The Bottom Line: Hyundai Motor Company was established in December 1967, over 52 years ago, and the company’s first model was released in 1968. Hyundai Motor America began selling cars in the United States in February 1986, with a single model, the Excel.
The Hyundai Excel was offered in a variety of trim and body styles and had a base price of only $4,995. They set a sales record for that first year for an import by selling 168,882 cars. And that record still holds true today.
Fast forward to 2020. After Hyundai bought Kia in 1998 and then launched the luxury brand Genesis in 2017, they now sell over 30 different models in the United States.
One of their biggest sellers is the Hyundai Santa Fe, and last year they sold 127,373 of them. They market the Santa Fe as their Family First mid-size Crossover and SUV.
The 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe starts with a base price of $26,125 with FWD front-wheel drive. The options list includes AWD all-wheel drive and an engine with 235 HP horsepower. Several trim levels, multiple paint colors, and interior options are available, so you can order a Santa Fe anyway you want it to be.
My test car is a Lava Orange 2020 Santa Fe Limited Edition 5 passenger FWD crossover with the 2.0L liter T turbo 4 cylinder 185 HP engine coupled to an 8-speed automatic transmission with SHIFTRONIC. This feature lets you shift the gears in the transmission manually, so you can power up hills, tow your boat, or just row through them for the fun of it.
The base price for this Limited Edition 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe FWD crossover is $37,500. The options on the test car are Carpeted front floor mats for $135. The total MSRP manufacturer’s suggested retail price, including the $1,095 destination charge, came to $38,730.
Fuel economy for the Santa Fe is 20 MPG miles per gallon city, 27 MPG highway, with a respectable 23 MPG combined for a mid-size crossover. The greenhouse gas rating is a 5, and the smog rating is a 5, both right in the middle of a 1 to 10 point scale, with 10 being the best score. Again, both respectable ratings for this size vehicle.
The Limited Edition model comes with all the options that buyers really want. Starting with a set of cool-looking black alloy 19″ wheels, a Panoramic sunroof, hands-free power tailgate, leather interior, heated and cooled front seats, LED light-emitting diode front headlights, rear tail lamps and DRL daylight running lamps and heated side mirrors with turn signal indicators. Plus there are over 100 more popular options listed on the window sticker. Here are a few of the outstanding options that are available from Hyundai today.
Lane Keeping Assist – LKA – This intelligent system uses a high tech sensor in the windshield to scan the road ahead, constantly monitoring the lane markers, both left and right of the vehicle. When activated, a visual and audible lane departure warning will sound anytime the vehicle veers out of the driving lane.
Forward Collision-Avoidance – FCA – It monitors the vehicle ahead and warns the driver if a collision may be imminent. In its basic form, a forward-collision warning system monitors a vehicle’s speed, the speed of a vehicle in front of it, and the distance between the vehicles, to provide a warning to the driver, if the vehicles get too close to avoid a crash. The system also initiates automatic braking when it detects a slower or stopped vehicle ahead.
Blind Spot Detection – BSD – This is an advanced safety system that helps to detect vehicles in the driver’s blind spots. In reverse, the built-in rear cross-traffic alert system identifies and warns you of other vehicles that are approaching from either side.
Every Santa Fe has seating for five, with smart design for safety and versatility. For short trips or the long haul, Santa Fe treats family right, with the comfort and details that make a difference. So everyone feels right at home, inside the car.
Santa Fe’s available panoramic sunroof stretches wide and deep into the second row, opening up space, and flooding it with light and air. Shooting stars. Sing-a-longs. Soccer games. Santa Fe is built with all these moments in mind. From roomy seating to entertainment choices, to USB charging ports brilliantly placed for family peace. Great design brings it all together beautifully.
And having smart tech on a long trip can do wonders, whether it makes your adventures more fun, or sometimes, simply more bearable, for you and your family. It keeps you connected in so many ways. Get to all your favorite mobile apps safely from the in-dash 7″ display touch screen, or on your phone.
For 2020 every Santa Fe comes with a complimentary maintenance program. Hyundai has you covered for normal, factory scheduled maintenance intervals for 3 years or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first.
Plus they have America’s best factory warranty with a 10 year 100,000-mile powertrain warranty, a 5 year 60,000-mile new-vehicle warranty, a 7-year unlimited mile anti-perforation warranty, and a 5-year unlimited miles roadside assistance program, all at no extra charge.
When you factor in all the included safety features, power, comfort, convenience, and technology options, plus the best warranty coverage of any car sold in America, that under $39,000 price sounds like a real bargain. If you’re ready to buy in the mid-size crossover class, take a look first at the new 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe. A word to the wise is sufficient. And Stay Safe.
Remember “You Are What You Drive ©”
And maybe, just for those reasons alone, you should “Drive one, Buy one, Today ©”.
This Bottom Line Review is provided by: Tony Leopardo © AutoWire.Net.
“Tony the Car Guy” is an automotive writer, editor and publisher in the San Francisco Bay Area. If you have a question, or comment for Tony, send it to tonyleo@pacbell.net or visit AutoWire.Net at www.autowire.net
