Australian details for the new Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid have been revealed on the local website, with three variants to be offered when the hybrid SUV goes on sale later this month.
The Santa Fe Hybrid will be available in Elite and Highlander trims alongside the petrol V6 and four-cylinder diesel, with the flagship Hybrid Highlander to offer a no-cost six-seat interior option – the first time this configuration has been made available in Australia.
Pricing will start at $63,000 plus on-road costs for the Santa Fe Hybrid Elite, climbing to $69,550 before on-roads for the Hybrid Highlander in both six- and seven-seat forms. Using a Melbourne postcode, that translates to a drive-away price of $68,331 for the Elite, and $75,158 for the Highlander.
The Santa Fe Hybrid commands a $3000 premium over the equivalent diesel AWD model, and a hefty $6500 over the V6 FWD petrol. It’s worth noting, however, the Santa Fe Hybrid will be AWD-only in Australia.
Specifications closely mirror that of the equivalent petrol or diesel, with a couple of exceptions. Instead of 20-inch alloy wheels on the existing Elite and Highlander grades, both hybrid trims get 19-inch ‘aero type’ alloys – all come with a full-size spare.
The only other change is the six-seat interior option for the Santa Fe Hybrid Highlander, which swaps out the second-row bench for two captain’s chairs.
All versions of the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid are powered by a 1.6-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol engine teamed with a 44.2kW electric motor and 1.49kWh lithium-ion polymer battery.
Combined power and torque outputs are 169kW and 350Nm respectively, putting the HEV somewhere between the existing V6 (200kW/331Nm) and 2.2-litre diesel (148kW/440Nm).
Shifting gears is a six-speed automatic transmission, which has the electric motor integrated into it. All hybrid Santa Fe models in Australia are all-wheel drive (AWD), though a front-wheel drive version is offered overseas, while the related Kia Sorento Hybrid offers both drive options in Australia.
Overseas model shown
Fuel consumption for local models hasn’t been confirmed as yet, but according to Hyundai Europe the Santa Fe Hybrid with AWD consumes 6.9-7.6L/100km on the WLTP cycle depending on specification, emitting 157-172g/km.
For reference, local Santa Fe models with the 2.2-litre turbo-diesel claim to use 6.1L/100km on the combined cycle, whereas the 3.5-litre petrol V6 averages 10.5L/100km.
Key rivals for the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid include its aforementioned Sorento GT-Line Hybrid relative ($66,750-69,750), and the Toyota Kluger Hybrid – which is priced from $63,650 in mid-spec GXL AWD guise and $75,700 for the top-shelf Grande AWD.
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