Auto Express – August 07, 2019

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk 7August2019 53

LivingwithaHyundaiSantaFe OURCARS

INTWOMINDS

Group website

editorSteveWalker

seesthe benefits

of SUVs,yetalso

the downsides

Essentials

Hyundai Santa Fe

Premium SE 2.2Auto

Onfleetsince: April2019

Pricenew: £41,520

Engine: 2.2-litre4cyldiesel,

197bhp

CO 2 /tax: 157g/km/£465

Options: Metallicpaint(£690)

Insurance*: Group:40/Quote:£488

Mileage/mpg: 4,203/40.9mpg

Anyproblems? Nonesofar

*InsurancequotefromAA(08001070680)fora

42-year-oldinBanbury,Oxon,withthreepoints.

WE LIKECabin is solid and well

designed, and feels upmarket.

The infotainmentisreally easy

to use and has lots of features.

Pretty much everything comesas

standardonour Premium SE car

WE DON’TThe Santa Fe just

isn’t very good to drive. It’s quick

enough, but there’snot much fun

to be had. The stop-start system

and gearboxcan be slowto

respond when pulling away

MOSTofthethingswedon’tlike

abouttheSantaFearerootedin

theunstoppableriseoftheSUV.

Millionsofbuyerscan’tbewrong,

though,andthebigHyundaiis

amongthebestofitsbreed.

★★★★★

Verdict

Second opinion
“TheHyundaiSantaFefeelswellbuilt,andthere
aresomepleasingtouchesthathelpkeepupthe
airofqualitythatbuyersofa£42,000carexpect.”

RichardIngramReviews editor

Ot

is

Cl

ay

Ourfleet

INDEX

Audie-tron

Issue 1,579,1,585

BMW3Series

Issue 1,576,1584

CitroenBerlingoXL

Issue 1,579

CupraAteca

Issues 1,564,1,573, 1,581

DaciaDuster

Issues 1,561, 1,564,

1,572, 1,575, 1,583

Ford Focus

Issue 1,582

HondaCR-V Hybrid

Issue 1,576,1584

HyundaiSantaFe

Issue 1,575, 1,580

Kiae-Niro

Issue 1,569, 1,580

KiaCeed

Issue 1,567, 1,577,1,582

MazdaMX-5

Issue 1,573, 1,585

MercedesG-Class

Issues 1,565, 1,574,1,581

RenaultMéganeR.S.

Issue 1,581

SEATTarraco

Issue 1,574,1584

SkodaFabia

Issue 1,572, 1,582

VolkswagenCalifornia

Issues 1,578,1,583, 1,586

VolkswagenTouareg

Issue 1,580,1,585

PICTUREeditorDawnGrantborrowedourBMW

320dtoattendafamilyweddinginAughton,

Lancs,andbecauseithappenedonaWednesday,

shemadeamini-breakofit,visitingLiverpool

andthentravellingsouthtoWorcestershire.

Thelastnightwasspentinthesmallvillage

ofBlewburyintheBerkshireDowns,andafter

returningfromanafternoonwalkDawnfound

afamilyofBMWshadappeared,withthe320d

joinedbybotha2Seriesanda5Series,proving

thepopularityofthepremiumGermanbrand.

Whenitcomestothe320dit’snothardtosee

why:Dawnfounditincrediblycomfortableon

themotorway,whileitwasfrugal,too.Against

allexpectationsshefoundthegesturecontrol

quiteuseful,especiallyforadjustingthevolume

ontheradio,evenwhenapassenger.The

infotainmentwassuperblyintuitivetouse–part

ofwhatmakesgreatcompactexecutivesaloon.

Open and

shut case

Pete has

found it

easyfor

passengers

to leave

their doors

ajar on our

Touareg

VolkswagenTouareg

SENIORphotographerPeteGibsonisstilllovinglifebehindthewheel

ofhisVWTouareg,buthe’sstartingtomisshispreviousAudiA6Avant

testcar’ssoft-closedoors.That’sbecausehealwaysneedstotellhis

passengerstohaveanothergoatshuttingthedoors.ThebigSUV’spanels

areprettyheavy,sohistwoyoungdaughtershavehadsometrouble

gettingthemtolatchwhentheyhopinandout.Evenourmanhasfound

thatheneedstoputinabitmoreeffortthannormaltogetthedoorsshut.

Petealsoisn’tabigfanoftheTouareg’spoweredtailgate.Itcan

sometimesbeusefulwhenhe’sgothishandsfull,butinmostcasesour

manprefersamanualbootdoor.Occasionallyanaccidentaldoublepress

ofthebuttoncancausethebootoperationtostall,whichcanbeapain;

literallyinsomecases,asacolleaguerecentlyfoundoutbywalking

straightintothecornerofthetailgatebecauseitwasraised,butnotfully.

PrettymucheveryotheraspectoftheTouareg’sdrivingexperience

issuperb,though.It’sultra-comfortable,spaciousandpowerful,too.

Fleetwatch

BMW 3Series

Your ultimate

guide to buying

andowningan

electric car