels like a sedan. It handles like a car, it parks like a car, and I found the Hybrid drivetrain smooth, seamless.
The official fuel economy numbers are 6.8/6.9/6.9 L/100kms (city/hwy/combined). Oh, I forgot to mention I cut that back to around 6.2 L/100kms. Thank you, no applause necessary.
It was a thumbs up from everyone, all the boxes were checked 鈥� especially in the amount of space it has relative to its physical footprint. For those familiar with the British sci-fi series Doctor Who, the phrase 鈥淚t鈥檚 bigger on the inside鈥� comes to mind.
The base sticker price plus delivery charges tots up to $43,724. The price of the as tested with the Preferred Trend Package sunroof extras etc. take it to $47,977 plus taxes.
Definitely on the family shopping list for consideration when we replace my wife鈥檚 vehicle. I'm just not sure I want to deal with an adoring public every time I load up the groceries.
