Hyundai Veracruz vs Hyundai Santa Fe

goybar

Certainly not a apples to apples comparison, but they are the two vehicles my wife and I are looking at.

The Santa Fe has a more sporty feel and I think is bit quicker.

The Veracruz has a more luxurious feel/quality to it. A little quieter and less sporty feel.

The wife like the Santa Fe as it is smaller and she doesn't feel "lost" in it.

I of course prefer the larger Veracruz.

Does anyone know the dimensions of the seats? It appeared to me the Veracruz front seats were larger.

Anyone else considering either of these?

What did you decide on and why?

Thanks

Chris

arumage

The Santa Fe is well over a 1/2 second slower to 60, mostly due to the 40 ft. lbs of extra torque the Veracruz has. The Veracruz also is better in the slalom. The reason it feels less sporty is due to it's more isolated ride. The steering and brake pedals don't provide as much feel either. I like them both.

mpuzach

My wife and I initially visited the Hyundai dealership to check out the Tucson. After a test drive we were very impressed. Since we were there, I decided to look at the Santa Fe "just out of curiosity". One drive and it was pretty much over as we ended up buying a brand new, fresh-off-the-truck Santa Fe Limited AWD. Still, I couldn't help but take a close look at the Veracruz Limited on the showroom floor. It's a genuine contender in the "luxury" SUV segment. The Veracruz's interior is beautifully done; I especially like the 2nd row HVAC controls (temperature and fan speed, illuminated and located at the rear of the center console) and the optional illuminated door sill trim. It's all very classy and for the money the Veracruz can't be beat. To me, the only downsides are:

No factory navigation (though it's rumored to be available as an option on the 2008 models).

No xenon headlights.

The Veracruz is a little too large for my taste. I prefer the size of the Santa Fe.

We've had our Santa Fe for 2 weeks and I've put 500 miles on it. It's absolutely wonderful in every regard; in fact, it's every bit as comfortable, enjoyable to drive, and well-built as the 2007 Volvo XC90 AWD (company car - turned it in when I left the company) it replaces.

arumage

The extra width is what I prefer about the Veracruz. There is only 6" difference in length. All those options are available for the Veracruz in Korea. I'm puzzled at why they didn't have those features available for the US. The Korean version even has LED tail lights.

mit23

We went to buy a Santa Fe because we wanted to downsize from our Explorer. But, when my wife rode in the Veracruz, it was all over. She preferred the larger size and especially the ride. I thought it was rather dull, but guess who won out.

smith1

I just test drove the Santa Fe and Veracruz back to back. As a big guy (6'5", 300 lbs.) I pay close attention to driver room. I didn't find the Veracruz to be any roomier for the driver; In fact I found the console in the Santa Fe to be less intrusive -- my right knee was hitting the console in the Veracruz which didn't happen in the Santa Fe. I didn't notice any appreciable difference between the two in front seat shoulder or hip room -- I think most of the extra width in the Veracruz went into the center console.

Veracruz does provide somewhat better room in the second seat. The Santa Fe I drove didn't have a third seat but I presume Veracruz would be better there as well since it is a longer vehicle.

mjb56

I'm 6'2" and find the VC driver room to be more than adequate. The second and third row is where the big difference is vs. Santa Fe. We occasionally haul kids around and having that extra room is absolutely necessary. Back seat room is much better than Pilot or Highlander which we also considered. Also, VC is much more refined. I think it's a great vehicle but if you're only buying for 2 passengers the Santa Fe is adequate. My only minor complaint is that the seats are more firm than I'm used to but that will change over time, I'm sure.

smith1

The VC driver room was certainly acceptable to me, but I did notice more center console knee interference than in the SF. Unfortunately it seems almost universal that as a vehicle gets wider, instead of allocating at least some of the extra width to the driver/passenger footwells which would help us big guys, the console just gets bigger/wider. I sat in a new Toyota Tundra the other day. A super-wide vehicle, it had the same narrow footwells as a much smaller truck and a center console so huge you could hide a 27" TV in it -- OK, rant over.

I agree the VC is a very impressive vehicle. It is somewhat more refined than SF but to me the difference wasn't huge (as long as you get the SF with the 3.3 engine -- the 2.7 is relatively crude). I think the bottom line is: SF is a 5-passenger vehicle with a third seat shoehorned in mostly for marketing purposes, while VC is a true 7-passenger vehicle. If you really need a third seat VC is the way to go; otherwise SF is probably the better value esp. since discounts on VC are not as good (yet).

mjb56

Yes, it is a wide center console. The seats are plenty wide, though. I was also considering a RAV4 but that was way small for our needs and the seats were very narrow. The side bolsters dug into my thighs something awful. The VC seats are nice and wide. Also, you can really appreciate the VC's extra width in the second and third rows. Both are exceptionally roomy. I'm just happy it fits in the garage. The previous vehicle was a Chrysler T&C. The VC is at least 3" wider than that.

smith1

Agree totally on the RAV4 seats. Even though the new RAV is supposedly an American design the seats seem designed around the 90th percentile Japanese person. And they retained the goofy wrong-way hinged cargo door, what's up with that??

In some ways Hyundai seems to "get" the American market better than Toyota, which bodes well for their future success.

sduff68

I recently purchased a Santa Fe SE. It was the near luxury feel of the Santa FE and the luxury appearance that really sold me on it. Not to mention the firm (but not harsh) ride, the quietness, and the absolute beauty of the vehicle.

To me at least the two cars do not have an ounce of family resemblance. To me the Santa Fe actually resembles the new Buick Enclave more than it resembles the Veracruz.

Now that you think of it, the Tucson, Santa Fe and Veracruz don't look alike either. Kinda makes you wonder if Hyundai is doing this on purpose in order to appeal to different people with their three SUVs. The Veracruz appeals to people who were cross shopping the RX 350, or Acura MDX, but so does the Santa Fe Limited.

Maybe Hyunda is smarter than I thought...only time will tell.