We bought the little brother to the Santa Fe - a Tucson PHEV. My wife has really taken to consistently charging it in as needed (it is a very easy thing to get used to). We have been getting well over 100 mpg in it so far. I am completely sold on a PHEV as a logical and viable replacement for any gas car, and as a great alternative if you don't want a full on EV. Also, a PHEV qualifies for a percentage of the Federal EV tax credit ($6,587 in the case of the Tucson). As such, if you have the ability to plug it in when needed, it makes way more sense than a regular hybrid, which doesn't qualify at all. PS: If you don't need the size of the Santa FE, and can find one in stock, the Tucson PHEV is a really fantastic vehicle.
Yes, we got a Niro PHEV, some days that we stay local just going to the store and out to eat we use zero gas, the gauge maxes out at 999MPG but's actually zero gas used for like 23+ miles. Other days I go to work and do about half of it in EV and still get around 100-110mpg for the trip. On a long 2 hour each way drive when I used up all the battery the worst I got was like 52mpg. Even running as a normal hybrid it's still very good on gas. I use to buy gas 2-3 times a week, now I haven't bought gas yet this month and it's the 12th today, still the same amount of miles traveled as before.
Thanks to the current administration, no Hyundai or Kia EV/PHEV qualifies for tax credit anymore because they aren't made in North America. They nixed that in favor of Chevy's made in Mexico which do qualify.
As a retired guy married to another retired guy, who live within a 1 minute walk at a grocery store, our car sits in the garage a LOT! You answered a big question for me, that a PHEV could recharge in a timely manner on regular household current. And a 30 mile all electric range would work for us 99% of the time.
We are two retired guys and live in a very rural location. Our Santa Fe plug-in hybrid works great for us too! We especially like the cargo capacity and room for our dog. She enjoys the rear sun shades!
I own a 2013 kia optima and last week my husband was driving it when it suddenly shut off on him without warning. The smell coming from the hood was horrible! Smelled like sulfur and burning wires but no warning lights or anything to indicate what is actually wrong with it. It has been in the shop since last Wednesday.. I have never had issues with the car for the 2 1/2 years I've owned it. Probably a recall for something with the engine
The biggest problem with this car is that Hyundai refuses to sell it in all 50 states. Instead, they have forced it to be a compliance car even though it would probably sell well everywhere
I got this car 3 months ago (limited trim) and it’s amazing. I get just over 30 electric range so far, everything is good on it. The infotainment is not as intuitive as on other cars I’ve had, but this car is great, really happy I got it. Not sold in my state so I went one state over. Was on a waiting list for about 3 months but got it for msrp. I had a rav4 prime xse with a deposit on it and after test driving it, not nearly as good as the Santa Fe, I didn’t buy it. I get the added range and resale value arguments, but this is a different level of car, way more comfortable and nice feeling. It’s a different ballgame.
I decided to go with the RAV4 Prime bc of the way it stays in electric only mode. I was not able to drive a PHEV Santa Fe but drove the Sorento with that powertrain. With the Sorento when I would take off at a red light the gas engine would always turn on, is the Santa Fe the same way? We are going to keep the RAV4 until the Venza Prime comes out in 2023-24 bc the Venza is a higher quality vehicle.
Do u have restrictions to have that range on pure ec..Like u have to drive below some mph to keep that 30ev range. Also after pure ev..does it also get charge little bit while driving or just pure plug in dependent.
Our plug-in hybrid Santa Fe cruises at up to about 100-110kph (60-65mph) in all electric mode without the gas engine kicking in. That lasts for about 45-50 minutes then it switches to hybrid mode. We went about an hour and a half the other day in all electric mode, at lower speeds.
I have a PHEV Niro, great car with over 77MPG per tank of gas due to some of the driving being gas free in EV. I think PHEV's are actually a better idea, not worse. Batteries are expensive, heavy and demand can't match supply. One single EV may use 8-10 times the batteries as a PHEV, or you can build 8-10 PHEVs with the same number of batteries as 1 EV. An EV may have 250-300+ miles of range, but most of the time you drive under 100 or even 30 miles a day so most of the battery capacity gets wasted and goes unused. More PHEVs would likely have a larger and quicker impact on fuel reduction then a very small number of full EV's. PHEV's also take very little power to charge, about like running a large microwave so less impact on the grid due to charging. Plus if you can't charge or there are no chargers available they just run on their gas engine and you can just refuel anywhere and drive non-stop. Maybe in 5-10-15 years as batteries get improve the need for phev's will start to fade away and shifting to more full EV's will make sense.
I filled up my Sorento PHEV 6 weeks ago with 1200 miles driven since then and 1/3 fuel still left. I can also do road trips with no range anxiety. I also got back $6587 federal tax credits. I don't know about other people but PHEV makes perfect sense to me :-)
We've had our Santa Fe plug-in hybrid since late November and we love it! One thing you didn't mention is that when you run out of that 31 mile range of pure electric it changes to a regular hybrid vehicle with regenerative brakes and charging while coasting.
Solid review as always. Soooo I ordered my first pair of Flying Eyes sunglasses after this comment on your SQ7 video a few days ago and first off fast processing and shipping as they arrived yesterday (3 days ;ater). Quick background with me and sunglasses; one of my early retail jobs was at Sunglass Hut when they were still just kiosks in malls. They really were great at educating their employees on the importance of high quality optics and proper UV protection. Not to mention the facts you bring up about not being able to use polarized lenses for flying for example. So from about the mid 90s to now I have not only appreciated why someone would spend $200 or more on non-prescription eyewear and have owned the best from companies like Revo, Maui Jim, Ray Ban and Serengeti so this type of purchase is normal for me. I mainly bring that up so you understand I am SUPER picky about quality sunglasses. Flying Eyes really hits the highest marks in any category I can think of in measuring high quality sunglasses. Excellent optics, really great construction and design plus amazing features regarding materials and UV and impact protection. I got the wrap around Golden Eagle Sport in the only polarized option they had, the grey tint. Excellent product and my only item on my personal wish list would be polarized in the amber tint. Highly recommended by a sunglass guy. Thank you for the heads up with this company and wow made right here in Texas USA, that is awesome! Also thank you for the discount code and cool Micah Muzio adventures stickers, yay for that! Very unexpected and cool sir. Cheers and let's get you to that 100k subs this year.
Our Tucson PHEV has been perfect for my wife’s commute to work. It charges fully in less than 2 hours on our home level 2 charger. We charge it midday while my son naps at it’s ready for our next adventure. We’ve gone over a month now without refilling our tank. Just got the $6k government rebate. We have a the wireless CarPlay and it skips constantly. That’s exactly why it’s not on higher trims.
I travel for work a lot and have had wireless CarPlay in multiple different cars. It’s universally bad. It’s laggy, often disconnects, and has lower audio quality than a wired connection.
exterior of the SF is hideous, X3 is beautiful and coherent unlike the hyundais. X3 is also much faster and more effective awd. the interior of X3 can be a bit plasticy but not if you go for upgraded version. so yeah hyundai is cheaper, you get what you pay for.
I got one of these nearly a year ago in the UK, its a good car spoilt by the terrible BlueLink system (unreliable, slow, clunky). There is also a long running issue with scheduled charging, sometimes it will charge fully at the time you set it to. Sometimes you will get a partial charge, and sometimes no charge at all. Thats NOT acceptable on a new Phev...come on Hyundai, get it sorted. And my biggest gripe with the car is that there is no option to precondition the car before you set off in the morning. if you want cabin heating, the internal combustion engine needs to be running it cant be done when plugged in. Much cheaper cars can do this.
Love our late model Santa Fe’. I really think the next New one may be the Hybrid, or Plug in. I can’t see an EV just yet. Not with the battery loss here in the NE Winters. Parking is outside. I love the amount of Room, Quiet, ride, and features.
Excellent point about winter time battery issues for BEVs. We really enjoyed our time in the Santa Fe. I'd never considered a PHEV as our 2nd car option but I think it could make a lot of sense.
You're not crazy and that's not an option, it's MANDATORY. Since Hybrids and EVs use only the electric motor to backup, it's dead quiet when in reverse, so the beeping is mandatory to warn pedestrians you're backing up.
I'm an enthusiast who has been helping one of my best friends look for her next car. We test drove the Santa Fe PHEV and were really quite impressed. Lovely interior, plenty of physical buttons, smooth ride and powertrain. The only thing we didn't like was the turn signals being red instead of amber, and being low on the bumper, making them harder to see. However, with the new info out of Korea and the new American lawsuit regarding oil consumption in tons of Hyundai/Kia engines, even the new SmartStream motors, I can't recommend them as a brand in good faith Which is a shame, because they're so impressive otherwise. Instead, we are looking at the RAV4 Prime and the upcoming Mazda CX-50.
Do you know how long gas can stay in tank for without being used? Ex. What if you don't go over the 30 miles per day for like 2 mos...is that a problem when you finally want/need to use the gas?
I like the Santa Fe, but hate where they put the rear turn signals. They are too low and might not be seen by another driver in certain traffic situations.
"Certain traffic situations" = being aggressively tailgated by another driver. If the other driver is tailgating you so close they can't see your bumper, the safety issue isn't you or your vehicle, the other driver is the safety issue.
Micah, you need another video series called “Could Evie Buy It?”. In that series you and Evie randomly go the car dealer’s showrooms and try to buy a vehicle. The objects of this are to show viewers (1) whether the dealer actually has said vehicle in the showroom or on its lot, and (2) reveal whether the asking price for said vehicle is MSRP or MSRP + Add-On.
@@afcgeo882 - Do you know how I can find out which 11 states have them? Or, if you already know the answer, can you please list them here? Thank you very much!!!
I've had my SF PHEV since Oct 21, good review. I think the spongy brake you felt has to do with the regenerative braking system that is software modulated. Starting with just regen when you first apply the brakes ramping up to very strong regen as you step on the brakes harder. Going down a steep grade in cruise control the car uses regen braking to maintain the correct speed - so far I haven't come down a grade so steep that I had to use the brakes.
I would stay away from any Hyundai product like the plague.. In my experience the only thing worse than the reliability of Hyundai’s electric vehicles is the way Hyundai treats their customers. I own a 2017 Hyundai Sonata PHEV, which experienced hybrid system failure on i95 (nearly causing an accident) on Aug 31, 2021. Two months later, during which time the Hyundai dealer made two unsuccessful repair attempts, I picked up my car only to have Hybrid system failure occur for the third time before I even made it to the first traffic light. The service center then told me the car (under warranty) needs a new battery pack, which I have been waiting for over the past SIX months. The car has been out of service for EIGHT months and Hyundai has refused all buyback attempts. I bought a new Rav4 Prime in Feb…..If I ever get my Hyundai back it will be sold… ……
Please help to calculate. If I drive exactly 100 km per day, and have no chance to recharge but night time, how much would be an economy? Taking in consideration a standard cold weather and mixed city/highway roads, the first 50km the car will eat 4 l/100 (electric mode with periodical gas initiation for heating and speeding). Then battery loose charge, and the remaining 50 km I'll drive on underpowered 1.6T gas engine, with fuel consumption 8 l/100. At my return to home I will spend 4/2 +8/2=6 liters. If I run more than 100 km, this amount will be bigger. Is it correct?
I have a 2019 Santa Fe Ultimate with the 2.0 turbo, and love the truck. I see the PHEV is a 1.6 turbo and the electric motor. My question is when the batteries deplete after the 31 mile range, does the truck solely rely on the 1.6 engine? I love the power of my 2.0 turbo but would hate to step in one of these and feel a significant power loss from the smaller motor .
I have the 2022 Santa fe phev. In Electric mode, its never a true fully Electric power only, especially on the highways. Occasionally it'll kick on the engine whenever it feels it needs more power. If you are doing constant slow speeds, then I can imagine being able to drive the full distance with the battery only, but in the real world in city/highway driving, I always see the engine kick in at least once during my drive. With all that said, it's hard to tell exactly what the full EV range actually is because the gas keeps getting muddled in the driving range. I'd say about every 5 miles I drive, 1 mile of it is gas and the other 4 electric. In my opinion, if you were able to somehow truly drive in full EV the entire drive, you'll probably get about 25mile real world electric range.
Regarding the interior details like the diamond quilted seats and the knurled knobs: head over to the Bentley configurator and take a look at interior photos of a Bentley Continental GT coupe (with the "diamond knurling specification," a $1,990 option, last time I checked prices). Hyundai has taken 2 designers from Bentley in recent years. The Bentley-like details are even more noticeable in some of the Genesis car designs (naturally).
I think one of the points of the detractors of PHEV's is that since the engine isn't running all the time, the catalytic converters aren't up to temperature and doing their smog thing. Perhaps with a regular hybrid, the cat's stay hot enough because the all electric range is shorter and the gas engine is on much more of the time. Thoughts?
Catalytic convertors don't need to do anything if the engine isn't running... but once the battery runs out, the vehicle will start the engine and run it long enough to warm up the cat. It only takes a couple minutes.
Great review as always. I had a request, could you do a family review for the Kia K5 GT? I observed that neither KBB not you reviewed the GT version of K5 & would love your & the family's insight on it. Thank you.
Found out the reason wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto aren't available with the larger screen is due to a dispute between Hyundai Motors and Google over which navigation system should be used.
Why no wireless Car play/Android auto? I heard somewhere that both Apple and Google wants their navigation as main tool and Hyundai want to keep theirs. So tech companies are like, ok No Wireless for you! Can't find the source though, trying to look for one.
OMG the kid grew up fast 🤣 I'd probably get the regular HEV of this instead. The reason you lost the underfloor storage in the back is because it's a PHEV. You get a pretty huge under floor storage for HEV and ICE models. And this as test price is even higher than our VW id4 AWD Pro before any tax credit. For the flying eyes glasses, I think they would make some great shooting glass. But do they have good anti shatter rating? I like the thin leg design so they can fit under ear protection, but I hope they have good shatter protection too (the army eye pro I am wearing can stop bird shots with their lens). Would you please remind this to the manufacturer to make something for shooting? Thanks
I'm most familiar with Flying Eyes' aviation products but I do know their Golden Eagle Sport frames are ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2015 Certified and are designed for the shooting community. Might be worth a look.
Ive heard from another channel that has close connections with a Hyundai big wig that the wireless CarPlay 8 inch/ wired CarPlay 10.25" has to do with the proprietary nav system thats in the larger unit....is an "argument" between Hyundai and Apple about who get to have the default nav in the unit for the wireless.....the smaller screen doesn't have imbedded nav so it's not an issue as your phone would be the only nav anyway regardless of CarPlay or Android Auto....but who knows for sure..
IDK about the disagreement, but I've researched and found the same answer. The larger info center having nav will not let you use wireless versus the smaller unit without nav. I hope they update this in the near future. We love our 2022 Santa Fe unlimited.
That makes no sense. When you’re using wired or wireless Apple CarPlay, you’re in an Apple app. There are no “default” navigation apps to use at that point, just a choice of those that are on your phone. Since the Hyundai/Kia nav system isn’t on your phone, it isn’t an option. To use it you must exit back to the unit’s own OS, just like with every other infotainment system.
I bought a 2020 Santa Fe not knowing they were going to redesign it. I love my Santa Fe but I like the interior of the newer design. What should I do? Lol I’m serious. I’ll probably keep the 2020 for a while though. I have a feeling a newer design will be out sooner than later 🙄
Please get your hands on a escape phev as well! I like the simpler architecture of Toyota/Ford PHEVs. Planetary gear system seems better than a regular transmission when going hybrid.
Love the vehicle but hate the trend of not including spare tires, not even the ridiculous space saving spare. What am I supposed to do if I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere?
My first thoughts of competitive vechicles was Sorento. Make realize it's kind of in a unique position. Hybrid midsize. Think venza seem size down Highlander 3 row (ish). Seem like a great vechicles in a segment with very few competition. Like the idea of plug in hybrid but have to think hard if I'll be committed to plug it in regularly.
PHEV's ARE the way to go for many Americas and I can only assume that the neigh-sayers are either EV fanatics or are unable to do simple math. IF you charge the battery up every day you can use the EV mode most or all of a normal day of shopping, to/from work etc. One auto reviewer notes that he and his wife drive PHEV's and they can go months and months without filling the gas tank. AND, when you road trip, you can take the PHEV as a hybrid, abate a slightly less efficient hybrid. What the neigh-sayers are talking about I don't know, but the average driver in American drives are about the same distance as you get out of a good to very good PHEV battery! - (but true hybrids are more efficient) . . . AND YOU ARE ALWAY USING GAS! A PHEV, if you charge the battery, will use much less gasoline!
@@afcgeo882 And all of that is BS to many people who are not EV fanatics. They don't get the fact that many folks will only buy a tank or three of gas a year with a PHEV, be able to go electric most days and still can travel as an ice car on a trip. Many peopledo not want the hassle of a long trip with an EV and having to figure stops to recharge. I don't blame them, largely because the charging network that is not Tesla is still a bit of a mess; very few reviewers will tell you they have had NO issues with charging, and some reviews have stopped dealing with EV's because of the hassle and uncertainty. The PHEV is not the end-all, be-all of EV's in America . . . but for those with an average daily drive, for those with a single vehicle or only one vehicle comfortable enough to travel in and for those who want to dip their toes into EVs, the PHEV is the way to go and no amount of whining by EVers about 'net efficiency' is going to change that.
@@OldThomMerton I get all that, but it in reality, it’s a fairly small number of people. Very few people are in a situation that you describe, and have range anxiety. I am actually a proponent of all people first switching to hybrids, because hybrids use FAR less lithium-ion batteries, which are a rare commodity right now, because charging infrastructure sucks, because electricity isn’t cheap everywhere and because the industry can sell everyone a hybrid with the same battery supply as 15% EVs. That would also lead to a greater benefit to the environment, reducing more emissions than 15% of cars being EVs. Then, as infrastructure and technology improves, most should switch to PHEVs, with maybe 20% switching to BEVs, but that’s in a decade or so. That would force charging stations to be placed everywhere, but not strain the industry.
@@afcgeo882 I agree with the limited supply of lithium ion batteries, I disagree completely and utterly with the 'very few people are in the situation you describe' comment. We will have to agree to disagree on that topic. I live in a city that is anywhere from 275 to 500 miles away from other cities nearby. There are a few chargers along the Interstate and otherwise you can't find anything but a rare L1 or L2 charger outside of that. A friend was thinking about an EV but the cost and the 'range anxiety' for his wife's trips stopped him. I mentioned PHEV's and he did the research. His wife now drives a used Ionic PHEV and loves it.
@@Jennlewis16 While there’s no 3rd row in the current Santa Fe, it’s closely related sibling, the Kia Sorento, does offer a 3rd row. If you’re looking for a 3 row SUV that’d be one to investigate.
@@afcgeo882 V N means you can't walk into dealer and drive away with this vehicle at MSRP(if you can even find it)....U have to order one and see how long you have to wait....
I lost interest about a third of the way through. Maybe it was the obligatory sunglasses ad (I turned off the sound). Or the forced cuteness by everyone except the child. I really prefer Driven by Tom Voelk.
I disagree. I feel interior and exterior are killing it. This model is one of my least favorite Hyundai designs, but I still like it more than any of say Toyota or hondas designs
See my comment about how they hired a couple of Bentley designers in the last few years. I see some Bentley-like details in some of the higher-trim Hyundais & Genesis cars. In this car the diamond quilted upholstery & the diamond knurled knobs. In the Genesis GV80 a two-tone leather-wrapped steering wheel.
Meh, my Clarity PHEV has around 17kwh, boggles my mind how this has under 14. 30 miles all electric is pretty useless in the real world, I would opt for the hybrid variant if there is one.
@@afcgeo882 yeah but using the complete eve range every day will just degrade the battery faster than if you could just use ⅔ of the battery and over time with degradation you'll still have a full day of EV after 4 or 5 years.
@@makatron The complete USABLE range of a battery isn’t the full battery capacity. Batteries are managed by computers to avoid such scenarios. In a PHEV, once the battery falls to the bottom of the usable range, the gasoline engine kicks in to charge it, and assist with power. That’s something an EV doesn’t have, so battery management is different. In an EV you can literally deplete your battery down to zero. In a PHEV you’d have to run out of gasoline AND electricity to do that.
All cars lose a lot of value quickly, some a little more than others, but not that different. Most people who are buying cars will want to drive it to the ground or until it’s been at least 10 years. Ppl who lease don’t have to worry about resale. Engine issues were mostly with 2.4 litre nat asp engine from the prev generation . New ones have 2.5 as a standard
@georgel7525 zero issues with the 1.6L Turbo... trolls think every Hyundai in the world uses the 2.4L Theta engine. Just shows how stupid and uninformed they are. Trolls.
