New 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe

[JonP]

Some of you may remember my company car dilemma last year.... well i have gone and done it !!!! I have got rid of my VW Passat as a company car, and have got a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe Premium (5 seat).... i test drove the 'old' 2012 Santa Fe for a couple of days and doing business style mileage (mostly motorway and A roads) it averaged 40 mpg, which, whilst be lower than the Passat (50 mpg) was still pretty reasonable.... however, before making a decision i held out until the 2013 demonstator appeared in October last year. To me, being a new buyer without any previous history with the brand, the difference between the two Santa Fe's was fairly substantial.... So much so, that after an hour or so test drive, i placed an order for a new one...
For me the only downside was the wait for the new car to arrive... i placed the order immediately the car was released on general sale, and was advised there was a 6 week lead time, with arrival mid December... come mid December and a couple of calls to the dealer (Hyundai, Milton Keynes) and i was advised that there was a delay, as demand had outstripped supply, but there were 6 on the way to the UK from Korea, and my name was on one of them... new delivery date the first week in January... i made another call before Christmas to check the delivery date, and it was pushed back further to the second or third week of January, and eventually i got a call to say they had a confirmed arrival date in Tilbury for 29th January... The car was in MK on 30th January, and I collected it on 1st February....
All i can say is that so far it has been nothing short of excellent... the day i collected it, i drove straight to Birmingham, and so far in the space of 5 days have covered approx 350 miles. i filled it to the brim upon collection as they supplied the car completely empty with the fuel light flashing, and so far the indicator in the car has shown an average of 39.5 mpg. Thats based on approx 190 miles of motorway driving and about 160 miles of stop / start urban driving. I am doing a 'real world' comparison by filling to the brim each time and recording the mileage for the first few thousand miles, so it'll be interesting to see if it gets anywhere near the published mpg figures...
Hyundai werent able to fit a towbar prior to me collecting the car, as there is no stock of parts in the UK yet, so they have had to order it from Korea. All being well, i am having the towbar fitted (fixed towbar - detatchable not available yet) next wednesday at a cost of just under £400 inc VAT, so i'll report back on how well it tows... i have a twin axle Bailey Pageant Loire with an MTPLM of 1640 kgs, and as i have only towed it with my 110 Defender TD5, it will be interesting to see how the towing experience compares...
I know its early days, but i love it, and a colleague who has an Audi Q5 took it out for a spin, and said that he prefers the power delivery and interior layout to the Audi, which i think says a lot....
Lets see what the next few months brings

 

[MichaelE]

Congrats on the new car im sure you will enjoy?
With regards to the towbar, why are you waiting for Hyundai to get the parts in and a fixed one at that when you can get a detatchable Witter or Westfalia towbar from the likes of PF Jones http://www.pfjones.co.uk/ ?
They offer nationwide fitting too.

 

[JonP]

Hi Michael, thanks for your comments... I did speak to a couple of tow bar companies, but to be honest they didnt fill me with a massive amount of confidence.. they all seemed a bit unsure as to whether they would have to make modifications (cutting) to the rear bumper of the Santa Fe to accept the bracketry etc.. the company that you mentioned was one of them.. initially i tried to call them but couldnt get through, and actually rang them no less than 8 times.. in the end, i went onto their website and filled out the online form and eventually one of the customer services team called me back... to be fair, they were the best price out of the aftermarket fitters, but even so, still more expensive than having the job done by the main dealer using genuine Hyundai parts... for a fixed 'swan neck' towbar i was quoted £440, and for a detachable Westfalia towbar i was quoted £613.78 (both inclusive of VAT), and the fitting price was based on doing it at their service centre in Northampton, and me waiting around while it was fitted... at least with MK hyundai, i can drop the car off with them, pick up a courtesy car and go out and about, and then pop back later when the job is done.. also i get peace of mind that with the work being done at a main dealer, there wont be any warranty issues etc in the future... thanks for the suggestion though, it was much appreciated

 

[Mel]

We've got an 08 Hyundai Sante Fe 2.2, (brilliant, love it) and himself is fancying an upgrade. Do let us know how it tows and if the self levelling suspension (I have no idea what this is other than what it sounds like; but I am told that the new sante Fe has it) works well.
mel

 

[JonP]

Hi Mel, i had the towbar fitted today, and it actually cost slightly less than they originally quoted... the labour came in at £127 + VAT in the end, so the whole lot was £372 all in... as soon as i've had a chance to tow with it, i'll let you know how i get on... in terms of power, i dont think there will be any issues at all, when you put your foot down, the Santa Fe pulls like a train, and you're over the speed limit before you realise it !!!
For those who are interested, i have filled up twice so far and have covered 773 miles... on the first tank i averaged 33.55 MPG and on the second tank, i averaged 36.16 MPG - these figures have been calculated by running the car til its empty and then filling it to the brim... the electronic fuel consumption indicator has consistently indicated just over 40 MPG, so i am not sure how accurate it is... my mileage is a mixture of motorways and A roads maybe 60% with 40% being short journeys to and from work etc...
So far though, really loving it

 

[Mel]

Thank you Jon. This is all very bad news to a woman who is trying to hold back OH who is now very keen on an upgrade!

mel

 

[JonnyG]

Its nice to see proper brim to brim mpg figurers being quoted and i am sure with mileage being added the mpg figurers will get better too.

 

[chirene]

We had a Hyundi Santa Fe on loan in November It was the 7 seater one. Two things against it for us was No cover over the "Boot" section a high vehicle to step into,/get out of, if you have problem knees Consumtion not good on run around journeys, which most of ours are, at moment. But probably good for towing (which we don't do, at moment) Third and most important the PRICE

 

[Mel]

OH got as far as the local Hyundai dealer this last weekend. Had a look at the new Sante Fe and was making "I'm impressed" noises. I was worried for a while until the salesman (salesboy-he looked about 14) said that he could not tell us when he would be able to get one; best estimate was not before July, but really couldn't say. OH much less impressed and didn't place an order. Phew!
I suspect this is just a delay on his part and the writing is, as they say, on the wall. Do let me know how it tows.
mel

 

[JonP]

I filled up again today and have covered 1213 miles so far.. Average economy for this tank was 37.76 mpg... I agree, the wait for the car to be delivered is unacceptable, and think that Hyundai could have worked a bit harder to increase supply, especially when the car has been extensively marketed in the UK... In my opinion though it's probably worth the wait.. I can understand people who have the previous Santa Fe models not seeing much of an incentive to change, especially considering the increase in price, and I can understand that.. My perspective as a new 'convert' to the brand, is that the new model offers excellent value for money... When you compare it to an SUV / small 4x4 of a similar value, such as a Freelander etc, the specification vs price stacks up pretty well compared to most...
I have purchased a 5 seat Premium model, as I couldn't justify the extra cost for the additional two seats which would hardly ever be used.. This comes with all the toys such as reversing camera (through which you can see the tow ball to aid hitching up the caravan, and which should save a great deal of marital strife and semaphore messages) cruise control, heated seats, sat nav etc etc. It's very comfortable and easy to drive, and the manual gearbox is silky smooth. What swung it for me as a company car driver, is that I couldn't find another vehicle with the same power output, towing capacity, and internal specification for the same price and CO2 emissions. With the new model, they have managed to squeeze a little more power from the engine, and combine that with lower emissions. I have just turned 40 and am starting to feel my age (!!), and find it easier getting in and out of the Santa Fe, than the Passat I had previously. Long journeys seem easier, as the seats are very comfortable, and sitting in an elevated position with my legs in a downward instead of stretched out position suits me, and being 6'3" I needed a car which gives me enough legroom plus space behind me for my teenage children.. The Santa Fe does all this, and more... I am very happy so far, and am hoping to have a test tow this week end, so will let you know how it goes....

 

[JonP]

For those of you who aren't bored with my weekly fuel economy figures, I filled up again today (I had maybe a quarter of a tank left) as I have a couple of long journeys to Birmingham and back tomorrow and Thursday. I covered a total of 419 miles at an average of 38.35 mpg. I am a little surprised at the low economy compared to the digital indicator.... 360 of the 419 miles were motorway miles at exactly 65 mph, and the digital indicator showed 47.9 mpg average for the whole of the motorway journey, and across the whole tank has indicated 43.5 mpg... Based on the above mpg and diesel at £1.439 per litre, I calculate a fuel cost of 17 pence per mile... Total mileage to date is 1632....

 

[Parksy]

It's always good to know what real world MPG is Jon, thanks for adding the figures

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Jon,

To calculate the MPG, the car needs to use two sensors, the Milometer and the fuel metering systems. Neither of these systems will be the most accurate, and are likely to have the same degree of error that speedometers display. Consequently any calculation the car makes will have two errors which will compound and produce erroneous results. A 10% total error would not surprise me.

There are two more accurate ways of calculating MPG but there is a trade off, convenience against accuracy:-

The first is to get the amount of fuel you have used by the brim to brim tank at each filling. and the using the cars odometer readings. This removes the cars fuel measurement error.

The second more accurate way is to use the brim to brim fuel figure, but then monitor your actual mileage by reviewing your journeys carefully on something like Google maps where distances can be calculated more accurately down to a tenth of a mile.

To be fair though the value of such figures is limited because even given the same journeys, in the same car, different drivers will produce different MPG figures, due to driving habits, and of course road conditions. Its therefore questionable whether quoting MPG's to a tenth of a mile is of any practical value.

 

[NickinFrance]

To calculate the MPG, the car needs to use two sensors, the Milometer and the fuel metering systems. Neither of these systems will be the most accurate, and are likely to have the same degree of error that speedometers display.

Not necessarily, I have measured the Odometer reading against the log on my SatNav & the difference is less than 1% over a couple of thousand miles.
I use a program called Torque on an Android tablet connected to a BlueTooth OBDII device & the OBD speed is always within 1% of the GPS speed even though the speedometer consistently reads 4 - 7 mph fast.

 

[otherclive]

Hello Jon,

To calculate the MPG, the car needs to use two sensors, the Milometer and the fuel metering systems. Neither of these systems will be the most accurate, and are likely to have the same degree of error that speedometers display. Consequently any calculation the car makes will have two errors which will compound and produce erroneous results. A 10% total error would not surprise me.

There are two more accurate ways of calculating MPG but there is a trade off, convenience against accuracy:-

The first is to get the amount of fuel you have used by the brim to brim tank at each filling. and the using the cars odometer readings. This removes the cars fuel measurement error.

The second more accurate way is to use the brim to brim fuel figure, but then monitor your actual mileage by reviewing your journeys carefully on something like Google maps where distances can be calculated more accurately down to a tenth of a mile.

To be fair though the value of such figures is limited because even given the same journeys, in the same car, different drivers will produce different MPG figures, due to driving habits, and of course road conditions. Its therefore questionable whether quoting MPG's to a tenth of a mile is of any practical value.

rather than trying to remember your journeys with Google Maps most satnavs have a trip/distance recorder somewhere in their setting. Just reset this to zero and take off the mileage when required. I use mine when greenlaning and following route cards as it makes it easier than having to keep resetting the car trip meter and then converting from its figure in km into miles.

 

[Mel]

hi Jon. Are you driving with the air con on? I have a little Hyundai i10 and when the aircon is on it drinks loads of petrol compared to when it is off. I know air con use makes fuel economy worse but it seems to make a much bigger difference in my i10 than in my little citroen that preceeded it.
mel

 

[JonP]

Hi Mel, i dont think the aircon is going... there is a little blue light which lights up on the aircon switch when its on, and i make sure its switched off.. the santa fe has automatic demister for the front window, so sometimes it switches itself on, but i normally turn it off straight away..
i filled up again today, i managed to run it right to empty, with the fuel light flashing, and the 'miles left in the tank' indicator on zero for the kast 10 miles... i managed to get 66 litres in the tank, and did a total of 518 miles, giving me an average of 35.71 mpg. i calculate this to be approx 19 pence per mile in fuel costs, based on a fuel cost of £1.459 per litre. For this tank, i have done 400 miles of motorway travel at a constant 65 mph (on cruise control) 68 miles of short journeys backawards and forwards to work and town (3 miles each way) and 50 miles of towing my caravan.

 

[JonP]

I filled up again today and have now covered 2528 miles, and for this tank averaged 38.72 mpg.... 220 of the 372 miles since the last fill up were motorway @ 65 mph with the remainder being short journeys to and from work... today though, i picked up 12 bags of cement from the builders merchant in town and put them in the boot - it handled the 300 kgs load with no problems although it settled down a bit on the suspension

!! only a short journey though, so no problem !

 

[JonP]

So, after a couple more tankfuls, the MPG is as follows - i filled up at 2914 miles and did an average of 31.36 mpg, 3167 miles at an average of 31.52 mpg (both driving mainly short journeys backwards and forwards to and from work) 3436 miles @ 27.15 mpg - 100 miles towing (rest solo) from Leighton Buzzard to Sandringham , Norfolk and 3532 miles @ 22.86 mpg - 96 miles towing back from Norfolk, no solo mileage... The towing mileage is pulling a twin axle Bailey Pageant Loire with a MTPLM of 1642 kgs, and with the car loaded with 5 occupants and a boot rammed full of luggage...
Having now towed for 250 miles in total, i am very pleased with the towing experience, and cannot fault the performance of the Hyundai... Having never towed with anything else apart from a Landrover Defender 110 TD5, i have been pleasantly surprised. Whilst i can feel the caravan behind the Santa Fe a lot more than the Defender, i find the towing experience in the Santa Fe to be slightly better.. only because for me, the seats are better and i feel more relaxed driving it... its nice to be able to hear the stereo !!! Having said that, i suppose this is only to be expected, as my old Landrover is 14 years old, and has nearly 180,000 miles on the clock

On the way to Norfolk, i was trying to get used to the cruise control whilst towing, so tried a variety of speeds and also tried towing in fifth gear rather than sixth (as suggested by various people) to see if it towed easier... On the way back i towed almost exclusively in 6th gear, and the engine didnt labour or feel strained, and kept at a constant 60, at approx 1900 rpm. It was really relaxing to drive.

The biggest disappoinment for me however, is the fuel economy, which i feel is surprisingly bad... I was hoping to see some fairly dramatic improvements over the old Landrovers fuel economy, but whilst it is better solo, towing hasnt been much better... With my identical caravan, and with the Landrover roof rack loaded with two kayaks and 4 mountain bikes, the Landrover achieved the following fuel economy towing from Leighton Buzzard to Devon and Cornwall (and for Devon thats north Devon near Woolacombe - up and down the hills from the M5 !)
320 miles @ 21.52 mpg, 157 miles @ 22.09 mpg, 281 miles @ 22.48 mpg. Landrover fuel economy calculated in the same way as I am calculating the economy for the Santa Fe..
The Santa Fe's 4 x 4 function proved invaluable in pulling the caravan off the farmers field where its stored - a few days before it had snowed fairly heavily, and the ground was very wet and muddy... it didnt prove to be any problem at all, although trying to reverse the twin axle van in the mud caused a very smelly clutch, and we missed the Landrovers low range gears...

all good so far ! France here we come !!!!!

 

[Mel]

Glad you are enjoying your Sante Fe. The salesman's inability to predict when the next boat load was arriving from Korea, sent OH scuttling off to other dealerships and we are swapping our Sante Fe for a Freelander 2 tomorrow. I will miss it.
mel

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Jon,

I am not surprised at the comparison between the Defender and the Santa Fe. The defender is already a heavy vehicle so the addition of a caravan has a smaller percentage effect, where as the Santa Fe is lighter vehicle and the addition of the caravan will be a greater percentage weight gain which will have greater effect of MPG figures.

Whilst I can't fault your method of calculating MPG, I cant help wondering if quoting to even to a tenth of a mile yet alone a hundredth has any real value. I would be prepared to bet that if you exactly repeated the same journeys and recalculated you could easily find a variance in the order of 1 to 2 whole mpg between your sets of figures. There are so many small factors that will conspire to affect the performance that combined over those distances will easily create a 5% variation.

 

[JonP]

So, nearly a year has gone past since i have taken posession of my Santa Fe, and its still going strong... so far i have covered 20,480 fault free miles, and am very happy... So far i have filled up 57 times, and the average fuel economy has been 37.36 mpg when driving solo. Out of the 20,480 miles, we have towed 2500 miles - mainly to and from France (twice) and the Santa Fe has managed an average of 24.95 mpg... this is pretty good considering that we were fully loaded with a canoe etc on the roof of the car... The best fuel economy towing has been 27 mpg (over 700 miles) and the best fuel ecomomy solo has been 43.5 mpg... strangely enough, this figure has been achieved on two occasions, over a total of 800 miles, filling up at Texaco in Venlo, NL, and driving on German motorways.... Overall, we are very pleased with the performance of the car, and despite the fuel economy being slightly worse than anticipated, on balance we are very happy... for you company car users out there, the fuel cost for running it as a company car has worked out to 16.5 pence per mile....

 

[otherclive]

That's a goodly year1 mileage in a mix of conditions. Glad to see that Hyundai are still keeping up the good reputation that they and Kia have established for all of their cars. It's not unusual for real world fuel economy to be less than the official figures which are measured in a laboratory conditions but they do allow relative comparisons to be made. Still with oil prices coming down to 1997 levels by 2015 (real terms) just hang in there and enjoy your motoring.

 

[davidjamesc]

I am thinking of buying a a second hand 2013/4 Santa Fe. Has anyone had the stability problems identified in the following article:

http://www.thetowcarawards.com/tow-car/hyundai-santa-fe/
Thanks

 

[Hutch]

I bought a new Santa Fe premium , auto, last year in september, I have covered just over 19,000 miles towing about 4000 miles with a Coachman VIP 560. I have not had any towing problems as reported in the insert. I get a fuel return towing between 25 to 30 mpg, depending on where we go. I have just returned from 10 days to Switzeland , NOT with a caravan, and over 1500 miles recieved a fuel return of 42 mpg, paege cruising at 75 and alpine touring for about 200 miles, overall very pleased. The only down side was I had factory fitted towbar which is a witter, and had the tow bar drop, witters sort 5o this is higher strengh bolt and higher torque, mine still dropped so I refitted the bolts with spring washers and thread lock, and for the last 1000 towing miles it been ok. BUT TOW TRUST, bars seem to be better, see Caracan club forum on Santa Fe towbar.http://www.caravanclub.co.uk/community/discussions/information,-technical-tips-advice/towcars-towing/2014-Hyundai-Santa-Fe-Witter-tow-bar-Fixed-flanged/rt/984240/.
Safe towing to all.