MILAN – In Korea, the Covid-19 pandemic has brought with it a series of changes: a real “glamping” craze has broken out. The desire to be outdoors, in chic, luxury campsites. On the other hand, “glamping” is the portmanteau of two words: glamor and camping. It is certainly no coincidence that the new generation of Santa Fe – totally new – brings with it some characteristics that are inspired precisely by the desire to live in the open air and, in this case, also on board your own car. At 4 meters and 83 centimetres, Santa Fe is first and foremost a lifestyle. A new concept of car, no longer a mere means of getting around, but a large SUV, which makes space on board one of its strong points: livable, functional and comfortable. In the 5 or 7 seat configuration, the real “plus” is in the boot lid. Furthermore, calling it a hatch is also an understatement: almost a window that opens, full length, onto the world.
The passenger compartment is a sort of lounge, with many innovative solutions: from the curved screen, always connected, to the practical bilateral storage compartment (usable without distinction from both the front area and the rear sofa); passing through the UV-C sterilization tray (after all, it was designed in the times of Covid), located above the passenger side glove compartment, useful for easily sterilizing objects such as mobile phones and wallets. In short, everything is taken care of down to the smallest detail to provide an unprecedented on-board experience. Up to wireless charging designed for two smartphones.
«Usually when a car is designed – explained the very Italian Nicola Danza, Exterior Design manager of Hyundai Europe – the exterior and interior teams work in parallel. In the case of the new Santa Fe, however, we can say it was almost a project that was born from the inside out. The study of the car’s design started from the rear area with the vertical tailgate. Thus, modular and functional solutions have been developed for the passenger compartment. All this allowed us to have a one-of-a-kind volume and obtain the versatility we were looking for.”
Externally the new Hyundai Santa Fe impresses with its squared lines, vertical tail and horizontal roof line. “We took inspiration – added Danza – from the first SUVs of the Nineties and the result is a powerful car, well planted on the ground, with robust but at the same time clean lines, which also convey a certain power”. An imposing SUV – D segment – but not heavy, with a wheelbase of 2 meters and 81 cm and a height of 1 meter and 72 cm which is immediately striking for the luminous signature on the front and the ” H” in the headlights, Hyundai’s distinctive signature.
A single engine available at launch, scheduled for next summer, the 1,600 T-GDI full-hybrid, with two-wheel drive or 4WD. «It is the perfect engine for the evolution of mobility – explained Andrea Crespi, President and CEO of Hyundai Italia – because Santa Fe, depending on the traffic, is able to autonomously manage the switching on, off and regenerative braking to guarantee maximum efficiency in terms of consumption and emissions. There will be no exclusively petrol versions, nor diesel ones. And even the plug-in variant, for now, does not arrive in Italy.”
Embodiment of the “human centric” vision of the automobile, this Santa Fe is ready to satisfy not only “business” trips, but also the true luxury of our era: the time spent “outdoors”.
Tags: Santa Revolution square maxi SUV window world
