Review: 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe Ultimate 

Hyundai and Kia are definitely becoming more than just a "value" proposition. Great video!

Saw one of these new redesigned Santa Fe yesterday and I have to say it looks a lot better in person. I thought it looked ugly in pics before.

lol every refresh/redesign kia and Hyundai does gets better and better, they have been on a roll since 2011

My wife loves her 2016 Santa Fe sport ultimate! It’s such a well equipped and practical smaller suv. Got 29mpg Highway on a 800 mile trip with the awd. Picked it up last year with 13k miles for 26.3k out the door. Was a 40k car brand new.

I've owned 3 Hyundai turbo vehicles. I've noticed that they take about a month a consistent driving, whether aggressive to conservative driving to get honed in. The turbo will stay in boost longer and it will hold gears longer. Plus I manually shift often to drop the gears and get in boost quicker

Just took delivery of an Ultimate 2.0T and its an engineering marvel! Everything, right down to setting your seat memory, is monitored and displayed on the dashboard screen. Gas mileage is steadily climbing as breaking mileage adds up. The heads up display is very informative and also mimics GPS route selection so you really don’t have to take your eyes off the road. There’s even a forward-facing roof mounted HVAC vent that is unobtrusive but effective in sending A/C around the vehicle. Great design and stunning visuals coupled with an amazing warranty.

Bought one identical to the one you tested , minus the AWD , three months ago . After putting over 3000 miles on it , I can't say that ours has excessive turbo lag . To me , the engine is really responsive. Without having the AWD , upon accelerating from a traffic light normally , if you goose it a little( not floored ) even at 20 /25 mph it will loose traction . Torque always seems to be right there , and doesn't require a downshift to get decent movement at road speed . HP is 235 .

I have the same vehicle in a 2015, Ultimate, turbo, AWD. Have loved it so far. I usually tire of cars after about a year and have to say I still like driving mine day in and out. In city driving, my MPG is just shy of 21 so I won’t complain. Wife has a 2016 Murano and even though the interior is nicer, it seems clumsy and the Santa Fe is more fun to drive. My plan is to keep the 2015 til the fall and get the new version similarly equipped in a 2020. Thanks for the great review.

We don't have the Ultimate. We bought the SEL+ and we love it. The only thing that I have an issue with SEL+. It's the headlights. It's still yellow. I hope they change it to 6500K headlight for 2020 models. Aside from that, we see ourselves - with the Santa Fe in the open roads.

Cant lie these things look really good for a Hyundai

We purchased the Ultimate 2.0 two months ago. Came on to this after two test drives in the new Genesis G70 which we had a few issues with. The Ultimate 2.0 has a crazy smooth ride, excellent styling and more bang than most Crossover SUV's we looked at. Pricing is so fair and if you are in a small Midwestern city, these 39k Santa Dr's can be had best 30k. Nothing in this space rivals the pricing and value

Nice vehicle but I continue to be surprised that reviewers don't seem to notice that the Santa Fe is a two row, turbo4 version of the KIA Sorento. When KIA dropped the turbo4 option in the Sorento in 2018, the same engine found its way into the Santa Fe in 2019. KIA also dropped the two row version of the Sorento in 2018. Now exactly the same under floor storage that was in the two row Sorento is in the Santa Fe in the space used to stow the third row under the cargo floor in the Sorento. The two vehicles are literally the same size, each fitting into the "Goldlilocks" tweener category between compact and midsize SUV's. The Santa Fe is 188" in length; the Sorento is 189". The two vehicles are the same weight, though somewhat surprisingly the Santa Fe AWD is about 20 pounds heavier. They share the same transmissions and AWD systems including a locking center differential. Same wheel sizes. The wheelbases are within a half inch of one another. And, of course, the same excellent warranties. In the interior anyone familiar with a Sorento will feel at home in a Santa Fe. Same control layout on the steering wheel, same buttons on the left side of dash. Identical climate controls. Virtually the same infotainment systems though the KIA's screen is integrated into the center stack while the Santa Fe's is a tablet style mounted on the dash. Same seats including adjustable thigh support for the driver and identical seat adjustments. Same overall passenger room in both the first and second rows. Identical cargo capacity both behind the second row and with all rear seats collapsed. There are some minor differences in interior looks and features. The top trim SX-L Sorento has somewhat more premium materials overall but the Santa Fe counters with a somewhat flashier interior and more eye candy in the driver's cockpit display. In addition, the Santa Fe has a couple of features missing from the Sorento: an alert if a child/pet is left in a car with the windows closed and a lockout that prevents the rear driver side door from being opened if a car is approaching from that side. I'm guessing each will show up in the 2020 Sorento. The big differences are, of course, the three row seating of the Sorento and its V6 engine. The third row isn't suitable for a long trip but it's surprisingly accommodating with more legroom than the much larger CX-9 and Toyota Highlander. For local trips, it's a great convenience when the alternative is taking two vehicles or chauffeuring a gaggle of teenage girls. (It's a duty I'm very familiar with.) The elephant in the room is the KIA's available naturally aspirated V6 versus the Santa Fe's turbo4. Though the latter engine is adequate and provides the same 0-60 performance, in a two ton vehicle the V6 offers smoother, quieter, and more linear performance with little, if any, deficit in terms of fuel economy. The bottom line is that each is an appealing vehicle. If buyers believe they have no use for a third row of seats, likes the underfloor cargo storage, prefers the "kick" of a turbo engine, or simply prefers the exterior styling of the Santa Fe, it's a good choice. If one's priorities and preferences favor the Sorento, it's an excellent nearly identical alternative aimed at a slightly different market sub-segment.

I just found your channel from a 5 year old video and was glad to see you still upload, most car channels I find haven’t uploaded in about a year which is unfortunate because I really like their content

I got my new 2019 Santa Fe Ultimate 2.0 T in Feb after an 18 wheeler totaled my 2013 Hyundai Sonata. I love my Santa Fe! It’s fully loaded! #hyundai4life

Panoramic sunroof omg that shit is soooooo dope I needs this asap lol

JUST BOUGHT 2020 ELITE TURBO. THE SELF DRIVE LANE KEEP IS FANTASTIC, AS IS THE AUTO STOP. FANTANTATIC ON FREEWAYS. ALSO THE SHADES HE MISSED, GREAT. IT HAS DETECTOR AND STOP FOR CROSS TRAFFIC WHEN BACKING UP, AND IT WILL LOCK DOORS IF IT DETECTS A CAR COMING. AND THE BLIND SPOT DETECTORS WITH CAMERA IN MIDDLE OF DASH IS FANTASTIC. THE MORE I DRIVE IT, THE MORE I LOVE IT. I ALSO OPTED FOR THE 10 YEAR BUMPER TO BUMPER WARRANTY. I TRADED MY 2015, BUT THE ONLY THING EVER DID WAS TAKE TO DEALER FOR 3 YEARS FREE OIL FILTER, OIL CHANGE, AND TIRE ROTATION. IN FIVE YEARS I SPENT AH...AH.. $100..OIL CHANGE EVERY SIX MONTHS. OH, THE REAR SEATS ARE HEATED ALSO.

I like true 5 seaters like this, the Edge, Murano and Grand Cherokee. No need to shoehorn a baby 3rd row. Great review, Matt!

👏🏾 Another home run for Hyundai!

The leg room in that Santa Fe was about as much as it was in the Fusion we use to have

I experienced the same 'turbo switch on/off' type of response Matt complains about in my test drive of a Ford Edge.... it banged on exactly as he describes the Santa Fe.... at about 21:00 timeframe.

You seem like the nicest dang person around. Also, thanks for the detailed information on this car.

I just bought a 2019 Santa Fe and love it so far....best value out there

If they did something with the lower front half I think it would look great. The headlight area is terrible.

Great review! You hit on a lot of pros and cons. I just bought mine last week, although it is the Limited version. I think my next car will be the Ultimate in a few years. I am really enjoying mine!

I love this car !

Twin scrolls should take care of that turbo threshold. Maybe for next gen, or wait for a facelift

I thought the landscape looked familiar in this video - then I saw you drive by Dragun's Landscaping on Rochester Rd and had to Google Streetview to confirm since it was just a glimpse out of the back drivers side window. Nice! Also, great video - subscribed!

for the MPG case, Turbo engine can only have good MPG if you don't push them too much. When you rev it up with the Turbo, it really start to use a lot of fuel. I got one and i can get a good mileage if i drive smoothly. But if i start to drive a bit more agressively, it become a gluton. People that drive agressivelly are better with a naturaly aspirated engine instead. They will have more instant power and also better fuel economy. If you drive smoothly, this engine is good enough !

My mileage with the 2019 Ultimate Turbo front wheel is as of now 29.5 for 2600 miles... Why is that a problem or low mileage?

Arent you worried about your channel not getting its usual amount of views? Been a loyal subscriber since the suba$&64@9rxfan days.❤️

Was the mpg you mentioned read from the computer or calculated at the pump? Based on my experience from several Hyundai cars and SUVs, unlike the FCA product, the onboard computer shows less fuel efficient than it actually is. I guess they were just too afraid of the EPA.

Have nearly the same 2.0 T in my 17 Optima SXL and yes city MPG will not meet the mileage on the sticker...but on long trips from Reno to LV in august we reached 37 MPG cruising at 70 or so mph...and we were comfy with cooled seats and a/c on auto...weight plays a part for sure!

It looks really roomy for a 5 seater. MPG is evened out by the size and price.(Gas prices are low these days anyway) Considering the safety features and comfort, it seems a great choice for a small family.

M3 = Matt Maran Motoring 🤯🤯🤯🔥🔥🔥

You mentioned that the fuel economy got you an average of about 18mpg. Was that in the Economy (?) mode, or Sport mode? I noticed you said you liked the Sport mode when you switched to it, so not sure if you left it on, or stayed with the Economy mode. How much difference would that make, do you think? I just bought this same vehicle about a week ago (dealership demo with 6,000 miles on it). I couldn't help but notice the lag also. I haven't taken it for a good ride on the highway yet. I will be going on a decent trip coming up so will be able to get a good feel for it then. Like your review says, it is a really nice vehicle. Smooth, comfortable, lots of entertainment options, very good safety standards and equipment also. You didn't mention that it does NOT come with a CD player. I was a little disappointed initially because I have quite a few CD's that will now not likely be played much anymore. Good thing is though, I've discovered you can load up a jump drive with music and play it on your SUV stereo. Or your phone, via Bluetooth, of course. I've been a Toyota customer since 1995. This was a big change for me. I am happy so far. My biggest "fear" is all of that glass in the roof. I swore I would never buy a vehicle with a panoramic roof. **Please don't come back to haunt me**. Had the vehicle not felt as good as it did I would likely still be driving a Toyota. It didn't hurt that it came with the Weathertech style floor and cargo trays for the whole vehicle, towing hitch and harness, 3M treatment over the whole front end, rain caps over both driver and passenger doors. All of this was offered with this demo. I test drove a lot of SUV's (2019 Lexus RX-350, 2019 Mazda CX-9, 2017 Ford Edge Titanium, 2015 Acura MDX, 2019 Kia Sorento SX, 2019 Toyota Highlander (XLE, SE, Limited), 2020 Toyota RAV4, 2019 Honda Passport, and 2020 CR-V). The 2015 MDX felt the best but was a little older than what I wanted (and a new MDX is more than I wanted to spend), the Lexus RX-350 I think I liked the least. Go figure! Bottom line is I bought this Santa Fe Ultimate. It was a really good bang for my buck, I finally decided. I had no idea, going into my search for an SUV, that this would be the vehicle I would decide on.

Loved seeing you with sofyan thought I would follow you !

Subaru wrx fan here. Oh wait! Great video man!

Bought our 2019 Ultimate w/turbo about two months ago. You slightly "dinged" the instrument panel because it didn't show as much as you would like but, a lot of that is shown in the HUD i.e. speed limit, current speed, distance to next turn, etc. so why show it twice? Also, you showed the "cubby" that would be great for a smart phone location, but didn't mention it's also a wireless charger compartment. I will agree regarding the turbo hesitation (which is just a very minor distraction), but so far my combined mileage has been around 25. That may be because I am a very "gentle" driver and keep the mode in smart economy almost exclusively. Thanks for the honest review. Personally, I think Hyundai has "knocked it out of the park" on this vehicle.

Really like this car I'd be coming from a BMW and Merc of all things it's crazy but I'm probably going to buy a Hyundai... Nice review just a little constructive criticism two words "pregnant pause"...it's ok to not fill every second with redundant info. Space between sentences, listener fatigue is a thing.

I do NOT like SUV's, so it's difficult for me to say this, Hyundai appears to have hit a home run with this rig.

This is the Ultimate 2.0T trim, not the Ultimate trim. Can you update your title?

Love the intro music!

13:41

2019 Santa Fe 2.0 t getting 22.5 mpg combined.....not bad

Do these new models suffer the same fire issues as all the prior 2.4 and 2.0s?

Great car great review

What happened to your views? Most of your newer vids barely crack 20k views but you have 370k subscribers.

This really suffers in comparison with the Toyota Highlander’s fuel economy (23 mpg mixed).

I thought he said it new why does it have 3595 miles

A friend of mine bought the 2017 sta fe and after a year both tires at the back have so many cracks. It is called tire thread separation by NEXEN.

review a 2019 Chevy Silverado

can anyone help me , i cant find the gas cap ?

"So... she's a dog" MPG fail. HP fail. Price fail. ..pass..

Who copied who? Hyundai or Chevy with this 19 Santa Fe and Blazer coming out. WOW they are basically the same vehicle

backroad at 13:42

Debating between Santa Fe Ultimate or Mazda CX-5 Signature, 2019s. Any recommendations Matt or anyone else?

looks very similair to the new chevy blazer.

Lol I have that same shirt Matt !

does it have remote starter from the fob key itself? because the car dealer told me it doesn't but the blue link apps has.

Review: 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe Ultimate

Looks equally as "cool" as the new Chevy Blazer; similar sized vehicle, but Hyundai pricing $15,000 to $20,000 LESS!!!

Matt would you buy this over a crv? I know different class of size, but those are my options

No body is doing 4 cylinder non turbo santafe. Not fare

Does it have daytime running lights?

This or the Rav 4 🤔

Looks ugly from some angles, but looks very sharp in person...

Sounds like a leaf blower

So Hyundai gave you this for review but not the Veloster N *Facepalm *

I like the design but i cant hear myself saying... yea i drive a Santa Fe

Only reason I’m watching is I work for Hyundai. Just checking in on what I’m gonna be working on

It would have made to much sense to just put that 3.3L at 290hp/252TQ and better fuel economy in it ..LOL..IMO..IDIOTS Adding a hybrid AWD with the 2,4L 4 cyl ? electric motor on the back axle and the FWD 8 spd on the front ?.... AWESOME ! but that would make to much sense as well..

Designed by Kim Jong un

My boyfriend has a Hyundai. I’m a guy. I’m gay.

Thanks Matt for making a good vid. on the most boring vehicle in the world. (yawn)

Design these days is no longer art :( nothing like older cars

Korea changes the designs way too often I cant keep up with it

Why are cars boring and overpriced.

No thank you, next!