SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here probably applies to the models you can get at home.

*To read one of our road tests, just select from the menu on the left.

*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.

Launch report: Hyundai SA is keeping things clean and simple with the new Santa Fé. We checked it out.

This is a launch report. In other words, it's simply a new model announcement. The driving experience was limited to a short drive over a prepared course chosen to make the product look good. We can therefore not tell you what it will be like to live with over an extended period, how economical it is, or how reliable it will be. A very brief first impression is all we can give you until such time as we get an actual test unit for trial. Thank you for your patience.

Pics supplied

A classic, updated

Published in The Witness Motoring on Wednesday November 17, 2010

"There's no 'i' model designation," grinned Stanley Anderson, Hyundai Automotive SA's Marketing Director, "because it’s more a face lift than a new model but wait, there's more." The front bumper, grille and fog lights are new, as are the rear lights and bumper, extra sound deadening, body strengthening to improve stiffness and NVH levels, 18" wheels, upgraded facia, new radio/6-CD unit with iPod, iPhone music, USB and MP3 connectivity, proximity key, ionised and filtered air conditioning, reversing camera with LCD screen in the rear view mirror and safety power window on the driver's door. Oh, yes, the engine is new as well.

The previous 2 188 cc four cylinder CRDi power plant was given a smaller bore and longer stroke to enlarge it slightly to 2 199 cc, while the variable geometry turbo charger has been remapped so that power and torque are now up to 145 kW and 436 Nm. I'll save you the bother of looking it up - this engine is the same Euro5 unit found on the sister-car Kia Sorento.

The additional power and torque shows up as a quicker zero to 100-km/h time of 10,2 seconds vs. 12,9 in the old car and top speed of 190 km/h vs. 178. This is despite the new Santa Fé being about 80 kg heavier than the outgoing model. Average fuel consumption is given as 8,3 l/100 km. These comparisons are all for seven-seater 4x4 vehicles, which brings us to the next major change. Instead of offering a pair of 4x2s and a couple of 4x4s, the range has been rationalised to just two 4x4s, both with six-speed automatic transmission and a choice of five or seven seats.

Six-speed auto, you ask? You're quite right - another upgrade. A new version of Hyundai's in-house H-matic torque converter automatic transmission replaces the five-speed unit used previously. This is the familiar "Tiptronic" type of 'box with a manual shifting option in a separate gate off to the left. On the familiarisation drive, it proved to be a very pleasant unit that shifted smoothly, kicked down easily on gentle demand at 120 km/h and showed no signs of hunting, under a variety of conditions.

The drive included freeway cruising, country byways, rough dirt roads and the African Outdoor Group's rookie course at De Rust in the Magaliesburg foothills. The only slight criticism was of a firmish ride that, while great on tar, was perhaps a bit harsh over potholed and rough gravel. Directional stability remained unfazed, however.

Convenience features are pretty much as they were before. Full-leather upholstery, sunroof, dual-zone climate control, cruise control, steering wheel satellite controls, full-function driving computer, one-touch driver’s window with safety stop, electrically-adjusted front seats with height adjustment and lumbar support, and a height and reach adjustable steering column are included.

For peace of mind, six airbags, active headrests, stability- and traction control and all-disc braking with ABS, EBD and BAS assistance, in addition to a reinforced passenger cell combined with extra-long crumple zones, ensure maximum safety. The front passenger airbag cannot be disarmed. Additional features such as front and rear fog lamps and a 4x4 system that, while capable of driving the rear axle via a central clutch when required, also provides the option of manually locking a centre differential to ‘force’ an equal distribution of drive torque to all wheels.

“The new engine and gearbox combination elevates the appeal of the Santa Fé significantly, while at the same time improving its environmental compatibility,” says Anderson. ‘I’m very confident about the Santa Fé’s prospects in its segment and believe it is the best value out there, bar none.”

The numbers

Prices: R399 900 (5 seater) or R409 900 (7 seater)

Engine: 2 199 cc DOHC four-cylinder turbodiesel

Power: 145 kW at 3 800 rpm

Torque: 436 Nm between 1 800 and 2 500 rpm

Zero to 100 km/h (claimed): 10,2 seconds

Maximum speed (claimed): 190 km/h

Average fuel consumption (claimed): 8,3 l/100 km

Fuel: 50-ppm diesel

Ground clearance: 200 mm

Approach/departure/rampover angles: 24,6/21,6/17,9 degrees

Warranty and roadside assistance: 5 years/150 000 km

Service plan: 5 years/90 000 km

Intervals: 15 000 km

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.

What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go to kick back and relax. 

So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!

Comments?

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