Why the Hyundai Santa Fe is Carwow’s Car Of The Year

If you’re in the market for a large SUV, there are a lot to choose from. It’s difficult to stand out from the crowd in this sector, but the Hyundai Santa Fe manages to do just that. It’s so good that it was named Carwow Car Of The Year for 2025.

Price-wise it’s an alternative to cars like the Kia Sorento, Skoda Kodiaq and Nissan X-Trail, but it feels so upmarket that it can actually compete with much more expensive cars like the Land Rover Discovery.

Outside the Santa Fe is a great-looking SUV with a boxy, imposing front end and rugged proportions. With a range of funky colours on offer, this is a car which will turn heads at the school gates.

Things get even more impressive when you step inside, because the interior feels posh enough to humble the Volvo XC90. All the switchgear feels solid and expensive, and there are plenty of soft-touch materials. We’d recommend going for a light interior colour though, because it does look a bit dull in all black.

You get a pair of massive screens on top of the dashboard in one integrated panel, a bit like you’d find on a BMW X7. The central infotainment system is responsive and intuitive, while the digital driver’s display is also clear, easy to read and highly customisable.

The main reason you’ll want a big SUV like this is practicality, and the Santa Fe delivers in this department as well. There’s loads of space up front to get comfortable behind the wheel, and you get seemingly endless cubby holes to store your bits and bobs. We counted a total of 17 cup holders throughout this car, so there’s no chance of you or your passengers going thirsty on a long trip.

Moving to the middle row and there is enough room to rival a limousine. Three adults can fit across the bench easily. There’s loads of head and legroom, and you get USB-C ports for charging devices.

Unlike a lot of seven-seat SUVs, the third row isn’t only suitable for children. Move the seats in front forward a few clicks and there’s enough space for everyone to sit reasonably comfortably, although those in the very back may notice that their knees are a bit high.

Even with all seven seats in place, the boot is big enough for three to four carry-on size suitcases. It’s not massive, but it’s still better than the Nissan X-Trail’s offering. Fold the third row flat and you have 628 litres of space to play with. That’s a way off the Skoda Kodiaq’s 910-litre capacity, but it’s still spacious enough for all the family’s clobber.

Out on the road there’s no disguising that this is a very big car, but it’s still not too intimidating to drive in town. The square bonnet and boxy dimensions make it really easy to judge where the corners are, and mid-spec cars and up get a handy 360-degree camera system.

The Santa Fe’s suspension does a fabulous job of ironing out bumps in the road. Around town it remains settled over potholes and smaller imperfections, and it’s smooth and stable at motorway speeds. Wind noise is pretty minimal as well, which is impressive given the bluff front-end styling.

Powering the Santa Fe is a choice of hybrid or plug-in hybrid petrol engines. There are no diesels on offer, but the self-charging hybrid averaged around 38mpg during our drive which is pretty good going for a car as big as this. Opting for the PHEV gets you around 30 miles of pure-electric range, ideal for wafting through the city in silence.

The Hyundai Santa Fe is a brilliant SUV which can handle pretty much anything you throw at it. It’s comfortable to drive, ludicrously practical and really well made. Put simply, it’s the best SUV you can buy, and more than deserving of its Car Of The Year title.

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