Name: Hyundai Santa Fe (2024) | Expert Rating | The Car Expert
Item: Hyundai Santa Fe
Rating: 69.0

The Hyundai Santa Fe is The Car Expert’s Best Large Car 2025!

Summary

The Hyundai Santa Fe is a large boxy six- or seven-seat SUV which is available as a petrol/electric hybrid or a plug-in hybrid in the UK. This is the fifth-generation model, which went on sale in 2024.

The SUV has received a very warm welcome from the British motoring media, with many outlets pointing out that this new iteration improves on its predecessor in nearly every area, as Hyundai looks to challenge the large car sales of premium brands like Audi, Land Rover and Mercedes-Benz.

Richard Ingram of Auto Express argues that the Santa Fe has aligned itself “with the very best cars in this class”, What Car?’s Oliver Young adding that the SUV’s “class-leading interior is its forte, with superb space and practicality yet a stylish and plush feel.”

The Carwow team wholeheartedly agrees, but adds that “some alternatives are a bit more engaging to drive”, while The Electifying.com team says that they just “wish it had a longer electric range.”

The SUV’s pricing is a point of contention for reviewers, with some praising the Hyundai for being significantly cheaper than other premium rivals, while others point out that the new Santa Fe is several thousand pounds more expensive than the prior generation.

As of December 2024, the Hyundai Santa Fe currently holds a New Car Expert Rating of B with a score of 68%. Beyond the SUV’s commendable set of review scores, the Hyundai’s overall rating is dragged down by higher-than-average running costs.

Santa Fe highlights

Very spacious and practical
Well-built, high-quality interior
Economical hybrid engines

Santa Fe lowlights

Underwhelming electric-only range
Not very exciting to drive
More expensive than some rivals

Key specifications

Body style: Large SUV
Engines: petrol/electric hybrid, plug-in hybrid
Price: From £46,775 on-road

Launched: Summer 2024
Last updated: N/A
Replacement due: TBA

Image gallery

Media reviews

Reviews, road tests and comparisons from across the UK automotive media. Click any of the boxes to view.

Auto Express+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“Bold-looking seven-seat Hyundai Santa Fe SUV delivers lots of space in a striking package.”
Author: Dean Gibson, Ellis Hyde
Read review

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“The new Hyundai Santa Fe builds on a solid baseline by improving on its predecessor in near enough every respect, aligning itself with the very best cars in this class. Its relaxed demeanour will be ideal for family-car buyers, as will the huge, tech-filled seven-seat cabin.”
Author: Richard Ingram
Read review

Auto Trader+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 9 / 10
“The 2024 Santa Fe is a genuine Land Rover Discovery alternative that’s very nearly as good in every way – and probably much more reliable – but which undercuts it by near-enough £20k.”
Author: Mark Nichol
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Autocar+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“The Hyundai Santa Fe is more practical, comfortable and desirable than ever, but let down slightly by a meagre electric-only range.”
Author: Matt Prior, Jack Warwick
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Business Car+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“The Santa Fe does plenty to impress – and we wouldn’t be surprised to see it attract drivers away from those aforementioned premium brands.”
Author: Sean Keywood
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Car+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“It’s a boldly designed family SUV that doesn’t forget to be practical and family friendly, with loads of space available for seven people and all of your stuff. Some neat bonuses also give the Santa Fe some individuality, and the interior quality is good enough to win over many that are also looking at large family SUVs from traditionally premium brands like Land Rover, BMW and Audi.”
Author: Jake Groves
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Carbuyer+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 9 / 10
“The latest Hyundai Santa Fe has unapologetically chunky styling, impressive seven-seat practicality and quality interior that make it a genuine Land Rover rival.”
Author: Charlie Harvey, Richard Ingram, Andy Goodwin
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Carwow+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 10 / 10
“The Hyundai Santa Fe is a brilliant big SUV – roomy, comfortable and hugely practical. Some alternatives are a bit more engaging to drive, though.”
Author: Tom Wiltshire
Read review

Electrifying.com+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“Big, roomy, versatile seven-seat family SUV. Great to drive, and full of useful and clever touches to make a busy, messy family life that much easier. Decent value, too, although we wish it had a longer electric range.”
Author: Vicky Parrott
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Heycar+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“The Hyundai Santa Fe manages to combine rugged off-roader looks with impressive versatility and a tech-heavy cabin.”
Author: Andrew Brady
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Honest John+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“You’ll love or hate the boxy design of the new Hyundai Santa Fe. If you can see past that, though (and the high price tag), the Santa Fe has a lot of appeal. Its interior is superb, while it’s good to drive and ought to be relatively cheap to run.”
Read review

Parkers+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8.4 / 10
“Hyundai’s Santa Fe is a very impressive family SUV. Its hybrid engine options are smooth and efficient, and it’s extremely spacious – even by seven-seat SUV standards. This feels like a great moment for Hyundai, as it’s designed a car that can compete with cars that are a much higher price.”
Author: Jake Groves
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Regit+

Score: 9 / 10
“Hyundai has cleverly managed to create a great-looking five-door family SUV, but it also drives beautifully and has enough space to live in … literally.”
Author: Maxine Ashford
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The Sunday Times+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“Good enough to convince you to have kids.”
Author: Shane O’Donoghue
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The Telegraph+

Model reviewed: Santa Fe petrol/electric 1.6-litre Hybrid Calligraphy
Score: 8 / 10
“The fifth generation of this family SUV gets a radical new design direction and a posh new interior, but the push upmarket comes at a price.”
Author: Andrew English
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Top Gear+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“Interesting in design inside and out and supremely practical. There isn’t much the Hyundai Santa Fe can’t do.”
Author: Paul Horrell
Read review

What Car?+

Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 10 / 10
“The Hyundai Santa Fe’s class-leading interior is its forte, with superb space and practicality yet a stylish and plush feel. Bar a slightly busy ride at times, the driving experience is great too, and the two hybrid set-ups are efficient and refined.”
Author: Oliver Young
Read review

Safety rating

Independent crash test and safety ratings from Euro NCAP

No safety rating

As of December 2024, the fifth-generation Hyundai Santa Fe has not been crash tested by Euro NCAP.

Eco rating

Independent economy and emissions ratings from Green NCAP

No eco rating

As of December 2024, the Hyundai Santa Fe has not been lab tested by Green NCAP.

Reliability rating

Reliability data provided exclusively for The Car Expert by MotorEasy

No reliability rating

As of December 2024, we don’t have enough reliability data on the new Hyundai Santa Fe to generate a reliability rating.

The Car Expert’s reliability information is provided exclusively to us using workshop and extended warranty data from our partner, MotorEasy, sourced from both official dealerships and independent workshops.

As soon as MotorEasy has sufficient data on the latest Santa Fe, we’ll publish the results here.

Running cost rating

Monthly cost of ownership data provided exclusively for The Car Expert by Clear Vehicle Data

Fuel consumption	Average	Score	Variation	Score
Hybrid models	39 mpg	D	38 – 42 mpg	D – D
Plug-in hybrid models	166 mpg	A	166 – 166 mpg	A – A

CO₂ output	Average	Score	Variation	Score
Hybrid models	162 g/km	C	155 – 168 g/km	B – C
Plug-in hybrid models	38 g/km	A	38 – 38 g/km	A – A

Battery range	Average	Score	Variation	Score
Plug-in hybrid models	34 miles	E	34 – 34 miles	E – E

Insurance group	Average	Score	Variation	Score
All models	35	C	33 – 38	C – C

Service and maintenance	Cost	Score
Year 1	£322	C
Year 2	£776	C
Year 3	£1,267	C
Year 4	£1,500	C
Year 5	£1,911	C
Overall	£5,776	C

The Hyundai Santa Fe can be a pretty expensive car to own and run, according to whole-life cost numbers provided exclusively to The Car Expert by our data partner, Clear Vehicle Data.

Standard petrol/electric hybrid models offer a fuel consumption of 38 to 42mpg, meaning that the entry-level Santa Fe is thirstier than the standard car.

Plug-in hybrid models are considerably better on paper, with an average fuel consumption of 166mpg. But, this is largely thanks to ridiculous EU/UK government lab tests that are completely inadequate for plug-in hybrids. There is no way you will ever travel for 166 miles on a single gallon (4.5 litres) of fuel and some electricity in a car this heavy…

The SUV’s electric-only battery range of 34 miles is below the market average too, while its insurance bracket is around average – not cheap but not too expensive.

While the Santa Fe will be much cheaper to maintain over the first five years of ownership than premium rivals like the Range Rover, its estimated five-year servicing and maintenance cost total of nearly £6k is nothing to write home about either, and rivals like the Kia Sorento will be less of a strain on your wallet.

Recalls

Official DVSA safety recalls that have been issued for the Hyundai Santa Fe

As of December 2024, we are not aware of any DVSA vehicle safety recalls affecting the fifth-generation Hyundai Santa Fe. However, this information is updated very regularly so this may have changed.

You can check to see if your car has any outstanding recalls by visiting the DVLA website or contacting your local Santa Fe dealer.