Review: 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe 2.0T Ultimate AWD – Part 1
Crossovers/SUVs are all the rage at the moment. And you’d be forgiven if you think that you only have three choices when it comes to size. Which is sub compact, compact, and 7/8 passenger variants. But there is a fourth option which is the mid sized five passenger variant. There’s only a handful of entrants in this space and Hyundai is one of the leaders in that space with the Santa Fe which has been redone for 2019:
I have to admit that it does look very bold. While it does carry over some of the styling cues from the previous Santa Fe, it also has styling cues from the Hyundai Kona. Specifically the front and rear lights. They are arranged like this from the front:
- Top lights: Daytime running lights.
- Center lights: Headlights
- Bottom lights: Foglamps
And from the back:
- Top lights: Brake lights
- Bottom lights Turn signal and backup lights
But unlike the Kona, people who saw the Santa Fe didn’t find the look to be anywhere near as polarizing as the Kona which people either loved the look or hated the look. That’s important as Hyundai really wants to continue to be one of the leaders in the mid-sized crossover/SUV space.
One thing that did stand out for was the design of the 19″ alloy wheels:
I’m not sure why, but I really felt drawn to this wheel design. The same was true with my wife who said the exact same thing,
My review of the 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe 2.0T Ultimate AWD is made up of five parts:
- Exterior
- Engine, transmission, handling, fuel economy, and driving comfort
- Interior
- Technology in the vehicle
- Wrap up
The next part of this review will cover the engine, transmission and driving comfort. There’s a fair amount going on here that I think will appeal to buyers of a vehicle like this. Tune in tomorrow to find out why I say that.
November 26, 2018 at 10:13 am
The 2019 Santa Fe is absolutely my best car ever!
However, there should be a special place in hell reserved for the pointy headed genius at Hyundai who designed the nearly 2 minute remote start! Yup, that’s over 1 1/2 minutes on your iPhone to remote start the car, and it’s longer if the car isn’t already locked.
There is no push button alternative on the key fob.
As winter approaches, I get more annoyed at that designer at Hyundai every day!
Other than that daily irritation, the car is fantastic!
And as usual Hyundai USA has an Apple Watch app for this (probably even slower), but not good old Hyundai Canada.
November 26, 2018 at 10:16 am
I can ask Hyundai Canada about the Apple Watch app. But for what it is worth, I have heard that BMW’s Apple Watch app is extremely slow as well.
November 26, 2018 at 10:19 am
I’ll bet then, that Hyundai Canada is not using it for our own good!
I look forward to seeing if your review has the same issues with the remote start.
November 26, 2018 at 10:22 am
I didn’t test Blue Link at all on the Santa Fe. There’s no quick and dirty way for them to provision it for journalists so that you can use it on a test drive.
January 24, 2019 at 7:22 pm
I spoke to Hyundai about this and they have no plans to bring an Apple Watch app to Canada.
January 25, 2019 at 7:49 am
As you said, I reckon it’d be even slower through a watch!
January 25, 2019 at 7:50 am
BMW has an Apple Watch app and that can take up to five minutes to do anything. So I would agree with that.