Hyundai Santa Fe - Santa Fe vs X-Trail | Motoring discussion | Back Room Forum

Sat 14 Jan 2017 13:12

Hyundai Santa Fe - Santa Fe vs X-Trail - Neil David

Hi, hopefully someone can help.

I'm looking at buying a second hand SUV (£23k limit) and have two cars in mind, being the Santa Fe and the X-Trail. My preference from a shape perspective is the Santa Fe, which also appears (on paper) to have the stronger engine, although the X-Trail seems to offer better value for money (equipment and MPG).

I'll be averaging around 10,000 miles per year and will generally be transporting four passengers, but need the ability to carry luggage as we drive to Switzerland every year on Holidays.

I'd welcome the thoughts of people on this site, do you have any real world experiences of either / both cars that you could share and I'd particularly interested in how those with the X-Trail find the performance under full load.

Thanks in advance.

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Sat 14 Jan 2017 14:16

Hyundai Santa Fe - Santa Fe vs X-Trail - SLO76

The X-Trail uses Renault 1.6 & 2.0 Diesel engines and is basically a current model Renault Megane on stilts with Nissan badges. It and the previous generation do not have the best reputation in the world for longterm reliability so don't buy one expecting Japanese quality, it is a French design essentially.

The Santa Fe is a far better made and better regarded car altogether. Loads of room, plenty of pulling power and a 5yr unlimited mileage warranty as long as you maintain a full main dealer service history which shows how much confidence Hyundai have in their products.

Of the two I'd have the big Hyundai without flinching but I'd also take a look at the Honda CRV 1.6 DTEC 2wd which is about to be replaced as there are good deals available plus you'll get in excess of 55mpg day to day. Performance is stronger than expected, there's loads of room plus comfort and reliability are spot on but if you need 4wd you're stuck with the 2.0 petrol or 1.6 twin turbo which is much dearer.

Just remember if you're mostly doing short stop start running these cars are all DPF equipped and aren't suitable unless you do at least one 15-20 mile run at motorway speeds every few days. The CRV has its DPF right up next to the manifold so it does heat up faster than cars that have it further back in the exhaust but I'm sure both the Hyundai and Renault as up to date designs will be the same.

Edited by SLO76 on 14/01/2017 at 14:21

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Sat 14 Jan 2017 14:23

Hyundai Santa Fe - Santa Fe vs X-Trail - Neil David

Thank you for taking the time to respond, I'll take a look at the Honda and your notes on the Nissan makes me even more nervous.

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Sat 14 Jan 2017 14:58

Hyundai Santa Fe - Santa Fe vs X-Trail - RT

The Santa Fe is bigger, so heavier and a little less economical - consider the Kia Sorento which share the Hyundai platform and powertrain - for both brands your budget should get you cars with plenty of warranty left, especially the Kia as it's 7 years compared to Hyundai's 5.

I had a Santa Fe for 5-years - it did need an engine/transmission rebuild under warranty but I never heard of any other owners with similar problems - so mine was probably down to Sod's Law.

Edited by RT on 14/01/2017 at 15:01

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Sat 14 Jan 2017 18:19

Hyundai Santa Fe - Santa Fe vs X-Trail - Neil David

Thanks, I did look at the Kia and the 7 year warranty is appealing however at the price range and the age / mileage I was looking at the only models I could find were a step down again in terms of equipment.

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