2010 Santa Fe self levelling suspension

[paulthomas]

I'm thinking of buying an SF within the next few months.I fancy the manual(because of the higher noseweight) "Premium" model.My current '06 Sorento has self levelling suspension.Is it worth paying the extra for a 7 seater SF which comes with self levelling,even though I'm unlikely to need the extra seats?

Would I really notice the difference if I bought the 5 seater without sl suspension?

We sometimes tow quite near the 100kg noseweight limit and we do a fair bit of long distance touring to S Spain and Portugal.Our 'van's MTPLM is 1600kg.

Any informed views would be really appreciated.

 

[Oldsalt49]

Hi Paul,

I will let you know very soon. I am towing my Swift challenger 530 tomorrow as we have a few days off. I have the SF Auto 5 seater, but I intend putting 100kg on the ball to see how it handles. We will be back on Friday, so will be able to give you my opinion then.

David

 

[NigelHutson]

Whilst not specific to the vehicle you're looking at, in my experience of several vehicles fitted with self-levelling suspension (cars and 4X4's) the solo ride is often more compliant with the self-levelling as the springs tend to be slightly softer. Given the choice, I would have self-levelling every time.

 

[Oldsalt49]

Hi Paul,

Well I said I would get back to you. I tried to increase the noseweight of my caravan to 100kg, but to be honest, I didn't bother. I loaded as normal and was spot on the 80kg for my SF automatic. I found towing on the motorway very good, passing HGV's did cause slight twitches, but nothing that would upset the stability. I do feel however that the rear suspension on my 5 seat SF is a tad on the soft side. I will contact Hyundai to see if the self levelling system can be retro fitted to mine. Or failing that look into upgrading the rear shock absorbers to Monroe air adjustables. Overall though I am happy with my outfit and think I made the right choice. The Practical Caravan magazine has a good write-up on the new 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe in manual gearbox format, so I recommend you have a read.

 

[mistralse]

Hi David,how was the auto box towing?, do you have cruise control and how heavy is your van,thanks in advance.

 

[Oldsalt49]

Hi David,how was the auto box towing?, do you have cruise control and how heavy is your van,thanks in advance.

Hi Denis,

The auto box is great for towing, although I have to use the tiptronic to manually change down if the speed drops offon inclines. I also use it driving in built up areas as it goes into 5th gear even at 30 mph. I find the gearbox hangs onto the higher gears, which then slows down the acceleration, especially coming onto roundabouts. I tend not to use kickdown, although the acceleration is impressive even with the van on the back.

I have cruise control, but only use it when in average speed camera zones on motorway etc. In general use the cruise control struggles to hold the speed back on the down hills. I think this may be because of the gearbox holding on to the higher gears.

My van is 1580kg max laden weight, although I doubt it is anywhere near that with my added equipment, I have a Truma motor mover that weighs 30kg. The SF automatic has a kerb weight of 1946 kg (add to that the towbar). I was indicating 27 mpg towing on the onboard computer.

I hope I have managed to answer your queries adequately?

David

 

[Jo-AnneFairway5402010]

ihave a 57 plate santa fe cdx7 auto. we tow a bailey senator wyoming 2008 model im sure its 1678kg. it tows it fine. if were going up a steep hill we just push it over to manual mode and drive it manually.

i have the 7 seats but only 2 kids. the extra seats do come in handy though. i load my van to heavy in the front locker 2 gas bottles ( one lite ) and few other bits and bobs. even though we have the self lev we always weigh the front and its 80k.

go and buy one lol

jo

 

[Jo-AnneFairway5402010]

ihave a 57 plate santa fe cdx7 auto. we tow a bailey senator wyoming 2008 model im sure its 1678kg. it tows it fine. if were going up a steep hill we just push it over to manual mode and drive it manually.

i have the 7 seats but only 2 kids. the extra seats do come in handy though. i load my van to heavy in the front locker 2 gas bottles ( one lite ) and few other bits and bobs. even though we have the self lev we always weigh the front and its 80k.

go and buy one lol

jo

i load my van not to heavy in the front locker ( I MEANT ) lol

 

[mistralse]

Hi Denis,

The auto box is great for towing, although I have to use the tiptronic to manually change down if the speed drops offon inclines. I also use it driving in built up areas as it goes into 5th gear even at 30 mph. I find the gearbox hangs onto the higher gears, which then slows down the acceleration, especially coming onto roundabouts. I tend not to use kickdown, although the acceleration is impressive even with the van on the back.

I have cruise control, but only use it when in average speed camera zones on motorway etc. In general use the cruise control struggles to hold the speed back on the down hills. I think this may be because of the gearbox holding on to the higher gears.

My van is 1580kg max laden weight, although I doubt it is anywhere near that with my added equipment, I have a Truma motor mover that weighs 30kg. The SF automatic has a kerb weight of 1946 kg (add to that the towbar). I was indicating 27 mpg towing on the onboard computer.

I hope I have managed to answer your queries adequately?

David

Hi David,Thankyou very much for the feedback,it certainly sounds as if it will suit me, my van is 1450kgs more or less and I use an 07 X trail at the moment so it will be fine,thanks again.

 

[WatsonJohnG]

David what you say seems common sense to me but if you read other postings on uprating suspension there are interesting technical reasons put forward to leave the car as standard

I have been very pleased with the results from MAD springs on several cars

They do a range of different types of aids

When I parted with the last of the 4 Citroen BXs with self levelling suspension I decided to fit Armstrong/Monroe or similar adjustable dampers/springing if needed but they have not been available for any of my subsequent cars but the MADs have done a good job for my needs which include a motorised invalid buggy in the car

When I load because there are 2 of us I put all the weight between the wheels behind the front seats and cover with a cargo net so the boot area is almost empty

That is partly because the spare wheel in the X Trail is below a double boot floor etc but mainly to avoid rear loading behind the wheels

 

[xtrailman]

John

Interesting you still have the double boot shelf in place.

i removed mine completely to accommodate my fishing gear, which consists of full match gear even when on holiday, so that means lots of bulk and weight.

I was surprised how heavy the plastic shelving weighed, maybe 50 pound or more!

That has given me a lower boot level, so loading heavy items is easier. Also i have one of the seat bases removed for 9 months of the year, again to enable my rod holder to go in behind the seat, removing it gives me about another 6" boot length. he weight saving is very little, but it you don't need them, both can be easily removed.

 

[paulthomas]

Hi Paul,

Well I said I would get back to you. I tried to increase the noseweight of my caravan to 100kg, but to be honest, I didn't bother. I loaded as normal and was spot on the 80kg for my SF automatic. I found towing on the motorway very good, passing HGV's did cause slight twitches, but nothing that would upset the stability. I do feel however that the rear suspension on my 5 seat SF is a tad on the soft side. I will contact Hyundai to see if the self levelling system can be retro fitted to mine. Or failing that look into upgrading the rear shock absorbers to Monroe air adjustables. Overall though I am happy with my outfit and think I made the right choice. The Practical Caravan magazine has a good write-up on the new 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe in manual gearbox format, so I recommend you have a read.

David,

Many thanks for your comments.Much appreciated.I have read the Practical Caravan review and it confirms my determination to buy aSanta Fe.

Cheers,

Paul

 

[WatsonJohnG]

Hi Ray

I like the double boot arrangement and I have the drawer full plus 2 plastic tool boxes that were originally cordless drill boxes fit exactly in the space next to the drawer

One man's meat etc

 

[xtrailman]

Hi Ray

I like the double boot arrangement and I have the drawer full plus 2 plastic tool boxes that were originally cordless drill boxes fit exactly in the space next to the drawer

One man's meat etc

I understand.

 

[WatsonJohnG]

Hi Ray

I like the double boot arrangement and I have the drawer full plus 2 plastic tool boxes that were originally cordless drill boxes fit exactly in the space next to the drawer

One man's meat etc

Yes lots of toys hence need for suspension aids shhhh