Hyundai Santa Fe

Who would have thought that one day a Hyundai would be considered a luxury car? In fact the relatively new Santa Fe SUV has become the most expensive Hyundai ever sold in New Zealand and the price places it as a competitor squarely in the European SUV sector and not the Japanese.

Why? Hyundai says the high specification levels of the Santa Fe across the model range - not just with the flagship model - warrants it. And it may not be as crazy as it sounds when you consider the Elite model Santa Fe was the top-selling of the range last year, even as it retailed for a touch under $67,000.

There are numerous Santa Fe models to choose from too - starting with the entry level at $57,900 and on through to the Elite at $79,900. Engine options include 16 or 24 valves, direct petrol injection with continuously variable valve timing, common rail direct injection diesel with electronic variable geometric turbo or the petrol multi-point injection. We'll spare you the acronyms.

Having this many models in the lineup is fairly unusual but in fact there are several fairly uncommon aspects to Hyundai's Santa Fe SUV, particularly the 3.3 litre petrol version.

The first is that given the engine is a relatively meaty 3.3 litres why isn't it four or all wheel drive? Maybe it suits Californian housewives or Seoul sisters who are never going to go off-road. But in saying that, it's great! It pushes through straight line air well and corners beautifully. Mind you it has nearly every chip-controlled driver assist feature you could wish so in terms of stability, traction, control and braking, twowheel (front) drive seems to be fine.

In fact the newSanta Fe is dripping with safety and creature comfort features right throughout and that's why, of course, it's priced as it is.Consider the leather trim, flexible (and heated) seats with integrated memory, fingertip controls and (in the Elite) SatNav with real-time traffic updates - you get the picture - and literally with the reversing screen.

As for looks, there's a kind of fluidity that other SUVs find hard to emulate although many try. SUVs are by nature essentially quite bulky but the Santa Fe seems to escape looking weighty around the hips or the waist even though it's a fairly big car. The seat slides back when you open the door which helps enormously because it's fairly high off the ground. But why on earth do chimes have to announce when you slide your backside into and out of the driving seat? It's not as if you don't know you're there surely? They could be annoying but perhaps it's like living on a busy main road - you get used to the noise over time.

If you're a dedicated brand bunny then you may find it hard to come to grips with a Hyundai competing with established European brands. The 3.3 litre is even $17,000 more expensive that Ford's top line Titanium Kuga. It may take an attitude shift because given exchange rates and global competitiveness, it's the way the world is heading and in the case of the Santa Fe it would be a pity not to at least have a test drive.