Hyundai Santa Fe (2013-2018) - Practicality & boot space

Given how big the Hyundai Santa Fe is, it shouldn't come as a huge surprise to learn that it's a very practical family car. The option of seven seats will particularly appeal to people with large families, although it's worth remembering that it won't take long for your kids to outgrow them; you certainly wouldn't want to ask adults to sit there very often or for a long time.

It's better to think of these as 'occasional' seats – you should go for an out-and-out MPV like the SEAT Alhambra if you regularly need to transport seven people. Storage and boot space are very good, though, and the Santa Fe’s raised SUV seating position means you get an excellent view of the road and any traffic ahead.

Hyundai Santa Fe interior space & storage

There's plenty of space up front in the Santa Fe and lots of storage to go with it, including a vast cubbyhole between the front two seats. There are plenty of cup-holders, too, as well as a large glovebox and very generously sized door bins.

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While the third row of seats is best reserved for children, there's plenty of space in the middle row even for tall adults. The middle row can also be slid forwards and backward for more boot space or extra legroom as required, and the two outer seats recline, too. Larger adults will find elbowroom in the middle seat a bit tight, but the floor is almost completely flat, so there's somewhere to put your feet.

Boot space

If you choose the five-seat version of the Hyundai Santa Fe, you'll have a 585-litre boot with the rear seats up and 1,680 litres with them folded down. Going for the seven-seater version means capacity drops slightly to 516 litres with the third row folded and 1,615 litres with both the second and third rows down. In the Nissan X-Trail, boot space is 550 litres or 1,982 litres with the seats down, so there isn't much to choose between the two cars in that respect.

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What makes the Santa Fe's boot particularly practical, other than its overall size, is the lack of a lip, which makes sliding in heavy, awkward or long items much easier than it otherwise would be. Combine this with a boot floor that’s almost totally flat with the seats down and you have a very practical car for transporting various kinds of luggage.

Towing

The Hyundai Santa Fe makes an excellent tow car. It can pull 750kg unbraked or 2,500kg braked when fitted with a manual gearbox – although this figure drops to 2,000kg if you choose the automatic. The Santa Fe also comes with a Trailer Stability Assist system, which improves towing safety by restricting engine power and braking individual wheels when necessary.