HYUNDAI ALL-NEW SANTA FE

In most ways the Santa Fe has the feel of a proper luxury car. The steering wheel is thick and padded, and the steering feel itself is effortlessly light. The driver’s seat ha... Read more

In most ways the Santa Fe has the feel of a proper luxury car. The steering wheel is thick and padded, and the steering feel itself is effortlessly light. The driver’s seat has masses of space around it and sits you taller than a Crufts-winning Great Dane, and both the ride and refinement are top-notch. It rolls over the road with a quiet sophistication, with very little of the noise of the outside world breaking the seal of the cabin. The engine is the only minor letdown in context. Accelerate hard in either the hybrid or the PHEV, and the vaguely gruff character of the 1.6 turbo petrol engine exposes the Santa Fe as a mid-level SUV. The cabin ambience is quite colour dependent too; the busy dashboard design looks and feels much better in a light colour than in a dark one. Regardless, the amount of space afforded to middle-row rear passengers, combined with the soft ride quality, makes this a brilliant passenger car for adults or kids. There’s even a six-seat option with two full-sized chairs in the middle. And although, as usual, the rearmost seats are on the tight side for people with limbs, the sheer scale and box Read less