Drives nearly car-like Spacious interior for driver and passengers Looks good

Thus far, poor gas mileage - city driving Few accessories

I bought my Sante Fe in October, 2004.... on Columbus Day of all things. Anyway, in the overall scheme of things I am satisfied with the Sante Fe. In November of 2004 I took my Sante Fe on a 2000 mile plus trip to New Orleans and really enjoyed its overall performance. Gas mileage ranged from 21mpg to 26mpg depending on whether or not I was using AC and/ or driving above 65mph. Listed below are my return trips to the dealer: 0877 miles -- Throttle Body was replaced to correct rough engine idling. The situation was corrected. 3745 Miles -- Front Rotors were re-surfaced because the vehicle was vibrating at varying braking speeds. Problem seeming- ly solved. at the time... but recently experiencing the same vibrations, although less intermittent. 3745 miles -- Reported poor mileage. Sante Fe getting 13-t-14 mpg in city. An Air Flow Meter was installed and the Air Flow Harness was replaced. Mileage performance has gotten worse.... now getting 11-t0-12 miles in city (almost 5000 miles driven as of the date of thjis post. If the city gas mileage is improved, I will certainly feel that I have chosen a winner in the medium of SUVs

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I have tested and/or rented a myriad of vehicles, to name a few: Ford Escape, Ford Sport Trac.... Ford Expedition, CRV, RAV4... and so forth and so on.... and the Sante Fe can hold its own with them

great gas mileage, smooth handling, great for extended road trips, comfortable, feels like you are riding/driving a car, I feel safe when I am in my Santa Fe.

none have been found as of yet

I love the Santa Fe. I have had 3 Hyundai Sonatas in the past and decided to upgrade to a SUV. I like the warranty that is offered on the Santa Fe. I will continue to purchases Hyundai vehicles when it is time for a new auto. I can't say enough about the quality of the products Hyundai has to offer. i always recommend Hyundai to my friends when they purchase new autos. the price you pay for a Hyundai is great especially when you purchase an automobile with such great warranties and the added extras.

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Ford Explorer Xlt

the power of the 3.5,the traction,the ride and comfort.

still not refined enough (mechanically)lack of handling ,bobs and weaves

I have owned my Santa fe for about 8 months ,i have towed my boat all summer went through two snow storms for the most part i am impressed with it after previously owning two competitors.The new 3.5 has so much power compared to the 4.3 vortec GM i owned last year ,but all that power comes at a price and that is the quanity of gas ,it is outrageous.It has gone two the shop twice for the check the engine light they have yet to cure it ,has for the ride i like it except for the corners ,it has severe body roll,and if you the throttle response is to sensitive,the front tires spin slightly before the awd kicks in and it takes off.the traction control i thought would be a advantage but was not any good because it won't allow you to overpower the vehicle to take a run at a severe grade.

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suzuki vatara/chevrolet blazer

Fit and finish. Durable materials. Value for price. Luxury features such as heated seats and leather interior. Comfortable ride. Handling.

Road noise! However, we knew the car was noisy when we bought it and it hasn't become any worse. The tires are due for replacement in about 5,000 miles and I'll try softer rubber and see if that helps.

A 3 year, 50,000 mile ownerhip report - Good basic transportation. Build quality is good and the vehicle has held up well. It hasn't been trouble-free but none of them are. Dealer has been responsive to all warranty issues. Problem areas: Check engine light - an recurring annoyance. Front sway bar bushings replaced at 48,000. Crankshaft sensor. A/C freon slow leak. Air bags did not deploy in a fairly hard hit to front end. We have a 100,000 mile extended warranty and if the vehicle continues to perform well as it has so far, we'll run it to near the end of the warranty before we trade it in (or give it away).

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None

Fewer and fewer as time goes on!

braking system is scaring me. Warranty is a joke. Expect to hear a lot of talk about road debris.

An Update to the situation. We received a call from the service dept. from the dealer. They are replacing the caliper and rim but part needs to be ordered. It should be in today (well see). So now I have been without the death trap since last Tuseday (today is Monday). I had to go turn in the rental they gave me and get a bigger one because I couldn't fit my kids in the back seat. I asked the manager if he talked to his top mechanics and if he found out how they over looked the screw he said qoute, "The one they put in must have fallen out when I drove it." I then said so you lied when you stated that the screw was there when the car arrived at your shop. He stammered and said "I Don't know." They act like they are doing me a favor replacing the damaged parts and the rim. The funny part of it is under Mass. law the have to! No favor Tom Hyundia, Duh! Again, I caution people looking at this car. And from what I have been told by the dealer and people who have bought the car, It is mandatory that you keep up the oil changes AND KEEP ALL THE RECIEPTS! One missed oil change (or no proof of it) and they start to opt out of warranty coverage! And to the people who say you get what you pay for I paid 21,500 that's not exactly chump change. P.S. I also don't know if I stated earlier but when we brough this car in last Tuesday the manager started to tell me that it could have been a rock kicked up from the roadway. I told him don't start your road debris speech, I have heard it many times before, didn't buy it then and I am not buying it now. I plan on reporting this to NTSP, I think this is a real safety issue.

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Elentra

Looks nice

Two many to list.

Hi All, Back again. Guess what? In the shop again. The dealer fixed the paint. Thank you. While it was in the shop we did the 30K check up. We were told we needed front brakes. We said ok paid the 600.00 for the check up and brakes and went on our way. 2 months later, I heard a noise from the driver side wheel well. We had a private mechanic we know come to the house and look at it. He said not to drive it because a bolt was missing and the caliper had come loose and was gorging the rim of the tire. Called the dealer they towed it through roadside. Very nice tow truck driver this time. He looked at it and agreed. Next day we got a call from the dealer saying it was fine 2 top mechanics looked at it and everything was in place they have NO idea what we were talking about. I said no way! I refuse to take possesion of the car because I am know concerned that I will be killed in this thing and that I was calling an attorney. We went down the yesterday in a snow storm meet with the service manager and told him the problem and insisted that if they can't find the problem or explain what happened, they can swap they car out at no cost to us. Of course he felt he couldn't do that, so I said I would see him in court. He asked if we could take a look at the car together so he could show us everything was ok. We went out to the lift and my husband flipped. The bolt was still missing, 2 mechanics, the shop manager and the service manager couldn't see it. My husband pointed angrily pointed it out to him and explained that our 7 year old could have seen this. (true) We have onl owned this car 2 1/2 years there is approx. 32K miles. This stuff really should not be happening. I drove a used LHS before this and sold it to family when I bought this thing new and guess what, my old car is still running great. Now i am up to four times in the shop in under 11 months not including oil changes, and brakes. You've got to be kidding me. Well they asked for another day to investigate how this could happen. Ok fine! Take a day. What a piece of crap this car is. Again Beware people. I guarentee if they don't swp it out you'll be reading more in a month or so.

roomy

everything else.

i purchased a 2003 hyundai santa fe in August 2003. Three months later while in stop in go traffic.. with my foot on the break at a dead stop, the engine reved and the car took off hitting a truck in front of me. My 6 mth was in the car as well as other family members. Took it to dealership and they said they found nothing. It happened several times after that and i brought it back 3 more times. The dealerships said they could not help me. The main office said they could not help me without a diagnosis. I am now in the process of hiring a lawyer. I only have 21000 miles on this car and I am afraid to drive it. No one will help me. Their service is horrible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Also, the gas tank was replaced because it would not read the gas guage correctly. They fall all over before you buy it and afterwards you can't get a person to lift a finger.

Great for towing. Does better than my Explorer did

Everything else

Where do I start. Gas gauge read 1/2 tank all the time. I took it in and they said it was fixed. It still read 1/2 tank and I figured it happened to have a half tank. Nope. Still broken. Took it back in and it got fixed. All of a sudden the alarm was going off all the time and would not stop. Took it in and they kept it for 2 weeks while they replaced many parts, including the dash board because of a leak. My miledge now is not actual. The battery then died and was replaced. The alarm then started to go off on its own again. Another week in the shop while they found a water leak. I can't wait to see what's next. I wonder how much the car will be worth when I go to sell it and have to say the miledge isn't right. The only good thing is it tows my boat great. Really sorry I belived the hype that Hyundai was a good car now.

Look Nice, Until paint falls off.

powertrain, warranty is not what you expect, roadside service is lame.

BUYER BEWARE!!!!!! Be advised I have owned my Sante Fe now for a little over two years, it has around 30K miles and is mostly garaged. In the past six months, my battery died, my transfer case went, and now the paint is peeling off. Sure they have the warranty, good thing too, you'll need it. That's if you can get them to cover anything. And had I known who provided the roadside assistance when I bought it I would have walked away then. Try waiting six hours for a tow truck on vacation, and that's after spending two hours on a cell phone instructing THEM where the closest dealership was. I know I thought the same thing you are or were great looking suv, Nice price, good warranty too. That's how you are sucked in. I thought that if they offer that kind of warranty that they must really believe that it's a good car. WRONG! Let me tell you, my husband has an elantra, dealership needed to fix AC. Well you see a rock must have flown up off the road and broke it therefore, they won't fix it. Let's get back to my car. I noticed the paint peeling, I took it to the dealership, showed it to them, and I was told...... Are you ready...... A rock flew up and chipped the paint, they won't pay. It gets better. I pointed out that it was BUBBLING visibly. He looked and said Hmmmm... took his finger nail scrapped it off (making the spot bigger in the process), said he would have to talk to the district manager, called me to weeks later and said that they insist it was a rock and won't fix it. Also have you ever wondered why you only get a survey after work is performed and there are no problems. I suggest that everyone who has had an issue with any car from Hyundia contact JD Powers directly. There number is listed on the web as 1-800-274-5372. Let them know how you really feel about the warranty and service. Be advised Hyundia is the same company is was in the 80's, hence the most recent class action suit regarding horsepower. Don't believe me, that's fine time will prove all. It is only a matter of time before people see what is going on. Lesson of the day: STAY AWAY FROM HYUNDIA!

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Elantra. Never again!

No TRUE warrenty Backup. The dealership can never find any of the concerns you have in performance.

I am writing this as a warning. About two years ago I bought a Hyundia Santa Fe. I bought it because it had, what I thought, was a great warranty .... 10 years or 100,000 miles. For a little extra you could extend the Bumper to Bumper warranty to 10 years/100,000 miles, also. It was, also, inexpensive for a good looking SUV and had some nice features for the money. One thing I have learned, to my dismay, is that the paint warranty, like most companies, is only 3 years/36,000 miles and covers VERY little in the way of true coverage. I usually wash my car at a car wash every 2 to 3 weeks, or if it looks particularly messy. Nothing fancy for the most part and rarely by hand. At the end of August of this year, I decided to detail my car myself .... hand wash and wax, plus all the nice little details. At the time my car was 2 years, 2 months, and 5 days. I noticed that I had paint disintegrating from the hood of my car in 2 spots, the top coat disintegrating in one LARGE spot on the hood of my car plus 2 other smaller spots; and on the roof I had about 6 more spots; also, inside the door, on the bottom decretive molding the paint was flaking off (my neighbor, who bought the exact same car on the exact same day as myself also has this problem). By the way, these do not include the "rock chips" that came SO easily to this car!! I called my dealership, First Team Hyundia in Newport News, Virginia, in concern and made an appointment for them to look at the car. The first thing the Service Manager said when he looked at the 5 spots on my hood said that these spots were external factors. That they were caused by bird excrement (for the 2 spots) and acid rain and sap for the others .... there was NO explanation for the problem inside my door. When I got upset, and asked the Service Manager why my car was the ONLY car in the neighborhood that was being hit by "nuclear bird crap" and acid rain and "super" sap, he set up an appointment with a Factory Representative for today, September 23, 2004. So, today I met with the Rep and he says (VERY RUDELY), in my 2 SECOND meeting with him (in which I had to take a FULL day of work off), that the 2 marks on my hood were caused by bird excrement and that the MUCH larger spot on my hood was probably caused by antifreeze or break fluid leaked by a car I was driving behind - notice we stepped away from the acid rain issue. AND these are NOT covered under their warranty because these were external factors. He had no explanation for the chipping paint inside my door, and he never bothered to look at the roof! He then told me to look at the deductible for my insurance because THEY cover "acts of GOD". When I said that my issue was that this happened to a car that was just barely 2 years old, and that I would have expected it to have happened to a car that was maybe 5 years old, he just shrugged his shoulders, then he proceeded to tell me that because of the EPA, etc. that they are not able to use the same things that they used to in paints and top coats, so they are less durable then they were two or more years ago. I find it interesting that we pay SO much more for cars than we used to, yet they guarantee less. That paint issues are things that we are SUPPOSED to expect. That they feel they can FREELY pass the buck to insurance companies. Then we wonder why our insurance premiums are always increasing. So, if you care, or even if you don't, pass the word to all your friends and relatives. Warn them that if they buy this brand of car that they will probably have to spend about $2,000.00 more on a new paint job in about 2 years. Thanks!