I like it, it will bring in many new buyers, more than enough to make up for the lost past owners.

 

I bet you're proven wrong! They will lose sales to KIA! Mark my word on it!

 

It will sell by the ship load……

 

Im gonna get one

 

Yep quite hideous but it will appeal to the Americans.

 

What an odd comment.

The ‘24 Santa Fe is a knockoff of the design of the Land Rover Defender.

 

It's good - the rear was messed up but it's growing on me.

Frankly, I'm glad we are getting more choices for blocky SUVs and not the ugly egg-shaped vehicles that are all over the place now. An SUV should be blocky for better cargo room in the back. The egg-shaped SUVs are all disgusting

 

Agreed, they took an elegant car and turned it into a toaster. Sad that anyone would want to drive a box over something fashionable and sporty.

 

I could have lived with it, except for that butt ugly azz! HORRIBLE!

I predict there will be a few of these running around with a Santa Fe underneath.

 

I agree it is very ugly and have found it to be a copycat look and very Non-Hyundai looking. So glad I bought the 2023 model!! I also understand it does not come in a PHEV? (At least not in the US). The advantage of PHEV over HEV has to be overcome in savings by the added 5 to 6 thousand price increase. Thats a lot of miles that a lot of us will not ever be driving.

 

Figure on 40 to 50k miles to break even

 

What happened to your beautiful classy SUV is it grew in size and functionality.

 

What happened to your beautiful classy SUV is it grew in size and functionality.

View attachment 485841

That third row only allows little people who have popped a couple of Xanax to sit back there. I can't imagine anyone of average height (certainly not me at 6'4") sitting in a third row of any SUV short of an Expedition or Suburban. The Hyundai version of the 2023 Santa Fe sold me over the Kia Sorento because they didn't pretend to be a three row SUV.

 

The current Sante Fe is not stylish or elegant or classy or sexy, it’s a boring, predictable, cheapish-looking 2nd rate designed car created as an option for people who can’t or won’t necessarily afford a more stylized mid-sized SUV’s. It screams all practicality. The incoming model changes that. Enjoy living in the past.

 

Did you even look at that photo of the white Santa Fe? Talk about your plain jane!! No sleek lines or curves. Put that in black and you have an industrial looking secret service vehicle. Nah, the new 2024 is just plain jane UGLY!

 

The new Santa Fe is hideous on the exterior, but inside it’s pretty nice and has lots of capability. Most people don’t care how ugly their car is, so it will sell like hotcakes. Think of it as a boxy minivan.

 

"Most people don’t care how ugly their car is, so it will sell like hotcakes." <<< I disagree. I predict the 2024 KIA Sorento will increase their sales over the Santa Fe ...and hopefully Hyundai will learn a valuable message!

 

Same here

 

Same here, do not like the new style at all

 

Here’s where they go their design inspiration from

 

It's so amusing to watch the redesigned brand and model forums over the years, the same complaints repeated over and over again by people swearing off the brand or model. There is a reason J. D. Power makes money on their yearly study:

https://www.jdpower.com/business/press-releases/2023-us-automotive-brand-loyalty-study

 

People have paid big money for the boxy look for decades. Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator, Chevy Suburban.

 

Look at the photo of the white 2024 Santa Fe and then this photo

 

Yep ...I was thinking old model Land Rover look-alike ...but Ford Flex is probably a better twin!

 

The above is what folks ought to be fretting about.

So those 4 cylinders and turb will be pumping pretty hard to generate 277 horsepowers and 311 Ft/Lb torques:

A Ford Flex offered:

That is 6 cylinders, normally aspirated.

A Ford Expedition is offered with V8 and V8 Turbo engines:

I bought a 2013 recently to enjoy the last Normally Aspirated V8 engine I could find.

 

A Ford Flex offered:

That is 6 cylinders, normally aspirated.

No sir, the 3.5 Ecoboost is twin-turbo, hence the name "Ecoboost". The Duratec 3.5 was NA w/around 287 HP towards the end of the Flex's run.

 

Definitely more Defender looking than Flex looking with the tapered roof line, that said, they each have their own unique look.

 

Definitely more Defender looking than Flex looking with the tapered roof line, that said, they each have their own unique look.

View attachment 486017

Behold, the mighty BOX!
2013 Ford Expedition XLT

 

Everybody wants 3rd row seating, and lots of cargo room. I never understood how the 10 passenger wagon died in this country! I think they thought we didn't want that, but deep down, if someone reintroduced the old wagons, with modern tech under the hood, I'd bet we would buy it! It's like they are trying to get us back to buying big boxy vehicles, and they ride like a truck. And how many folks buy P-U's so they can have cargo space, and never really use them for what they were intended for. Pick-ups were basically a "work" vehicle! Utilitarian to say the least, yet people drive them because they're large cars, with plenty of room, and cargo space. I have always loved station wagons. You get room, and you get the ride of a car, not the stiff suspension of a truck. I know some of the SUV's ride pretty nice, but not like a car. That's why I went back to a sedan, after driving a Ranger for 15 years. I get a nice ride, ample room in the trunk, and 40 mpg on the highway. And, the old cars had plenty of room, which you could comfortably have 3 adults across a seat. My Sonata is comfortable for travel, but could be a bit wider, touch longer. Think of the old Ford, Chevy, Chrysler wagons that used to roll down the roads. With the new engines, and tech of today, those barges would get a lot better mileage than they did back then. Couldn't be any worse than the mileage of some of the larger SUV's of today, but with a nicer ride, and more room. They used to use cubic inches to create power, but with fuel injection, and computer controlled timing, and ignition, these vehicles need half the cubic inches to get the same bph as the old cars. I had V-8's that put out the same bph as my 4-cylinder non turbo Sonata. And I think my Sonata is faster. If they would reintroduce a larger Sonata in a station wagon, I would buy it! I don't think I'm jumping on the electric vehicle bandwagon for awhile, if at all. GIVE US A WAGON!!!

 

Great idea, time to bring back the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser, I'm old enough to remember riding backwards in the third row.

But in reality, today's auto designers must chase the newest trend, outdoors pursuits, boxy styling to achieve maximum interior room and to distinguish their SUV from every other lookalike SUV (why every SUV looks the same, see bottom photo). There is no reason a unibody SUV cannot ride as good as a car. The skinny tires/wheels on today's models are for styling, not ride comfort. The first thing I do is to swap out the tires/wheels with 17" tires/wheels to give better sidewall compliance for better ride comfort.

 

It is nuts that all of these SUV's look the same. Even worse the grills on the upscale cars (Audi, Lexus) look like some big catfish. That's why I like my huge BOX. When I look out in a crowded parking lot, there it is, in its rectangular hugeness. I will be putting MANY radio antenna whips on it soon, 3 bigguns and 4 tiny ones. That is what 8 1/2 feet of steel roof is for.

The Pontiac Vista Cruiser, Family Truckster here in the US, is a "Shooting Brake" in the UK.

 

I do not mind the looks (too much), but the forced 3rd row of seats is a deal killer for us, a couple with a dog. We have the 3 row 2016 Santa Fe and that never used 3rd row steals "the well" a great hidden storage compartment that my 2010 SF had under the rear cargo area.

Now a 2 row, 2024 SF, WITH a well would be very, very hard to resist.

We once considered a Ford Flex with AWD and a V6, but that 3rd row had the option of a central aisle with a 2/2/3 seating pattern, AND a V-6, which always offsets negatives.

 

I do not mind the looks (too much), but the forced 3rd row of seats is a deal killer for us, a couple with a dog. We have the 3 row 2016 Santa Fe and that never used 3rd row steals "the well" a great hidden storage compartment that my 2010 SF had under the rear cargo area.

Now a 2 row, 2024 SF, WITH a well would be very, very hard to resist.

We once considered a Ford Flex with AWD and a V6, but that 3rd row had the option of a central aisle with a 2/2/3 seating pattern, AND a V-6, which always offsets negatives.

This is exactly why I own a 2023 Santa Fe Hybrid Limited and not a Sorrento. The Sorrento came with forced 3rd row seating only! No idea why Kia/Hyundai force this on us? Should always be an option.

 

Yeah, must agree w/ the consensus.....horrific looking vehicle.....

I suppose if you just want function and form is irrelevant, then the additional space for storage/passengers is a good thing.

I'm going to give my 2011 Santa Fe a big ole' hug....never knew it could be so beautiful until I saw this thing.....

 

It looks like a Range Rover knock off - an older model Range Rover...

 

Or perhaps the Ford Flex? Either way, it's Ugly on the outside!

 

The body design isn't eye cancer, but for a SUV being built in the 2020's the shape is very dated. You would swear they just copied the front end from a Land Rover Discovery...

 

And the rear from a Pontiac Aztek

 

Definitely a subjective love/hate design. Other than the awkward rear look due to the very square back/lights I like the design a lot to the point that the Santa Fe will be my first ever Hyundai/Kia car.

I’m not sure whether the design will look dated in a few years time, but for now it is one of the more interesting designs from my perspective. I also understand why the rear is the way it is based on wanting to maximize the rear opening etc.

Can fully understand why some owners of the prior/current Santa Fe don’t like it as it’s a major change rather than an evolution.

I actually think they are going to sell a lot of them and will bring new people, like myself, to the brand which is a good thing.

 

Raise those taillights up to Range Rover level and it's a winner. Now it looks like a sad old Range Rover with a saggy butt.

 

The rear is quite ugly. There's no doubt about that. But I like the front and love the interior so I am going to get one in a darker exterior so as to make it a bit more palatable. I am sure hyundai will sell a lot of them. But honestly I don't care as much about how odd the exterior is, as I'll be driving it and not going to see it as much...lol.