Hyundai Santa Fe

Hyundai designers wanted the Santa Fe to convey a feeling of “assertive grace” and, to inspire their work, Hyundai even commissioned a speed skating gold medalist to demonstrate the essence of speed, motion, power and refinement. The result is a body design that is aerodynamic but not anonymous, and space efficient but not slab-sided. The Hyundai Santa Fe’s no featherweight, and features like its six standard airbags and active front head restraints give it the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s vaunted “Top Safety Pick.” It also earned five-star crash-test ratings in front- and side-impact tests for three years in a row. But its standard Electronic Stability Control, tidy handling, and intelligent braking systems help prevent you from having to rely on its brute strength alone.

The all-wheel drive system in the Hyundai Santa Fe features: the BorgWarner ITM 3e, an electromagnetic clutch-type system that sends 95% of the power to the front wheels — until they encounter a low traction situation, when up to 50% of the power can be apportioned rearward. The advantage: higher efficiency than systems that are always on. The fully automatic system also features a rare AWD Lock button that allows you to send half of the available power to the rear wheels on demand. Most Santa Fe models come with a six-speed automatic transmission that includes a feature most of the competition lacks: SHIFTRONIC.® Originally developed for sports cars, SHIFTRONIC gives you the option of choosing gears manually when driving on inclines, winding roads, or when preparing to pass. Another rarity: The six-speed manual transmission is standard on the GLS.

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Download 2009 Santa Fe Brochure