Hyundai's Tucson and Santa Fe PHEVs Are Pragmatic Pluggables 

I bought a bronco sport this week and that’s exactly what happened. Not to mention the mavericks marked up 50%…

On of the issues is the sales managers seem to order what they think that sells. They buy cars from the manufacture optioned out but they don’t reflect the build on the manufactures website.

@@park171 hey I know what would solve that. An "order here" form on Ford's website where I tick the boxes I want and they deliver me what I ordered at the price agreed upon. Wow! Incredible.

@@Channel-gz9hm Oh even better find the good dealer who give you discounts even uin bqd times... Like I got 9K off a Mustang and only paid exactly the legal requerment for out the door stuff from a dealer here in Flordia march of 2021.. My sister got $1k an Rav4 hybrid from another dealer.

@@GreenBlueWalkthrough I don't know how being badgered by a dealer and go through dozens of hoops and mind games would be easier than putting in your loan info on ford's website and setting a delivery date but you do you. What I want is options. I want to order off of Ford's website and not have to talk to a single agent. You want to go to a dealer and have their free donuts then by all means.

Agree, have the 22 Tucson hybrid (non plugin) as well and don’t regret it at all. The extra ‘boost’ and instant acceleration from the electric motor is very nice. I’m very impressed with the smooth switching between electric and gas, can hardly hear it The hybrid has a very good value for money, for example the large sunroof which on the non-hybrid is only available in the Limited trim

@@sidehide1 Some of us know perfectly well what we're buying. I've had a Hyundai for a decade without any major problems, and would happily buy another. Consumer Reports rates their brand reliability as above average, if below Toyota. Then again, they also tend to coat less than Toyotas.

@@sidehide1 They’ve been “improving” since 2010 and I still don’t see any difference in the build quality.

@@sidehide1 it’s a point just not a good one. Buy one in four years after the recalls start and the bugs are ironed out. Not V2G is a non starter for me

shop around, and dont give the price-gouging dealerships any business. I was able to find one without a markup a few months ago; happy w/ the car

Yeah those are just bad dealers... keep looking and you'll find a good one eventually.

There’s a lot of truth to that. Average markups right now on the the Santa Fe PHEV limited are around $3k (which is what we paid) and markups on the Tucson PHEV appear to be around $2k. Compare that to the Santa Fe Hybrid where the markup is closer to $1k - $1300. I hate it, but when you consider that the tax credit is getting you the bigger battery and plug-in capability, you’re really paying $1,500 more than you would if you just went with the hybrid. The credit really is the price of the plug-in capability. The rest is the same, generally speaking.

I’d consider a different manufacturer altogether, TBH.

The tax credits are intended to subsidize the manufacturer, not the buyer.

It's a customer issue as much as a dealer issue. The financial prowess of America is really on display (/s). People paying thousands overmarkup... the soonest you might sell is 3 years from now and by then the industry will be back to normal. All that cash over MSRP you might as well have set on fire. On the other hand, if people refused to pay markups, dealers would have to sell at MSRP.

Thanks for the detailed response. So wait - are you saying the Hyundai Santa Fe PHEV does *NOT* have a HUD, but the Tucson does? Somehow I missed that in the reviews. That's a big issue for me, and I appreciate you pointing it out. Assuming I'm interpreting what you said correctly.

@@jsfbay1 I was only saying that you can’t get a Heads-Up Display on the Santa Fe PHEV because that feature only comes in the Calligraphy Trim and there is no Calligraphy Trim sold for the PHEV version of the Santa Fe (or the Hybrid version). If you wanted the HUD, you would need to purchase a Santa Fe with a different engine. That said, I went and looked just now and there is no HUD available on the Tucson in any trim with any engine type (at least here in the North American market). Hope that helps.

@@srfeger - Okay, thanks very much for that information. I sure hope they do a PHEV Caligraphy! I need that HUD!

We bought our Santa Fe Calligraphy during the height of the pandemic. Wife was insistent on the Red with Beige interior, which is an awesome color combo. We placed a deposit and had to wait about 4 months for it to arrive. I also have a Chevy Volt PHEV and would have loved the PHEV Santa Fe, but as mentioned, no Calligraphy trim. As for the above mentioned SPORT mode, I know for a fact on the PHEV Chevy Volt, when putting in Sport mode, it does absolutely nothing to car performance, all it does is remap the accelerator pedal. It certainly feels much faster, but that is due to the faster response from the pedal. I don't know if that would be the same on the Santa Fe.

@@leppard98 I’m jealous, great choice. Question for you. What do you think of the dual clutch transmission? I was not comfortable with it. Not based on any experience, but more gut. I live in a suburb, but traffic never gets better and the stop-and-go traffic I thought would not be helpful with a DCT? But I also didn’t know anyone who had one. Tell me what you think. My brother is looking at the Santa Fe as well, but maybe not the PHEV or Hybrid. That would put him in your camp.

Just so you are aware, it heats cabin by the petrol engine only. So you can pretty much forget running short trips on electricity during winter time and you have to wait for the engine to get warm to get any cabin heating. Major downer in cold climate. (I'm from Norway, but I guess Canada is at least as cold).

No you cannot. There is no electric heater. Cabin heating is from the petrol engine, like a normal petrol car. Makes it impossible to run these on electricity only on winter (turning on the heater, will turn on the petrol engine). It also prevents them from preheating while parked. (You can remote turn on the engine with the key-fob, and as with any petrol car, when it has idled long enough, warm air starts flowing). So I would not recommend these if you live in a cold climate, and drive a lot of short trips, hoping to do those on electricity.

Flat-ish. I'm an ice hockey goalie and ride around in the santa fe with my second row folded about 50% of the time.

I have the 2022 Santa Fe PHEV. its almost flat. there definitely is a small angle. Flat enough for me to sleep on folded down though.

Yes, and it is powered.

I agree, at least for the transition to better battery technology. It offers the best of both worlds by giving owners the option for EV for short trips/commutes and ICE for long road trips or rural living.

no

For many people they make sense, especially people with a moderate commute.

EV from home for the slight savings and being green, easy to find and fast to refill gas for long drives.

tuscon hybrid 30-32 on highway doing 70-75. 27ish doing 80mph. 60-65mph will get you pretty close to epa estimate of 37. this was tested by me on a 2500 mile one way trip across the usa in mine. at temps below 30F, i got as low as 19mpg at the highest above noted speeds and averaged about 22mpg at 75. once above freezing it was consistent for 30-32mpg.

Tucson is 33, Santa Fe is 31.

That's a complicated question, as so much depends on what you expect to power. I grew up sleeping in the back of a station wagon without needing any auxiliary power. My brother still does in his minivan. It all depends on what you expect to be powering from the car. On the whole Hyundai/Kia has been good about powering external devices, but I'm sure they vary by model.

I have the 2022 Santa Fe PHEV and I've gone car camping a few times with it. I take my car for hiking, backpacking, camping, rock climbing, snowboarding, fishing, etc. This is from the perspective of a weekend warrior car camper that mostly goes with my girlfriend. Here some of my thoughts and notes on it: 1) The heater and a/c will kick on the engine at about a consistent 1500rpm until you turn climate control off, so if you are hoping to run climate control all night off just the battery, that is not the case. 2) There is one auxiliary power outlet in the front by the drivers knee and one in the rear trunk on the passenger side. Both support up to 180W. Car must be turned on at least to auxiliary power mode to use either cigarette ports. 3) From my understanding (I may be wrong on this one), using the auxiliary power outlet drains the 12v Battery. As the 12v Battery starts to get low, the EV battery will transfer its energy to the 12v to keep it topped off. If the EV battery gets really low than the engine will kick on to power the battery. To be honest, never really tested this aspect of the car and pushed it to it's limit because I mostly use my portable power station for my electrical needs, but this is what I gathered from reading other people's comments and reading the owner's manual. Maybe I'll more thoroughly test this part of my car during the summer. 4) As Alex mentioned, it is a gas mitigation PHEV meaning that as you drive, even in EV mode, it will still use a small quantity of gas. On the flip side if you wanted to drive just pure gasoline, that is not possible either. The best it can do is Hybrid mode, which will use some electrical battery throughout the drive. If I am trying to conserve battery to save for camp, I will drive in hybrid mode and through electrical regen I will get to the campground with fairly close to the original battery %. Of course depends a lot on how far you drive, how much downhill there is, traffic, etc. Generally, don't expect to still have all of your battery once you reach the camp area. 5) It folds down flat enough where you don't really need a build/install a platform. I just fold down the back chairs, put my sleeping pad on, and my bed is ready. 6) I'm 6'2 195lbs and my gf is 5'2 and we sleep in there comfortably without bumping into each other width wise. Length wise, the front chair needs to be slightly scoot up to accommodate my height, but with my gf so short, her passenger seat usually is scooted up enough where I don't need to adjust anything for bedtime. 7) When sitting up straight in the trunk, crossed leg, without the sleeping pad, my head barely grazes the roof. Makes it nice when trying to change clothes in the car. 8) I can keep some car camping items like my sleeping bag permanently in the under compartment (2:33), aka I can have a trunk that looks clean/empty while still carrying certain camping items. 9) Rolling down the windows to sleep, but leaving the sunshade up (10:09) is useful. 10) Only way to open the trunk from the inside is to pull the emergency lever. Overall, I like my car for car camping/outdoor adventures. Lots of cargo space for all my gear. Lays flat enough where I don't need to build fancy platforms, which makes it a lot easier to convert it from weekend warrior/car camping mode to city/regular life mode. Fuel economy is pretty decent for it's size for long road trips; with current California gas prices ($5.75) I can drive about 350 miles for about $60. There's a spare tire on the underside of the car, which gives peace of mind in the backcountry. AWD is helpful when going up icy mountains. Seems like your primary concern is auxiliary power usage for car camping, which I can't give you the exact best answer. I'll try to test for you in the coming weeks and let you know my findings. Send me a reminder if I forget.

@@markmiller3279 What's hard about it? Some hybrids use the hybrid system to provide aux power (so the engine only powers on a fraction of the time, to replenish the battery as needed) and other hybrid systems require the gas engine be on at all times. For example, in a Prius you can plug a 100-watt heater in and the engine will only kick on for about 30 seconds every 10 minutes, but in the new Tundra hybrid the engine would run full time. I'm not sure about the details of how the electrical systems differ but it really just boils down to "does the engine need to be running for climate control & aux power?" -- to which the answer is sometimes yes and sometimes no even across the lineup of the same manufacturer.

@@911aaron Thanks, perfect. That rules out the Santa Fe PHEV for me -- no overnight climate control. The Ford Escape PHEV and RAV4 PHEV both offer climate control. Unfortunate because the Escape PHEV isn't AWD and the RAV4 PHEV is too hard to find for a fair price.

the heater in the tuscon does cut out when using hybrid mode for too long...its a bit annoying. and the heater doesnt seem to feel hot unless you put the temp at about 79.

Can instantly tell you live in a colder climate... you're not from the US... no American would ever say "Petrol Engine". FYI, that's how the Nazi spies dressed as American GI's operating behind American lines during the Battle of the Bulge got caught... they asked some Americans where they can get "Petrol" for their Jeep... No American says PETROL... HANDS UP NAZIS!

@@wolfshanze5980 - correct. I'm from Northern Europe :)

Today is my 1 yr anniversary of waiting on Tucson PHEV... 🤣, And counting

In all Santa Fe, regardless of drivetrain, spare tire mount is outside, beneath the trunk floor. As far as I know, hybrids come without a spare, but at least you have the mount and can buy an aftermarket one

Santa Fe, Yes. Tuscon, No

he regular hybrid tuscon can fit a full size steel wheel and tire mounted to it under the false floor, as well as a real floor jack (small 1.5 ton harbor freight one) tire chocks, and some wood, and even more crap. i did it in mine...plenty of room.

Only 2,000 lbs from what I can tell.

I think Prime have a more robust driving system, plus to Toyota's reputation on hybrid; Hyundai's turbo + plug in hybrid is way more complex, but with current Prime's crazy markup (10k) and even less premium overall interior, Santa Fe is still a very attractive option if it is available in your state

the gas pedal DEFINTELY could use better range settings to keep EV on longer. it is also adaptive to your driving habits too. when im agressive it doesnt kick on EV as oftern and my MPG will suffer down to 33. but when im messing with the pedal more often, ill get to 39-43mpg. it def is adaptive in some way.

You think the Tucson PHEV is hard to find and marked up over the MSRP? You must not be shopping for a Rav4 Prime then... they are twice as hard to find and twice as marked up over MSRP!

@@wolfshanze5980 They sure do. However, now it makes even less sense to get a Prime, since it lost all of its tax rebate and even the MSRP continues to creep up.

Better buy a Toyota if you want the engine to last.

@@moloono1 that’s what I bought

@@MASTERNC Congrats, that’s awesome! What did you get?

@@moloono1 RAV4 Hybrid

@@MASTERNC Great choice! I hope you enjoy your RAV4.

I followed one and surprisingly found it more noticeable since it was in an unusual location down low. Maybe they researched it.

@@edwardbaker1331(I realize this is an awkwardly late reply) I’ve been behind a dozen or so at this point, and I feel that the turn signals’ placement makes especially poor sense in a state like the one I live in (Texas), where lots of people own trucks, and nearly all of our daily goods are delivered by tall 18-wheelers. Especially in stop-and-go traffic, the turn signals are low enough to be easily missed. I wish they’d have integrated them into the “Ford Mustang-esque” taillights, or have implemented them as vertical pillar shapes in the D pillars. Both options would have allowed them to remain functional with the lift gate open, which has been the reasoning given by Hyundai for their abnormally low placement.

Why? They are almost never blocked where they are.

@@markmiller3279 Theyre blocked much more often than any turn signals in an actual good spot

It is a Fed requirement that if the tail gate is open you still must be able to see the turn signals.

The safety risk is SOMEONE TAILGATING YOU SO CLOSE THEY CAN'T SEE YOUR BUMPER... that's the fault of the other driver, not your car.

the regular hybrid tuscon can fit a full size steel wheel and tire mounted to it under the false floor, as well as a real floor jack (small 1.5 ton harbor freight one) tire chocks, and some wood, and even more crap. i did it in mine...plenty of room.

Lol... ya, waiting list for Toyota Rav4 Prime IS EVEN LONGER! Good job Toyota.

the backup speaker is annoying AF

There is a spare tire on the underside of the car for the 2022 santa fe PHEV. idk about the tuscon tho

he regular hybrid tuscon can fit a full size steel wheel and tire mounted to it under the false floor, as well as a real floor jack (small 1.5 ton harbor freight one) tire chocks, and some wood, and even more crap. i did it in mine...plenty of room.

What Toyota and Honda dealerships are you working with? I'm getting $3k plus markups on those around me.

@@Andrew-fm4jk Naperville, Il Here is what they said to me back in May 2022: "Toyota is not currently accepting orders. All of the remaining 2022 RAV4 Hybrids we will receive will go to people already on the waitlist. While we are selling all of our new vehicles at MSRP."

For Honda, Rock County Honda in Illinois selling at MSRP. Sales person is Tim Thompson.

Just got a 2022 Ford Escape SEL Hybrid at MSRP. Nothing more tacked on.

Thats the big kick in the nuts for me. Id love to move from my tucson HEV to a PHEV but even if I grab one in another state, theres no telling how any service or warranty would work out back in my home state that doesnt sell it.

@@pendeltonthecook Then maybe encourage your state legislators to adopt tougher fuel mileage standards, because those are the states getting these.

@@markmiller3279 It has nothing to do with fuel mileage standards. It has everything to do with infrastructure... those 11 States btw, also have (BY FAR) the highest taxes of all the states... they can stick their taxes where the sun don't shine... I'll just buy a standard Hybrid, ty (and I did, F-California and their crazy taxes).

cant afford it

There was not a single 1.4 engine anywhere in the video, you might want to actually watch the video and learn what's actually in the vehicles before commenting (also, the HP produced is more than a lot of V6's).

Why is that?

@Greg Kramer They are very elaborate and flamboyant. A pragmatic design would be Tesla. All Teslas have that shared design for aerodynamics and have no elaborate front end designs where the grill would be.

​@@imnotusingmyrealname4566 Nothing more boring than a model 3/Y. I did not realize that by pragmatic you meant no sense of style. I think that still matters. Not to mention a base Y is $65k and which feature set wise is like a $35K Tucson. I am not sure why a simple styling means more pragmatic.

@Greg Kramer Tesla didn't put effort in making a great design. Design isn't necessary for the car to function so I said that was pragmatic. Maybe it's not the design that's pragmatic but the mentality of Tesla while designing it. It's a Tesla it will sell, so they didn't put any effort in it. I totally agree with you btw.

@@imnotusingmyrealname4566 Awrodynamics are not that simple. Plenry of slippery looking cars aren't really any more efficient. Tire width and pressure has a bigger effect than minor differences in front-end design.

But since only a very few do, maybe your expectations are fantasies?

50 mpg is 5L/100 km. That’s about average for an early 1980 super bike or a early 2000s turbo diesel hatch. These things are nearly two tonnes. What is wrong with people?

A 1996 Geo Metro can get you 50mpg... and that's a nearly 30yo car!