Bussiness
I drove Hyundai’s rugged new $40,000 family SUV. It’s packed with useful tech but rough around the edges
- The Hyundai Santa Fe is a three-row mid-size family SUV that’s all-new 2024.
- I enjoyed its rugged looks, strong tech content, and functional interior.
- I was disappointed by its laggy power delivery, excessive road noise, and intrusive safety tech.
Hyundai’s lineup of crossovers and SUVs is pretty extensive these days, running from the subcompact Venue and Kona at the bottom to the range-topping Palisade, with the top-selling Tuscon sitting squarely in the middle.
But that’s not all.
Squeezed in between the compact Tucson and the midsize Palisade is the Santa Fe.
In years past, the SUV offered consumers a stylish midsize crossover for those who wanted something bigger than the Tucson but without the Palisade’s third-row (or higher price tag.)
In 2024, however, it got a major makeover featuring rugged looks, new tech, and room for seven passengers. The new model bears zero resemblance to its predecessor. If this were an episode of the Maury Show, there would have to be a paternity test.