2025 Hyundai Santa Fe

Pros

• Unique Style.
• Spacious interior and luggage area.
• Up to seven people can sit in the standard third row.

Cons

• Buyers from the past might find a moderate design change appealing.

How do you drive a Santa Fe? We got to drive the Santa Fe XRT, which is a little better at going off-road. With its all-wheel drive and 277-horsepower engine, our test model could go from 0 to 60 mph in 7.2 seconds. For a three-row SUV, that is pretty stock. The transmission shifts easily and quickly, but turbo lag makes it harder to get off the line and pass other cars because you have to wait an extra beat for the engine to reach full power. 

When going around bends, the Santa Fe stays poised and steady. Because the test car had all-terrain tires, its emergency stopping distances were much longer than usual. However, the brakes still worked well for smooth stops. Along with the XRT’s higher ride height, these tires will come in handy if you want to drive off-road.

In what way does Santa Fe feel warm? People in the front and second rows of the Santa Fe will be very comfortable. The front seats have just the right amount of side support to keep you in place during turns without making it hard to get in and out. The second row gives you more support and padding. The third row is more comfortable than in some other small SUVs, but it’s best for short trips or kids. 

You can enjoy a smooth ride both in town and on the highway. The XRT can handle bumps better because it has a higher ride height. The off-road tires are to blame for the louder street tires. Even though the Santa Fe looks blocky, which usually makes more wind noise, it didn’t bother us.

How is the inside? Take the Santa Fe, an SUV with two rows of seats and a third row that can be folded down when needed. The column-mounted twisty-knob gear selection is very roomy and easy to use, but it takes some time to get used to. You should be able to quickly get in and adjust the driver’s seat to your liking because the doors open wide.

In the first and second rows, there is enough space and legroom for everyone. The second-row seats can be adjusted for legroom and seatback angle. The third row is meant to be used rarely. As long as the people in the second row are ready to move forward for the sake of everyone else, there is enough headroom. It’s hard to see behind you because the back seats and headrests in the second row are thick. We wish the back views were as nice as the front and sides.

What’s wrong with the tech? The fast 12.3-inch screen is organized in a way that makes sense, with big buttons and clear text. Voice recognition makes it easy to find even street names that are hard to remember, and the built-in guidance system has clear graphics. All types of the Hyundai Santa Fe come with wireless smartphone integration, and it’s easy to set up a smartphone. It’s easy to forget about a linked phone that can be charged wirelessly, like in our car. The sound system in our test Santa Fe made good sound, with clear highs and a strong bass response.

Hyundai’s newest driving assistance technology, Highway Driving Assist, is available on the Santa Fe. It lets you drive hands-free for almost a mile before it tells you to take control of the car again. Even though it’s not self-driving, this is still pretty cool. A button on the steering wheel lets you turn off the strong lane centering that comes with it. A/C that is linked to GPS can slow down for turns while staying the same distance from the car it is tracking. It’s a great car trip when you mix everything.

What’s going on with storage? The Santa Fe’s blocky back form makes the entrance big, wide, and low to the ground. This makes it easy to load and unload big, heavy things. There are 14.6 cubic feet of storage space behind the third seat, which is big enough for a few shopping bags. But if you need to really carry goods, you have to fold down the third row to make room for 40.5 cubic feet. You can save almost 80 cubic feet of space by folding down the second row of seats. If you have electric fold-down second-row seatbacks, it’s even easier. The Santa Fe’s rear roof pillars have built-in grab handles that make it easy to take off cargo boxes, bikes, or boats that are stored on the roof.

Also impressive is the storage for small items, which has way too many bins and boxes. The center console is very smart; it has a big bin in the middle and two rows of wide, flat shelves between the chairs. When you first open the bin, it looks small, but it’s actually a tray. When you take it off, a much bigger storage space below folds out, letting you get to the back. The lid has two handles that let it open to the front or back, making it easy for people in the second row to get to what’s inside. It’s heaven for pack rats.

The Isofix-style pins are more visible than the LATCH points, but you can still use them to keep child seats in place. The top ropes are easy to reach through the hole in the middle of the headrests. A child seat can be installed in almost any space behind the front seats. However, on all trims, there isn’t a top tether in the middle seat of the second row.

How much fuel does it use? The Santa Fe gas tank doesn’t hold a lot, so something has to give to get that 277 horsepower. We did not get 22 miles per gallon, which is what the EPA says the XRT can do. It’s too bad that the off-road XRT trim doesn’t come with the hybrid Santa Fe, which gets much better gas mileage.

Is the Santa Fe a good deal? Some cheaper materials were used, but overall, the quality of the materials and the way they were put together are great. Lower trims, like our XRT test car, don’t have as many nice features as the top-of-the-line calligraphy, but they make up more for it with features like a third row and built-in roof access grab bars.

Like all Hyundai cars, the Santa Fe has the best basic warranty in the business: five years or 60,000 miles. It also has a powertrain warranty that lasts ten years or 100,000 miles, and it comes with three years of free regular servicing.

It’s fun to drive, and Santa Fe almost never has major problems. We think that style can make a difference for many users. Because of the blocky lines, it looks like a more expensive European SUV. Even though some people on our team didn’t like the way the back of the Santa Fe looked, it still made a big impression when we parked it.

The SEL trim is the best deal overall. The base SE trim costs a little more than this one, but only a little more than the Limited and XRT models. There are upgrades available, such as warm front seats, fake leather upholstery, and a digital display that covers the whole car.