I drove a base model Santa Fe Sport for a day and only the steering did not meet my expectations. The ergonomics, the dash layout, the posture in seat all worked very well. The sheer space and organizational options all were far superiour to my expectations. This is a vehicle that left me impressed.
We bought a 2015 Santa Fe Sport 2.0t after looking at the Suburu Outback, Mazda CX5, Honda CRV, Venza, Edge and the Murano. None of the others came close to the value, quality, features and warranty that the Hyundai offers. We love our car and it has some high end features that aren't even available on the other models. The turbo feels like a v6 but with better fuel economy and it has a ton of room. We'll probably buy another one in 7 or 8 years. Great job Hyundai!
I did that comparison too and ended up with a Santa Fe. Great vehicle very easy to work on for a DIY guy. Thanks Hyundai for such a great vehicle. Looking forward in owning another Hyundai in the near future
I feel I should share your reviews with the dealerships, so they can train their employees! i am currently searching for a new vehicle and your reviews have been so helpful and contain so much information! Thank you.
Alex, this is a BOSS review. Congrats you are the best reviewer on TH-cam. Please review the 2015 Subaru Legacy - Limited. Winter is coming, its an all wheel drive and the gas mileage is very good with the 2.5i. I wonder how you would rate the power and comfort. Thank you
Alex, great review, as always. If only you could find a way to mount the camera to show the driver's point of view instead of just the road and the hood (which is kind of uninformative). May be somewhere in between first row sits, so that the center console and the steering wheel could be seeing while you are driving.
Great idea to compare Santa Fe gen 3 to its competitors available. About the cabin noise I’m a little bit confused because other reviewers found the Santa Fe to be noisy but for me it’s quiet especially if you’re driving on a highway with high speed.
Hi Alex - seems like the Santa Fe Sport compares closely with the new Lexus NX...i.e., 2.0 Turbos, loads of features, etc... After spending time with both, let me know how you think they compare. Ride, comfort, features, etc. Thanks!
Waiting for the "Santa Fe" review. I noticed that you "heartily" recommended the MKZ. Is there any other vehicle you would heartily recommend? Noticed a typo in the title. "SportDetailed"
looks like a Good Vehicle for the price, just wish it had better fuel economy. Alex you might try driving with Google Glass ,i've seen it used to show better driver point of view , when driving , not a fan of it ,but in vehicle reviews it shines. Thanks for another great review ! Joe
Thank you Alex. Have you driven the Honda Crosstour? I test drove one yesterday, and despite its oddities, the v6 AWD handled beautifully. Considering the Santa Fe and Crosstour among others. Thoughts on the Crosstour?
Kevin Ahearn That is one of the few cars I have not driven actually. It has always struck me as too much of a compromise, it's big on the outside but not terribly large on the inside. The new Murano seems to take that style and do something more practical with it.
Hmm... Curious if you'd still consider the newer model years of the Santa Fe Sport a better handler now. It looks like from 2017 on, they changed the tuning of the engine for a broader torque band and less peak power, but added a bunch of passive safety tech and changed suspension among other things, so it's gained about 400 lbs from the previous years. The 2.0T Santa Fe Sport now weighs about the same as the V6 Kia Sorento.
Reliability has been about equal for both, the Escape has more complaints about the infotainment system than the Hyundai and the Hyundai has a longer warranty on the drivetrain.
gilheart I found the Rogue to be a bit more comfortable and the CVT will likely give you the best fuel economy on long trips. Nissan reliability has been similar to Hyundai in general.
Alex on Autos Thank You, We are also considering the Nissan Rouge but we're not sure how the CVT works if it's good or bad (loud) . Also how's the Nissan rouge in terms of comfortability, cabin noise and suspension compared to Hyundai Sta fe sport and Ford Escape. I really like your channel, great help for shopper like me. Sorry for my bad English :)
Excellent, just excellent. Thank you. Would really be interested in more comparisons b/w the Kia Sorento and this Santa Fe, especially b/c they seem to share so many similarities. They are of course less so for 2013/14 but they are in the same class etc... Oh and please, if you find the time, a review for the Child Seats in a Sorento. Cheers
Alex on Autos Very interesting. I'll take a look at some of the videos on the '16 CX-5 today. Thank you for your insight. Keep up the outstanding work! One quick '16 CX-5 question: do you know if the rear turn signals are red or yellow. For some reason, I don't care for red signals as the sun glare prevents (some of) them from being seen properly by rear drivers.
I have 2014 Santa Fe XL (6 seats version), as I know it has the same variable steering system. It is very unconnected feel and continuously adjust to drive straight!! Horrible...
I've driven Santa Fe sport 2 times, as a rental vehicle, it is quiet at low speeds, but I was disappointed with noise at highway speed! So much wind noise, around the front driver and passenger windows!
Just drove this today out on the highway. It was a windy day, but man I had to up the sound volume to hear the music thanks to an increasing amount of wind noise. Road noise is very well subdued. Wondering how that did not show up on Alex' measurement.
Daniel Towle I think they do that largely to say "hey, you can get a bigger crossover for not too much more than a CR-V" Also, Honda doesn't have a mid-size 2-row crossover to compare it against aside from the Acura RDX. The Pilot is one step larger and the CR-V is one step smaller. It's about the size of the Edge, Venza, Grand Cherokee, Terrain and Equinox.
Unfortunately I do not personally find this a great value. I believe that this should be priced a little less than the Honda CR-V because isn't Hyundai supposed to be a value brand? I find a value as something that is cheap. I know that they have the Tucson but that doesn't do it for me, it looks like something that would compete with the Nissan Juke, it's just to small. I think that this car should start at around $21,000. Why would I chose this over something else?
I drove a base model Santa Fe Sport for a day and only the steering did not meet my expectations. The ergonomics, the dash layout, the posture in seat all worked very well.
The sheer space and organizational options all were far superiour to my expectations.
This is a vehicle that left me impressed.
We bought a 2015 Santa Fe Sport 2.0t after looking at the Suburu Outback, Mazda CX5, Honda CRV, Venza, Edge and the Murano. None of the others came close to the value, quality, features and warranty that the Hyundai offers. We love our car and it has some high end features that aren't even available on the other models. The turbo feels like a v6 but with better fuel economy and it has a ton of room. We'll probably buy another one in 7 or 8 years. Great job Hyundai!
Darrel Peters how’s your fuel economy?
I did that comparison too and ended up with a Santa Fe. Great vehicle very easy to work on for a DIY guy. Thanks Hyundai for such a great vehicle. Looking forward in owning another Hyundai in the near future
I feel I should share your reviews with the dealerships, so they can train their employees! i am currently searching for a new vehicle and your reviews have been so helpful and contain so much information! Thank you.
Alex, this is a BOSS review. Congrats you are the best reviewer on TH-cam.
Please review the 2015 Subaru Legacy - Limited. Winter is coming, its an all wheel drive and the gas mileage is very good with the 2.5i. I wonder how you would rate the power and comfort. Thank you
I just bought a 2014 Hyundai santafa sport I love it.
Same it’s impressively comfortable and so much room
How about the 2016 Sante Fe Sport vs. the new Murano? I guess the Murano has the nicer interior but how does the drive compare?
Alex, great review, as always. If only you could find a way to mount the camera to show the driver's point of view instead of just the road and the hood (which is kind of uninformative). May be somewhere in between first row sits, so that the center console and the steering wheel could be seeing while you are driving.
Now that is very fair comment about the steering variables, which a lot of consumers fail to realize.
Great idea to compare Santa Fe gen 3 to its competitors available. About the cabin noise I’m a little bit confused because other reviewers found the Santa Fe to be noisy but for me it’s quiet especially if you’re driving on a highway with high speed.
Hi Alex - seems like the Santa Fe Sport compares closely with the new Lexus NX...i.e., 2.0 Turbos, loads of features, etc...
After spending time with both, let me know how you think they compare. Ride, comfort, features, etc. Thanks!
I'd have a problem picking it over RX350, and the price is not that far off.
How is it compared to Ford Edge 2016 cabin noise?
Love the Hyundai Santa fe
What about the Nissan Murano?
Waiting for the "Santa Fe" review. I noticed that you "heartily" recommended the MKZ. Is there any other vehicle you would heartily recommend? Noticed a typo in the title. "SportDetailed"
Thanks for letting me know! I have a listing of my top cars for 2014 over at alexonautos.com/best-cars-in-2014/
Alex on Autos can't find this link for your list of best cars from 2014
looks like a Good Vehicle for the price, just wish it had better fuel economy. Alex you might try driving with Google Glass ,i've seen it used to show better driver point of view , when driving , not a fan of it ,but in vehicle reviews it shines.
Thanks for another great review !
Joe
Alex, great review. Does the 2014 Santa Fe come with a spare tire?
Yes, it is a compact temporary spare.
Thank you Alex. Have you driven the Honda Crosstour? I test drove one yesterday, and despite its oddities, the v6 AWD handled beautifully. Considering the Santa Fe and Crosstour among others. Thoughts on the Crosstour?
Kevin Ahearn
That is one of the few cars I have not driven actually. It has always struck me as too much of a compromise, it's big on the outside but not terribly large on the inside. The new Murano seems to take that style and do something more practical with it.
Hmm... Curious if you'd still consider the newer model years of the Santa Fe Sport a better handler now. It looks like from 2017 on, they changed the tuning of the engine for a broader torque band and less peak power, but added a bunch of passive safety tech and changed suspension among other things, so it's gained about 400 lbs from the previous years. The 2.0T Santa Fe Sport now weighs about the same as the V6 Kia Sorento.
great review Alex, I'm struggling which one to get The ford escape or the Hyundai Sta fe sport? Also which one is more realible?
Reliability has been about equal for both, the Escape has more complaints about the infotainment system than the Hyundai and the Hyundai has a longer warranty on the drivetrain.
gilheart
I found the Rogue to be a bit more comfortable and the CVT will likely give you the best fuel economy on long trips. Nissan reliability has been similar to Hyundai in general.
Alex on Autos Thank You, We are also considering the Nissan Rouge but we're not sure how the CVT works if it's good or bad (loud) . Also how's the Nissan rouge in terms of comfortability, cabin noise and suspension compared to Hyundai Sta fe sport and Ford Escape. I really like your channel, great help for shopper like me. Sorry for my bad English :)
Alex on Autos
Thanks so much, I'm gonna test drive Nissan Rouge this weekend.
FORD
Fix Or Repair Daily
LOL
Excellent, just excellent. Thank you. Would really be interested in more comparisons b/w the Kia Sorento and this Santa Fe, especially b/c they seem to share so many similarities. They are of course less so for 2013/14 but they are in the same class etc... Oh and please, if you find the time, a review for the Child Seats in a Sorento. Cheers
Alex- would you choose a '15 Santa Fe Sport or '15 CX-5?
I think I'd do the 2015 Santa Fe Sport but the 2016 CX-5 thanks to Mazda's new infotainment systems.
Alex on Autos Very interesting. I'll take a look at some of the videos on the '16 CX-5 today. Thank you for your insight. Keep up the outstanding work!
One quick '16 CX-5 question: do you know if the rear turn signals are red or yellow. For some reason, I don't care for red signals as the sun glare prevents (some of) them from being seen properly by rear drivers.
Love it so much
I have 2014 Santa Fe XL (6 seats version), as I know it has the same variable steering system. It is very unconnected feel and continuously adjust to drive straight!! Horrible...
shinkum1 And this isn't that vehicle, so your point is irrelevant.
I've driven Santa Fe sport 2 times, as a rental vehicle, it is quiet at low speeds, but I was disappointed with noise at highway speed! So much wind noise, around the front driver and passenger windows!
Just drove this today out on the highway. It was a windy day, but man I had to up the sound volume to hear the music thanks to an increasing amount of wind noise. Road noise is very well subdued. Wondering how that did not show up on Alex' measurement.
It's not in the same class as CR-V. It's one class bigger.
So then why do they compare it on Hyundai's website to the Honda CR-V?
Daniel Towle I think they do that largely to say "hey, you can get a bigger crossover for not too much more than a CR-V" Also, Honda doesn't have a mid-size 2-row crossover to compare it against aside from the Acura RDX. The Pilot is one step larger and the CR-V is one step smaller. It's about the size of the Edge, Venza, Grand Cherokee, Terrain and Equinox.
Daniel Towle Those two were put together since they're priced almost the same.
Unfortunately I do not personally find this a great value. I believe that this should be priced a little less than the Honda CR-V because isn't Hyundai supposed to be a value brand? I find a value as something that is cheap. I know that they have the Tucson but that doesn't do it for me, it looks like something that would compete with the Nissan Juke, it's just to small. I think that this car should start at around $21,000. Why would I chose this over something else?