Looking to buy new Hyundai SantaFe

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Looking to buy new Hyundai SantaFe - Petrol or Diesel

ajaynabh

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#242625 6-Nov-2018 09:53

Hi All,

I am looking to buy new Hyundai Santa Fe however I am not sure should I buy Diesel or Petrol version.

I understand Diesel will requires more servicing than petrol and cost of maintaining Diesel engine is high, also they are noisy in comparison to Petrol engines. Also I understand Diesel have DPF which requires you to run your engine for over 60-70k/h for 20-30 minutes for it to burn deposit which may be an issue for me.

I am not going to tow anything and driving would mainly be on the weekends.

New Hyundai SantaFe looks good and has lots features but diesel is 6k more expensive than petrol, it seems diesel is more popular than petrol for SanFe, not sure why...

I do not know lot about cars however I do read about them on the net.

Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Regards

Ajay

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#2120789 6-Nov-2018 10:40

I don't think diesel is the right option for you, given your intended use for the car doesn't seem to make the most of diesel's two key advantages -

1. oodles of torque for towing

2. cheaper motoring if travelling a significant amount each year

I fell in this trap myself - I've got a diesel Mazda 6, and while it's a fantastic engine and quite frugal, my usage is such that it's not warranted having a diesel. And the DPF thing is damn frustrating - there's a few threads that talk about this here on GZ, but personally this is one very good reason I'd not buy another diesel. (Next car I'd be looking at may well be a PHEV - while some people say just more to go wrong having two motors, interestingly I've read some indications that PHEVs are more reliable than cars with only an ICE, potentially due to the ICE needing to do less work).)

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alasta

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#2120791 6-Nov-2018 10:44

With modern diesel engines noise and rough running are not a major issue, and only noticeable when idling or at very low speeds. I wouldn't worry about that.

However the DPF issue is something you really need to consider. It has never bothered me personally with my diesel vehicle, however the vast majority of my mileage is highway driving. If this is not the case for you then the DPF could cause you some real headaches.

Given that you don't need to tow then I would suggest that the petrol probably suits you better, but before you make a final decision I would suggest calculating the fuel and RUC for each. As a general rule you can take the manufacturer's fuel consumption figures and add 20% to get a realistic idea of what you can expect if you drive reasonably frugally.

ajaynabh

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Wannabe Geek

#2120796 6-Nov-2018 10:54

Thanks Jonathan and Alasta for your response.

To Jonathan, I have Honda Civic Hybrid car which I bought (secondhand) 2 years ago and I do not have any issue with it so far, expect IMA light on the dash will come and go. As per Honda, unless light does not stay on the dash they cannot find the fault. I will go for PHEV but there are not mant feature rich PHEV out at the moment. Only Mitsubishi has PHEV as far I know.

Any thoughts on Mitsubishi PHEV? I digressed :)

Regards

jonathan18

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#2120799 6-Nov-2018 10:58

To pick up on alasta's post: our cars have the same engine, but we have quite different usage requirements - much of my driving is daily usage around town, so the PDF is much more of an issue. If the DPF process begins when I'm in town I have to waste time and fuel to drive out into the country for 15-20 minutes just to complete its cycle.

Fred99

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#2120802 6-Nov-2018 11:02

Just a rough back of envelope calculation:

Per 10,000 km, the petrol Santa Fe will probably use about $2300 in petrol.
The diesel should use about $1300 in diesel, plus about $620 in RUC.

It's not a huge difference. For servicing cost, ask about fixed price service cost. Old diesels used to need oil change every 5,000km, modern diesels oil change schedule may be 20,000km intervals.

I'd wager that the diesel is much nicer to drive on the open road, with more power and much more torque.

If going for petrol, I'd suggest looking at other makes - in particular Mazda CX9. Much more power than the Hyundai, lower fuel use, about the same or lower list price, and a much more up to date design. Much nicer vehicle all round.

jonathan18

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#2120803 6-Nov-2018 11:03

I came across this which has a summary of the PHEVs available in NZ: https://www.aa.co.nz/cars/motoring-blog/know-your-phevs/

If you're already used to a standard hybrid, then a PHEV may be an option for you, though there is a narrow range of models (especially second-hand).

We've also got a Leaf, and while I love having a BEV it would never work as our sole car - replacing the diesel car with a PHEV would provide us with efficient driving around town (as I'd rarely have to use the ICE) but no range anxiety out of town for family holidays etc. I know the Outlander's not the most exciting car, but have you considered that as an option? Newer models can use fast chargers. They do only have five seats, if that's an issue, though.

Fred99

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#2120812 6-Nov-2018 11:17

One proviso on the Outlander PHEV, tow capacity is only 750kg - a lightly loaded garden trailer.

ajaynabh

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#2120819 6-Nov-2018 11:24

I buy car once in a decade and this time I wanted to buy a car which has better look and feel with all the creature comfort which SantaFe seems to have. Mitsubishi appears to be a reasonable car but they do not do anything on the interiors to make it look nice so when you sit, you feel good about the car you are in. As you could tell I am driven by wants/comfort this time... also same time being reasonable enough not to spend too much money buying European cars. Hyundai from what I heard is a reliable car, therefore, for me it is best of the both worlds and bigger mortgage :)

jonathan18

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#2120825 6-Nov-2018 11:35

Agree with Fred99 - I'd also be looking at the Mazda CX9. Generally I think Mazdas offer better value for money than Hyundai, which certainly aren't the value proposition they were a few years back. The CX9 is a lot of car for a relatively moderate amount of money.

My suggestion is you narrow your options down to two or three cars and then take them for a test drive, as opposed to selecting a car off paper.

nakedmolerat

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#2120826 6-Nov-2018 11:35

@ajaynabh:
I buy car once in a decade and this time I wanted to buy a car which has better look and feel with all the creature comfort which SantaFe seems to have. Mitsubishi appears to be a reasonable car but they do not do anything on the interiors to make it look nice so when you sit, you feel good about the car you are in. As you could tell I am driven by wants/comfort this time... also same time being reasonable enough not to spend too much money buying European cars. Hyundai from what I heard is a reliable car, therefore, for me it is best of the both worlds and bigger mortgage :)

what about Subaru?

Fred99

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#2120830 6-Nov-2018 11:41

There's also the Skoda Kodiaq. Has excellent reviews, even better fuel economy than the CX9 or Santa Fe.

ajaynabh

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#2120832 6-Nov-2018 11:44

I will look at Mazda CX9. I had MS6 (1996) long time ago which suffered transmission problem and my friend had a same issue with his Mazda therefore I was put off by Mazda's. I do understand they are quite zippy and fun to drive but my previous experience has been great!

Subaru is not my type of car and they do bigger engines than I need and not as many gadgetory and features as Santa Fe. Also they are known to be fast cars and gets stolen quite a bit as I heard... Look, I could be wrong but that my impression

ajaynabh

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#2120833 6-Nov-2018 11:45

Fred99,

I am not willing to be adventurous with my money and going to avoid all cars which are not road tested in NZ.

alasta

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#2120836 6-Nov-2018 11:59

Personally if I were shopping in this segment the Santa Fe would probably be the top of the list, especially considering that the new generation has just been launched in the last few weeks. The CX9 is nice, but my Mazda has a few annoyances which would play on my mind next time I buy a car. The Outlander is good value but generally unspectacular, and the Kodiaq wouldn't be as reliable as a more mainstream Japanese or South Korean offering.

My advice is pick two options to test drive at different dealers - the Santa Fe and CX9 for example - and then play the dealers off against each other on price.

Fred99

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#2120839 6-Nov-2018 12:08

FWIW, I think the Mazda MS6 was made when Ford had an interest in Mazda, that model used a notoriously unreliable Ford auto transmission - the "C4DE". So consider that transmission issue a Ford problem - rather than Mazda.

I'm not sure what you mean about "not road tested in NZ" if that's referring to the Kodiaq. It was NZ AA car of the year in 2017.

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