Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age

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Tue 17 Mar 2015 13:43
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - Rubberbuggy
Hi All,

I'm sorry if this is a bit hackneyed but I'm stumped and there seem to be a lot of valid opinions on here. I'm looking at a 2011 Santa Fe with 94K on the clock, one owner, so a lot of motorway driving. Loving the age of the car but it's now 5k short of warranty. I'll probably not do much more than 6K a year, but I want this car to last a good while. Would you touch it with a barge pole? Do 2011 Santa Fe's fall apart at the end of the warranty? Or is it a relatively new tank that will likely keep on trucking for another 100k?

Your advice would be greatly appreciated!
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Tue 17 Mar 2015 13:55
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - RobJP

A lot of it depends on exactly what it has been used for.

As an example : a Vet practice that I know of uses exactly the same vehicles. They rack up large mileage, carrying a considerable amount of kit all the time, out to farms, etc.

Those are going to be a lot more worn out than one which has just run up and down the motorway 5 days a week. 94k miles does NOT mean lots of motorway driving.

Ask to see the V5, see if that provides you with any information as to the past owner which you can use to judge what it has been used for.

Also, Hyundai actually say that the warranty is 5 years. The 100k mile limit only applies to taxis, rental cars, couriers and light commercials. Furthermore, you'd probably want to check if all the servicing was done dead on time, as hyundai only allow 600 miles leeway.

Finally, the warranty will be running out when the car hits 5 years old anyway.

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Tue 17 Mar 2015 13:56
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - craig-pd130

Check that it's been serviced exactly as per the schedule by a Hyundai dealer and it's likely to be a better long-term ownership prospect than a car that's done half the mileage. It's likely to have been driven mostly with the engine fully warmed up and regularly exercised, both of which are good for longevity.

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Tue 17 Mar 2015 14:06
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - Alby Back
As others have said, it's mostly about how well it's been maintained up to now and indeed how well you are prepared to continue to maintain it.

A modern car which has had proper servicing and mainly long distance use has tons of life left in it at 100,000 and can represent a bargain.

Accept though that some wear and tear items may need attention in due course but if you view that as a trade off against the favourable purchase price you'll usually still be winning.

I regularly take my cars up to 200,000 and so far without major grief.
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Tue 17 Mar 2015 14:29
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - skidpan

Loving the age of the car but it's now 5k short of warranty

I appreciate it won't help you much but the Hyundai warranty is for 5 years and unlimited miles (providing its been serviced correctly preferably at a Hyundai dealer). Shows Hyundai have a bit of faith in thier products. With the mileage you propose it should go on for many years if its been looked after.

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Tue 17 Mar 2015 19:38
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - Happy Blue!

The important thing is not mileage or age, but condition. I bought a Volvo XC90 in similar conditions to this Hyundai and regretted it from the day I bought it. Not cared for, effectively abused and the selling dealer did not want to know.

If you have seen the car and can tell that the interior is as you expect for a car of the age (and not mileage) and the bodywork and other bits show some care being shown then it should be a good buy.

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Tue 17 Mar 2015 21:48
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - Rubberbuggy

Thanks all, a lot of good points to look out for. Good point about working cars not necessarily bein rep mobiles and also good to hear the XC90 horror story, as I was looking at a couple of high milage examples of those too. Hopefully, seeing the car on Thursday so I'll bear all these points in mind!

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Wed 18 Mar 2015 08:45
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - oldtoffee

We have a 2011 Santa Fe with 53k miles. Its had a couple of warranty issues dealt with really well by the main dealer, a faulty rear shock and corroding allys (common problem). It feels just as tight as when we bought it and it has never put a foot wrong. Some wear and tear items have just 60k miles warranty, shock absorbers for example. There are a few stories of clutch and dmf failures on manuals on Hyundai forums but again most seem to be handled quite well by Hyundai.

I'd recommend one, very good value at that age and a lot of SUV for the money. Full main dealer service history is a must. The auto works well with the poweful diesel engine. The ride is undeniably firm so you get a fair bit of bump and thump when you're off the motorway but it isn't bad.
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Thu 19 Mar 2015 08:24
Hyundai Santa Fe - High Milage Low Age - gordonbennet

I'd want to see a full proper service history, if that's good and the rest of the car shows use consistent with highways as against bad or off road ( check underneath right underneath not just the bits the pressure washer can easily blast clean for the casual glance), then it might just be a bargain.

Have seen some reports of wheel bearing failure on these, and ISTR the otherwise good warranty was amended to 60k limit for wheel bearings and they aint cheap requiring a complete hub, so check for undue noises.

If you buy it, and it hasn't already been done as part of normal servicing, i'd change all the transmission oils asap, otherwise as said above, continue looking after it and no reason it shouldn't go round the clock again without problem.

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