Hyundai Santa Fe review - Practicality & boot space (2018-2023)

There's little doubt that the Hyundai Santa Fe is one of the bigger family SUVs, and it has the measure of most rivals when it comes to interior space and practicality. Unlike some, seven seats are standard across the range.

Hyundai Santa Fe interior space & storage

Compared with the previous model, the latest Santa Fe has 34mm more legroom for passengers in the second row, and it was already spacious. There's also generous headroom provided for each of the three second-row seats. There's a completely flat floor, making it easier to find room for your feet, and it's easily wide enough for three passengers to comfortably sit side by side.

The two third-row seats are accessed electronically using a switch to slide the middle row forwards. So long as the second-row passengers don't mind a slight reduction in legroom, there's enough space for average-sized adults to be comfortable in the third row, even if they’re generally best suited to children. Impressively, the rear-most seats get individual air conditioning controls and a cupholder.

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Boot space

With the rear seats folded flat into the floor, the boot comes in at 571 litres, but this is actually down slightly on the 625 litres of the outgoing Santa Fe. The seven-seat Skoda Kodiaq also pips it with 630 litres of space, while the Kia Sorento hybrid has 608 litres. 

Folding the seats down is easy thanks to simple buttons and tags to press and pull. Drop all five rear seats and the luggage capacity grows to a huge 1,649 litres, and there are numerous hooks and a luggage net to keep loads secure. The Sorento is even bigger, with 1,996 litres in the hybrid. The Santa Fe’s powered tailgate is a helpfully square shape.

Towing

The Santa Fe hybrid can tow a braked trailer or caravan of up to 1,650kg, while unbraked trailer weight is limited to 750kg across the range. This is down on the 2,500kg of the diesel version but should still be enough to comfortably tow a large caravan.