Recommendations on buying Santa Fe 2008 3.3 V6 auto? In particular transmission

[aleskb]

Hello everyone,

I am a humanitarian working and living in Eastern DRCongo, and need to buy a family car as I am about to get married with a baby on the way. It has to be a SUV as the roads where I live are either practicable dirt, or asphalt with lots of potholes. I have seen an interesting 2008 3.3 V6 auto gearbox for sell with only 57,000 kms, and am trying to have information on the following:

- Gearbox/transmission: is there any known serious transmission problems on these cars? I've read a lot about the 2010 6 speed transmission, and in DRC these kind of issues are nightmare given lack of spare parts. I really need to be reassured on the transmission before I can consider the purchase.

- Drive comfort on hard roads and bumps: is there anything to say to this?

- Behavior on hills: I need a car that performs well on hills, as this is the majority of the landscape here. How does it do?

- Anything else to mention?

I would really appreciate your assistance as I'm in love with Santa Fes but am still hesitant about the purchase, mainly about the transmission question. Please help, else I'll have to go for a Rav4, which I honestly don't like but for reliability reasons. Thanks a million in advance!

[johnaauld]

Originally Posted by aleskb

Hello everyone,

I am a humanitarian working and living in Eastern DRCongo, and need to buy a family car as I am about to get married with a baby on the way. It has to be a SUV as the roads where I live are either practicable dirt, or asphalt with lots of potholes. I have seen an interesting 2008 3.3 V6 auto gearbox for sell with only 57,000 kms, and am trying to have information on the following:

- Gearbox/transmission: is there any known serious transmission problems on these cars? I've read a lot about the 2010 6 speed transmission, and in DRC these kind of issues are nightmare given lack of spare parts. I really need to be reassured on the transmission before I can consider the purchase.

- Drive comfort on hard roads and bumps: is there anything to say to this?

- Behavior on hills: I need a car that performs well on hills, as this is the majority of the landscape here. How does it do?

- Anything else to mention?

I would really appreciate your assistance as I'm in love with Santa Fes but am still hesitant about the purchase, mainly about the transmission question. Please help, else I'll have to go for a Rav4, which I honestly don't like but for reliability reasons. Thanks a million in advance!

No, you shouldn't have problems with a 2008 santa fe. The only known common problems with that year vehicle is the rear brakes can rust on you and cause them to go bad prematurely. If you are handy with working on brakes, you just need to take them apart yearly and clean and lube them. The other known problem would be the TPS(throttle position sensor) does go bad on them from time to time. The good thing is that engine has a chain instead of a rubber belt- so you wouldn't have to do costly belt changes(perfect for someone in a remote location). I have a 2003 santa fe and my son has a 2007 and they have both been good vehicles. The transmission problems didn't show up until the 2010 year, so you should be safe from a transmission standpoint.

[canderson]

Reports of 2008 transmission problems are nearly nil.

Not the softest ride, but given the roads you describe, it would be hard to put together a suspension that would handle them and still feel like a 700 series BMW. Few vehicles out there can do that, and they're going to cost you a good deal more than a Santa Fe.

If you're dealing in a lot of very loose dirt on hills, look for the AWD model. You should find it a little more stable on the loose stuff than the FWD counterpart. Without actually seeing your roads, it's hard to say whether this is a necessity or just a nicety. You will find that the 3.3V6 is definitely up to the task in either case (I drive my '08 3.3 in the mountains of Colorado).

If you purchase this vehicle, have the factory sway bar ends replaced with proper metal ones if that hasn't already been done. Your kind of driving eats up the cheap originals.

Also, there are threads here about being SURE that you maintain your rear brakes regularly to avoid premature wear. An annual cleaning and lubrication will save you a lot of expense down the road. It is an easy DIY job.

[dta721]

Originally Posted by canderson

Reports of 2008 transmission problems are nearly nil.

Not the softest ride, but given the roads you describe, it would be hard to put together a suspension that would handle them and still feel like a 700 series BMW. Few vehicles out there can do that, and they're going to cost you a good deal more than a Santa Fe.

If you're dealing in a lot of very loose dirt on hills, look for the AWD model. You should find it a little more stable on the loose stuff than the FWD counterpart. Without actually seeing your roads, it's hard to say whether this is a necessity or just a nicety. You will find that the 3.3V6 is definitely up to the task in either case (I drive my '08 3.3 in the mountains of Colorado).

If you purchase this vehicle, have the factory sway bar ends replaced with proper metal ones if that hasn't already been done. Your kind of driving eats up the cheap originals.

Also, there are threads here about being SURE that you maintain your rear brakes regularly to avoid premature wear. An annual cleaning and lubrication will save you a lot of expense down the road. It is an easy DIY job.

@canderson: can you say the same for the 09 Santa Fe 3.3L, regarding those "mods": sway bar, brakes?

@johnaauld: is it possible for you to find the history of this SF given this mileage?

Mine 09 SF Ltd when bought last month was at 49K km (not miles), and I happened to find out, discussed with the original owner (1 owner) when he traded this in for the 2013 SF with NAV. Given his service records, and the guy was just as "nut" as me about TSB, he got lots done. At the time I had no idea about what Canderson suggested, otherwise I would have asked him the same questions.

My point: which is obvious for most, a known history used car is worth a lot more than any used ones out there. And for me in Canada, the much lower ownership cost -due to depreciation, and the dealer slaps another year, 20K km warranty on top for a certified pre-owned, makes it a real good deal!

Good luck!
Dta

[Pawper]

Dta----you said that the dealer slaps another year and 20k km warranty for a certified pre-owned vehicle. How can I found out if my Hyundai dealer does that? Our 2009 awd SF has always been dealer-serviced--does that mean we would get higher trade-in value even though it would be past the factory warranty of 100K km?

[Pawper]

Dta-I mean the obvious answer is to just ask them, but it's always better if they don't know that we know what they think we don't know. I think.
P.

[canderson]

Originally Posted by dta721

@canderson: can you say the same for the 09 Santa Fe 3.3L, regarding those "mods": sway bar, brakes?

Absolutely. The parts are identical, and prone to the same issues for '08 and '09 (and '07, for that matter, if looking at an older unit).

Wait until the sway bar ends crap out to replace them, but unless it's a warranty job where you have no choice, don't use the OEM parts. The OP should probably get them changed out at his earliest opportunity since due to his location, it very likely won't be convenient for him to do so at the moment they fail.

Check the brakes annually regardless. Those in very dry climates and no salt can probably postpone to every other year, but even then, you can get fooled.

[aleskb]

Thanks a lot for this Johnauld and Canderson, it helps a lot and reading you I think I will go ahead with the purchase. I really like the Santa Fe, it fits all my needs: small 4x4 ability, large, big trunk, nice but not flashy looks, and the perfect image I am looking for - in my job and where I live it probably wouldn't be well perceived if I drove a used Escalade or Audi-. The only other alternative I have with my limited budget would be a Rav4 anyway, and I feel cramped in their interior, not to mention the dashboard I find plain ugly.

My parents went to try the car today (it's in Belgium) and they say it looks and drives like new, even the leather seats look like it was an anorexic midget driving as all look new. Dark blue with beige interior and sunroof, looks better than the X3 my mum used to lease according to her. The only downside is that there was a mistake in the add, it's the 2.7 186hp 4 gear auto after all. I'll still probably buy it, as the 3.3 is very hard to find in Belgium (high taxes on big engines) and my only alternative for more peps would be the 2.2 CRDI. Driving a Toyota Land Cruiser 4.7 diesel (the old square model for humanitarians and army) at work, I really look for the quietness of a petrol engine, so I guess I'll just tune it to get closer to 200 HP and keep the foot light on gaz pedal.

Thanks a lot again for the advices, I'll keep posted about my purchase... 95% sure now.

[aleskb]

Oh sorry, another thing. I'm not really sure what a sway bar is - French is my mother tongue and I lack technical vocabulary in English- but if I look on the online translation am I correct in guessing it's a kind of stabilization bar? If so, is there a particular brand/model you would recommend as you say the original Hyundai ones are no good?

Re the brakes, I'll make sure to have them well maintained and checked regularly. I'm not a good mechanic but it's ok, my mechanic is talented and manpower is very cheap here, the only pain is spare parts as they need to be ordered from abroad and garages don't have replacement vehicles while you wait down here.

Thanks again!

[canderson]

Yes, 'stabilization bar' would be a good second description for it. Any of the aftermarket versions would be fine, as I don't think I've seen a single one with plastic ends on it the way the OEM version is built. There are at least a dozen different brands, and I haven't a clue as to which will be available in your area. Have your parents buy a kit for you (only the front is typically an issue) and toss it into the car. You can have it installed (easily and quickly) at your end if you like.

As for the brakes, it's just a matter of removing the pads and the retainers, cleaning off any crud (usually rust) under the retainers with a wire brush and putting a light coat of high temperature grease there to try to prevent any further corrosion. Also have him clean and re-lubricate the caliper slide pin. Reassemble and you're good to go for another year.

This will save premature failure of both pads and rotor ... when the rust and crud 'grows' behind the retainers, it binds up the pads which have little enough space to move as it is, and they fail to move back away from the disc and cause constant light rubbing as a result.