2012 Hyundai Santa Fe unveiled

By Tim Beissmann
April 05th, 2012

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The all-new Hyundai Santa Fe has been unveiled at the 2012 New York motor show, surprising the crowds by stepping out in two different body styles.

The conventional Santa Fe was revealed alongside a long-wheelbase version that features seating for seven adults and unique exterior styling.

In the US, the smaller model will be called Santa Fe Sport and the bigger version Santa Fe, while in Europe the smaller model will be called Santa Fe and the larger version Grand Santa Fe.

Hyundai Australia won’t face any naming dilemmas, however, as we will get only the regular, five-seater Santa Fe when the new model arrives later this year. The long-wheelbase variant will be built exclusively in left-hand drive, primarily for the North American market.

The larger Santa Fe replaces the dated Hyundai Veracruz in left-hand drive markets. It will be rolled out through the US in January 2013 and across Europe in the second half of next year.

As it does with the current model, Hyundai Australia will offer the new Santa Fe with a 5+2 seating configuration, which still gives owners the flexibility of seating seven people, although the two rear seats are essentially designed for children only.

In the US, the Santa Fe Sport will come with the option of two four-cylinder petrol engines: a 142kW/245Nm 2.4-litre and a 197kW/365Nm 2.0-litre direct-injection turbo. The larger Santa Fe is fitted exclusively with a 216kW 3.3-litre V6 petrol engine.

Hyundai Australia is yet to announce the powertrains it will offer when it launches the new Santa Fe locally, though a turbo diesel engine would again be expected to be available alongside petrol options.

All three are teamed with a six-speed automatic transmission and are available in either front- or all-wheel drive.

Both models embrace Hyundai’s ‘fluidic sculpture’ design language, sporting hexagonal grilles, wraparound headlights and taillights and a prominent waistline.

The LWB model gets a larger four-slat grille and a more muscular bonnet at the front, and a boxier shape at the rear to provide extra headroom for third-row passengers and more cargo space.

Both models get the same interior look, which Hyundai says has been designed for passenger comfort and functionality. The LWB Santa Fe has an extra 48mm of second-row legroom over the SWB model and an additional 159 litres of boot space.

The regular Santa Fe is 4689mm long and rides on a 2700mm wheelbase – making it 216mm shorter than the LWB Santa Fe, which rides on a 2799mm wheelbase. The new Santa Fe is 29mm longer than the outgoing model.

Both models are equipped with Hyundai’s all-new selectable steering system, which offers three modes – Comfort, Normal and Sport – for drivers to choose from according to their driving preferences and the road conditions. Hyundai says Comfort is perfect for city driving and parking, Normal is good for mixed conditions, and Sport is optimised for high-speed freeways and winding roads.

All models are fitted with seven airbags and electronic stability control, and the larger model adds a blind spot detection system.

Australian specifications and prices will be revealed closer to the Santa Fe’s local launch towards the end of the year.

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Smart Us

nice job… i bet the 7 seater would have have success here… both model looking nice
Guest

The 4th pic looks like a Mazda 5!….. I like it though.
Danen

It’s an improvement on the current model…. starting to look rather dated.
Marcus of Hobart

Nice, but what is it with a lot of car designers these days, they are hell bent on providing massive blind spots around the D & C pillars.
Upyours

Audi Copy. lol.
- Edn
  
  Audi copying Hyundai..
Bachman Turner Overdrive

Fluidic and Tough 4WD go together like a wrestler and a TuTu.
Henry Toussaint

I want the 2.2L Diesel and an AWD V6…
- nickdl
  
  So you want two engines in your car? Interesting…
  - Henry Toussaint
    
    Haha, I’m confused though. Which one are we getting, the 1st and 3rd photo one, or the 2nd and 4th photo one????
    - nickdl
      
      1st and 3rd one looks smaller, so I’d say it would be that one.
      - Sumpguard
        
        Yeah it is. The one with the upswept rear side glass is ours.
      - Rick
        
        Sorry guys the one we are getting is in the 2nd and 4th one , not the one with the upswept window it is only available with 5 seats and is called the Santa fe sports the other one is the one with the 5+2 seating
    - craig
      
      We get the 1st and 3rd photos (the smaller model). The other one is bigger.
      - Rick
        
        But the according to the reports from the U.S the smaller one isn’t available with seven seats , and want be due to crash safety regs , so does ths mean that we aren’t getting the 7 seat model ?
      - craig
        
        We get the smaller 5 seat model (1st and 3rd photos) but with a +2 smallish seating arrangement in the 3rd row. The other model is longer and has a proper 3rd row because of the extra length, but is only left hand drive.
ichisaurus

What’s the point of downsizing the 2.2? The car has grown in size but decreased in power. This makes no sense
- Tangelo
  
  Current 2.2L R diesel won’t pass future Euro6 emission.
  So they made new Euro6 R2.0L engine.
  (Well, actually Bosch made new injector for them) and output would be around 110kW and 382.5Nm of torque…still not too bad.
auto

the high rising rear doors and rear panel will be a dangerous blind spot.It’s a big boo boo.The lwb is the winner here but guess what,Australia miss out getting this one. We always get the c##p. Anoth er step backwards for Australia.
- Adelaide
  
  and are a pain for the kids to see out of. Like our IX35, which my 5 year old HATES as he’s a short and can’t see out the window
nickdl

So is the Santa Fe that we’re getting going to be smaller than the outgoing one?
http://twitter.com/klowik klowik

They should bring the 7-seat here. At the moment there is no real competition to Toyota Kluger in the space of $40-60k range 7-seat SUV.
- Dudeface
  
  Erm, except the best selling Territory?
- Taranaki Dave
  
  Not forget the outstanding Kia Sorento.
- Bayman
  
  The Captiva 7 is more competition than the fuel-guzzling Kluger can handle
  - Damian
    
    Notwithstanding all the problems that owners have been having with the electronics and airconditioning.
    - Troy
      
      and plumes of diesel smoke coming from them, have seen two now with the back covered in soot.
      
      no thanks!
Weatherbey

I like the look of the new Santa Fe. But then I’m biased. It reminds me so much of my Q5 which I also like the look of.
MisterZed

I don’t like the rear of the LWB 7-seater model. It actually looks a lot like the old Veracruz!
- James Smith
  
  asdfasdf
  - MisterZed
    
    Are you feeling alright?
Rick

Hope it’s still got a manual gearbox available and preferably in the up spec models not just the base
Sumpguard

I reckon Hyundai would sell the 7 seater if they brought it here. Anyway, another great looking car. Winner!!
Gus

Nice departure from the current “Pajero” shape… hope rumours are correct regarding the release of the improved 165kW/500Nm 2.2L Turbo Diesel
Hemanth_mk2000

I wonder when this gonna release in australia?
Des KSA

As long as the price is right then I have found my next new car. I really like the SWB one, not so keen on the LWB anyway. At least the SWB will still have 7 seats, even if they are only for kids.
lazyboneslewis

Nice designs, clearly they have tweaked the LWB model for the US Market. I don’t understand why the SWB version still can’t have the same 7 seat option the existing model has. Especially when you consider that its bigger. I guess I’ll be looking elsewhere when my Santa Fe comes to the end of its lease.
Des KSA

It does have 7 seats.

“As it does with the current model, Hyundai Australia will offer the new
Santa Fe with a 5+2 seating configuration, which still gives owners the
flexibility of seating seven people, although the two rear seats are
essentially designed for children only.”
WayneTSV

Stunning. Hyundai’s bid for the hearts and minds of consumers keeps getting stronger.
Nada

KIA meets Subi Tirbeca. Nice none the less.
Entropy

“The larger Santa Fe replaces the dated Hyundai Veracruz in left-hand drive markets. It will be rolled out through the US in January 2013 and across Europe in the second half of next year.As it does with the current model, Hyundai Australia will offer the new Santa Fe with a 5+2 seating configuration, which still gives owners the flexibility of seating seven people, although the two rear seats are essentially designed for children only.”Noooooooo!I wanted the extra boot space and real third row of the LWB. I have the current santa, and its only shortcoming is not enough storage behind the third row (well, that and only 150 kg on the ball). The LWB ticked the boxes for my next car. What decent diesel with more car like handling is there with reasonable capacity behind the third row? Territory? Or do I wait on the next CX90 and shell out the extra dollars?
- Ben
  
  Ditto, I too have the current Diesel Santa Fe and have 4 children. I was VERY excited when I heard about the posibility of a Diesel LWB 7 seater as luggage space behind the 3rd row is limited. Now not very happy after reading this article!!! I am waiting for info/specs about the new Nissan Pathfinder to surface. Either that or a thirsty CX-9. Kluger’s 40/20/40 2nd row seat config is a bad design for seating 3 people across. Territory’s solid 3rd row seat is a joke if you only want to put one child in the back!!!!!! I hope the manufacturer’s are reading these comments but I doubt it.
  - Btgil
    
    I think Mitsubishi Delica D5 will suit you, but unfortunately I haven’t seen it here yet. Only older model Delicas.
Sdlpoiter

well i hope they have worked out the awd setup up on the new model i got out of my vw jetta as it was too low on unsealed roads and thought the FE would be great on the dirt but i have found the vw front steerer handled the dirt a hell of a lot better than the supposed awd sante fe
m2m

Saw a test-mule today, was production ready but fully camouflaged! looked great from what i saw!
Parma&Pot….

Best looking Hyundai ever…..
ME like da kimchee

Now hyundai just needs to enter V8 supercars and their street cred might slowly creep up….and release a v8 sports car might help aswell!
Sarakoth

So anyone seen possible release dates yet?
Mjtschumps

Looks just like the 2012 Kia Sportage which I just bought. If only the new Santa Fe was out now and I had another 10 k ……..

I need a pay rise.

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2012 Hyundai Santa Fe unveiled

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