Hyundai Santa Fe: Australian prices and specifications

By Tim Beissmann
August 31st, 2012

FIND DEALS

Hyundai Australia has revealed the full specifications and prices of the all-new Hyundai Santa Fe ahead of the seven-seat SUV’s local launch in September.

The third-generation Hyundai Santa Fe retains its $36,990 starting price despite the base model’s shift from a front-wheel drive, V6 petrol arrangement to a four-wheel drive, four-cylinder combo. The price of the top-spec Santa Fe Highlander diesel has risen $1500, and now comes in at $49,990 before on-road costs.

The Santa Fe’s new 2.4-litre direct-injection petrol engine produces 141kW of power and 242Nm of torque. Although it’s 63kW/93Nm shy of the old model’s 3.5-litre V6, the smaller engine is around seven per cent more efficient, using 9.0 litres of fuel per 100km on the combined cycle when teamed with either the six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmissions.

The smaller petrol gives away nothing to the V6 or the diesel in terms of towing capacity, however, with all models in the new range rated at 750kg unbraked and 2000kg braked (2500kg for manual variants).

The 2.2-litre four-cylinder diesel engine carries over unchanged into the new model, producing 145kW of power, 421Nm of torque when paired with the manual and 436Nm teamed with the auto.

Fuel consumption is down marginally to 6.6L/100km for the manual and 7.3L/100km for the auto.

At 4690mm long, 1880mm wide, 1690mm tall and riding on a 2700mm wheelbase, the new Hyundai Santa Fe is 30mm longer, 10mm narrower and 35mm lower than the model it replaces. The cargo volume is now 516 litres, and expands to 1615 litres with the second- and third-row seats folded forward.

The entry-level Santa Fe, now called the Active, is the only variant available with the full selection of powertrains.

It comes standard with 17-inch alloy wheels (with full-size spare), roof rails, automatic headlights, reverse parking sensors and rear-view camera, and a six-speaker audio system with a 4.3-inch touchscreen, USB input and Bluetooth phone connectivity with audio streaming.

The mid-spec Elite and top-grade Highlander are available only in diesel auto specification.

Commanding a $4000 premium over the mechanically equivalent Active, the Santa Fe Elite adds 18-inch alloy wheels, chrome radiator grille, stainless steel scuff plates, heated and folding side mirrors, rain-sensing wipers, tinted rear windows, proximity key with push-button start, climate control, leather upholstery, chilled glove box, seven-inch touchscreen with satellite navigation with SUNA live traffic information, and a premium audio system with six speakers, two tweeters, centre speaker, subwoofer and amplifier.

Another $4000 buys the Santa Fe Highlander, which scores 19-inch alloy wheels, panoramic glass sunroof, xenon headlamps and LED tail-lights, auto-dipping side mirrors, driver’s seat memory settings, electric passenger seat and front seat warmers.

All variants are fitted with a comprehensive safety package that includes seven airbags (dual front, side, curtain and driver’s knee), electronic stability control, hill-start assist and downhill brake control.

Like all new Hyundais, the Santa Fe is covered by a five-year unlimited kilometre warranty and the brand’s three-year capped-price servicing program.

Hyundai Santa Fe manufacturer’s list price:

Active petrol manual – $36,990
Active petrol auto – $38,990
Active diesel manual – $39,990
Active diesel auto – $41,990
Elite diesel auto – $45,990
Highlander diesel auto – $49,990

Note: Overseas model shown.

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A_A

Ouch to the Territory :-/
- gfys
  
  Really? That four cylinder will be anemic, look at the size of the thing! I have no doubt it will sell, but not in a quantity that will kill the Territory
  - Kampfer
    
    Anemic with 145kW/436Nm? 7.3L/100km for the auto is pretty good for it size.
    - Zaccy16
      
      Gfys doesn’t mean that the diesel he means the petrol 4cyl
      - Kampfer
        
        Oh, my bad. With only $3k different I don’t think anyone will ever consider the petrol.
        
        How much is Territory diesel starting at?
      - Kampfer
        
        Just done a quick Carsales search… Territory diesel auto: ~$40k drive-away for RWD and ~$43k drive-away for AWD. Choosing between them will be close call I’d say.
      - Zaccy16
        
        Yeah a very hard choice, who would by the rubbish petrol 4cyl?
  - Alpha
    
    The Hyundai Santa Fe, which is powered by a 2.2-litre four-cylinder
    diesel engine that produces 145kW and 436Nm of torque (7.3L/100km for the auto) compared with the
    Territory’s 140kW and 440Nm (combined ADR figure of 9L/100km).
    Territory is renown for it’s terrible turbo lag. Santa Fe almost none.
    Apart from using less fuel the Santa also is cheaper to register with 4 cylinders as opposed to the Terry’s 6.
    I like the Terry (apart from no split fold 3rd row – just dumb, Ford!) but don’t think it really has much on the Santa. Now if Ford could fix the 3rd row and get that 3L turbo diesel from Landrover it would probably be a different story. Sadly we all know that aint gonna happen!
    - nickdl
      
      Turbo lag gets much better as the engine is run in and you become accustomed to it. The new Santa Fe is much smaller than the Territory and therefore more of a competitor to the Captiva.
      - F1
        
        The Hyundai Sonata 2.0t and Hyundai’s 2.0t engine is a very impressive piece..
        
        Essentially, Hyundai Sonata’s twin-scroll turbo directs even more air into the engine while a compressor increases the pressure entering the cylinder. This allows the air entering the cylinder to be even more densely packed for higher compression and better performance, contributing to a more-efficient burn and fuel efficiency.
        
        Two key features of Hyundai’s twin-scroll turbocharger setup are:
        
        The stainless steel exhaust manifold and the twin-scroll turbine housing are cast in a patent pending one-piece design
        The waste-gate for the turbocharger uses a motor-driven electrical controller instead of being mechanically controlled
        Thanks to the integrated stainless-steel turbine housing with the exhaust manifold, not only is the weight and cost of the casting dramatically reduced, the durability of the turbine housing is also improved.
        
        By adapting the motor-driven electrical waste-gate, the boost pressure is precisely controlled. The back pressure is reduced when turbo boost is not necessary by opening the waste-gate, which improves fuel efficiency. In addition, during cold starts, the waste-gate remains open which results in faster catalyst light-off for reduced exhaust emissions.
        
        The Theta-II engine has superior NVH, class leading efficiency, reliability & performance..
        
        It’s much better then all the european engine of the same size
        
        Another indication that the Hyundai juguarnut is closer to world domination thanks to their superior engineering, reliability, quality, technology and value..
      - Phil
        
        You are really not with it.
        
        1. Nickdl and Alpha are talking about turbo DIESEL engines, the one your rattling on about is a petrol only and isn’t even avaliable in this country.
        
        2. This article – and the people your replying to – are talking about the Territory and Hyundai SANTA FE, not the Hyundai Sonata.
        
        Are you even able to tell the difference?
      - Zaccy16
        
        Oh really! Hyundai are still not quite there yet
- Aussie
  
  New santa has been reduced to 100Kg max ball weight for towing and fuel tank is down to 64L.
  Just lost the sale Hyundai……….
  I hope Kia sort these bugs out when they release the new Sorento.
MisterZed

Yikes.. $38,990 for a 2.4L SUV? The old (old) Santa Fe used to cost only $32,990 and that was for a 2.7L V6 (roughly equal output to the new 2.4L).
- Larry
  
  Well, this car is a significant step up from the old (old) Santa Fe.
  - MisterZed
    
    So how come a Jeep Grand Cherokee is cheaper now than it was 7 years ago? Why is a CR-V cheaper now than 7 years ago? Yet Santa Fe has increased 6 grand (or 18%) in 7 years?
    - Sumpguard
      
         In the cherokee’s case it is due to the exchange rate. Several years ago when the Aussie dollar was sitting at 70 cents USA it was much more expensive to land them here. To most people this is obvious!
      
         In the Honda’s case like some ofthe other Jap brands they were too dear to begin with and were pricing themselves out of the market against the Koreans and more recently cars from Europe. So they are cutting their prices to try to slow the onslaught. The CR-V is a pretty ordinary vehicle and not what we expected of Honda a decade ago. They were once the leaders of innovation in Japan. Everything they touched was launched with fanfare. Not so much these days?
      
      
         In Hyundai’s case they are improving with every update, adding more equipment and more importantly are growing faster than any other manufacturer so they are able to enjoy a higher profit margin.
      
             That’s basic business sense.
      
         Hyundai were smart to offer a 2,500kg towing capacity for the manual as these are used to tow vans by plenty of buyers.
      - Rick
        
        Shame they only offer the manual in base form , guess I’ll have to wait for the next trail edition
      - MisterZed
        
        Except Cherokees used to be imported from Austria, so the US exchange rate was rather irrelevant. Of course, now they are all imported from the US.
      - Sumpguard
        
        From Wiki,
        
        The Grand Cherokee debuted in grand fashion at the January 1992 North American motor Show in Detroit Michigan. Then Chrysler president Robert Lutz drove Detroit mayor, Coleman Young, up the steps of Cobo Hall and through a plate glass window to show off the new vehicle. Sales of the 1993 model year Grand Cherokee began in April 1992.[6]
        Production of the Grand Cherokee started shortly afterward in the purpose-built Jefferson North Assembly in Detroit, Michigan, United States. European Grand Cherokees are manufactured in Austria by Magna Styr
        
        Note “Are”. Point is mute. The Aussie dollar was weak against both currencies as they are tied. it still has everything to do with the exchange rate.
        
        WG and WJ were made in Austria up to 2005.
    - gasman
      
      CR-V is also made in Thailand, where Australia has a Free Trade Agreement. No doubt this will help bring back costs. Even though the CR-V is one if the better urban SUV’s, Honda’s market share has been decreasing, hence the price drops across the board in their product range. Simple case of supply versus demand
- F1
  
  2.7 V6 are useless..
  
  3.5 are good.
Kev5

Looks Gooood! But will it perform as good as Territory? CA have you done a road test?
- http://www.caradvice.com.au/ Alborz Fallah
  
  We drove it in Korea – but not the AUS spec: http://www.caradvice.com.au/170970/hyundai-santa-fe-review/
- http://www.caradvice.com.au/ Alborz Fallah
  
  We drove it in Korea – but not the AUS spec: http://www.caradvice.com.au/170970/hyundai-santa-fe-review/
- http://www.caradvice.com.au/ Alborz Fallah
  
  We drove it in Korea – but not the AUS spec: http://www.caradvice.com.au/170970/hyundai-santa-fe-review/
- F1
  
  HAhahaaa the Territory is hardly a perormance benchmark
  
  it’s heavy, useless, ugly, slow, gas guzzler, cheap quality interior, ugly interior, extremely ugly exterior, cheap exterior, horrible paint quality and the list goes on and on
  
  and to top that of its a FORD, no one wants a ford and this is evident with Ford’s dwindling sales numbers
  - Repo
    
    A Ford still looks good and isn’t falling apart after 5 years as a Hyundai or other asian/thai built SUV does and as you’ll see on the roads there are more Territorys towing trailers etc than any other cheaper priced SUV because of their capability of doing just that, so that must be saying something. Don’t be narrow minded and shut down a vehicle because of it’s badge!
  - Phil
    
    F1, the Territory has a 195KW/390NM engine vs 141KW/242NM in this new Santa Fe.
    I think you’ll find the performance benchmark between the two would easily go to the Ford.
  - Phil
    
    F1, the Territory has a 195KW/390NM engine vs 141KW/242NM in this new Santa Fe.
    I think you’ll find the performance benchmark between the two would easily go to the Ford.
Robin_Graves

I really like the look of this new Santa Fe but the 2.4lt petrol is way too weak for a car of this size, it should have the turbo petrol that North America get. No sign of the Twin turbo R series diesel that was speculated either. Front seat cooling would be nice as well.
- Legnab
  
  Better than a territory with its collapsing front end , ball joints anyone .
  - Troll No. 47
    
    Stupid comment from a stupid person, the Territory ball joint issue was fixed 3 years ago. Clown
Basil Exposition

I hope there is no DPF fitted to the diesel.
- MK
  
  Why not?
  - Basil Exposition
    
    DPFs clog if you drive in the city a lot, they aren’t warranted and Hyundai will charge you $9k for one.
    - Robin_Graves
      
      They self-regenerate you fool. If you ignore the ‘idiot’ light on the dash and don’t bother to read the handbook then you kinda deserve the bill for a new DPF
      - Nobody
        
        BMW states that their DPF’s are maintainence free..
      - Nobody
        
        BMW states that their DPF’s are maintainence free..
      - Legnab
        
        But its not a ford bobbin , why are you even commenting .
      - Basil Exposition
        
        I know that you buffoon.., clearly you failed comprehension at school.
Zaccy16

Looks better but in the real world the v6 might be more economical because it is not as strained as the 2.4
Schn

Even though the rear kind of reminds me of an Audi Q7, I think they’ve executed the design of this car quite well. Isn’t there a 2.0 turbo version as well?
Bc

Seems to me Hyundai are trying to become way to European even the pricing which made there cars second guess going to other brands is becoming a joke now at 45-50k for the model you want is in territory grand Cherokee etc pricing.
craig

On the Hyundai website it says 1,968kg for the top of the line diesel automatic. That is about the same as the previous model, no wonder the fuel use has barely reduced. Nearly 2 tonnes for a mid sized SUV seems about 200kg too much. They have spent their time improving the design and creating a nicer interior but with no apparent intent to find lighter, higher tech materials to reduce weight.
- Nobody
  
  What do you expect when Americans are involved.
F1

That’s a nice car!!

I hope Hyundai becomes #1 they deserve it..

Just like how Samsung S3 destroys Apple and their iPhone so bad that apple needs to prevent it from being sold because they know the iPhone 5 will not be able to exceed the Galaxy S3..!
- Basil Exposition
  
  The Galaxy 3 makes the iPhone look like yesterday’s hero. The new Fe looks the business… There go the sales for the Territory!
- N009
  
  The Samsung Galaxy S3 isn’t an IPhone killer
  
  - But an iPhone(5) killer !!
Guest

tbh would rather spend 50k on highlander santa fe than a top spec sportage. … much more value for money! bigger car!!
- F1
  
  I thought the Sorento was more of the competitor for Santa Fe than Sportage..
  - MattW
    
    Yep Sorento / Santa Fe, as are Sportage / ix35
Red

I feel sorry for all the people who bought Audi Q SUVs for their design. Pretty soon they won’t be looking as unique on the roads.
- F1
  
  This looks 1000X better than any Audi SUV.. And it is better..
  - Noddy of Toyland
    
    Oh dear…
  - jekyl & hyde
    
    wtf…
Vins

Finally, a very good looking Santa Fe
Jack

I don’t like the design, the new Sorento is mechanically the same (the price too), i’d go Sorento
MattW

From the pics anyway, that’s a good looking vehicle
Robbo Turner

It’s a shame the auto box can’t tow as much as the manual as it would suit a lot of grey nomads in diesel guise.
Des KSA

Love the car, hate the price. Considering the Poms pay around $32000 (when adjusted from UK taxes/tariffs of 30% to Oz taxes/tariffs of 15%) for the 2.2 diesel (old) model over there in RH drive it does make you feel you are getting ripped off (again). By the way, the UK may be a bigger market than Oz but Hyundai sell more vehicles in Oz than they do in the UK. (Badge snobbery is big there). Come on Hyundai stop ripping us off.
ABCDEFG

$26,990 D/A for any model is more like it.
- Sumoisadog
  
  Looks good for a Hyundai – i am sure that Samsung fans will buy plenty – best part about it is that it has a great new and improved dashboard which can hold more then a 100 dolls -)
  - Basil Exposition
    
    Classic!
Xris

I had a drive in the Veloster Turbo an it was fantastic!

The car is pretty quick from a stop, it just picks up speed without much hassle, you step on it and your already doing 100km/h

The transmission is also excellent, so seamless you just don’t notice it

An the car was so quiet, you can’t hear the engine or anything feels like a more expensive car and the quality of the interior was superb very comfortable, beautiful aesthetics and quality

I think Hyundai is surely on their way to world domination and everyone should be worried
Wcoast

Looking at the Hyundai USA website, the new Santa-fe is looking for very indeed

It’ll sell extremely well in USA and will be either first or second in segment in Canada.

I don’t know how well it’ll perform in Australia
Brienfda

Wow the new Santa Fe is looking very good

but why dont australia get the very good 2.0t engine???
- MattW
  
  Isn’t engineered to fit into RHD vehicles. The UK has been asking for it as well
  - F1
    
    Yeah i guess RHD market’s don’t have enough sales numbers for Hyundai to justify the 2.0t
DDbd

Hyundai just get’s better and better, don’t they.

I find it very ironic that Ford stated that Hyundai has a bad design language, that has irony written all over it!
Sumpguard

I saw a white one on Saturday fresh off the truck. When’s the review CA?
M sqared

Important note!!!!

Hyundai advertise this as a 7 seater i would have brought one, however has anyone told you how vertually impossible it is to get into the back 2 seats of the Sante Fe.They don’t fold up to give you clear access they fold flat so you have 10cm at best clearance. Even the sales manager/saleperson was amazed even he could not explain it.
To me it seems like the back seats were a afterthought.
Truly amazing…
Baz

has the new 2013 Santa Fe got the big front 320mm brakes that the new Sorento has. I’m leaning toward the Sorento but wondering if they drive the same. Both have been set-up for Australia but Kia seem to have done heaps more on the suspension/braking front… is this true

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Hyundai Santa Fe: Australian prices and specifications

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