The 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid is offered in three trim levels which are Blue, SEL Premium, and Limited. The price for the base Blue trim commences from $35,595 and gets some handsome features such as LED headlamps and tail lamps, remote ignition, heated ORVMs, a wireless device charging pad, heated front seats, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. The SUV also gets some important ADAS features as standard right from the Blue trim onwards which are Forward collision mitigation, Lane keeping assist, Blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert, and Adaptive cruise control. The mid-level SEL Premium trim gets bigger 19-inch wheels, full leather upholstery, ambient cabin lighting along with illuminated door sills, a panoramic sunroof, a bigger infotainment display screen, and enhanced adaptive cruise control. The top-end Limited trim further pushes the list of features by adding more electrical adjustments for the driver’s seat along with memory functions, power-adjustable front passenger’s seat, ventilated front seats, a household-style 115-volt power outlet, a surround-view camera system, and remote park assist system to control the vehicle through smartphones at low speeds.

We Recommend

The Santa Fe Hybrid’s every trim level is carefully curated with features for the price. Hence, you can choose between the three trim levels according to your requirements and budget.

Release Date

The 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid has been released and is available for sale through the brand’s authorized dealerships.

The recent trend of hybrid powertrains has made them look like a close relative of pure electric powertrains due to the amount of power they offer. Likewise, the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid gets a punchy powertrain too. The SUV houses a Smartstream G1.6 T-GDi 1.6-liter turbocharged motor that is bonded with a couple of electric motors as well. To supply juice to the electric motors, the powertrain also gets a 1.49 kWh lithium-ion polymer battery pack that gets charged through the gasoline motor. Together, the powertrain dishes out a healthy 226 horsepower along with a total of 258 lb-ft of torque. As good as the figures seem, they are actually quite practical and evident out on the streets as well and the SUV doesn’t feel laggy at all. Out on the highways, the motor remains effortless as well courtesy of the 6-speed automatic transmission and the electric motors. As standard, the SUV gets an AWD layout where both the electric motors and the ICE unit drive a pair of wheels each. The transition between the electric motor and the gasoline motor is buttery smooth and you won’t feel like a hybrid SUV, be it driving within the city limits or cruising out on the highways. The 0-60mph time of the 2022 Santa Fe is at 7.5 seconds while it takes 15.7 seconds to complete the quarter-mile run.

The Toyota Venza Hybrid gets a much bigger yet less powerful 2.5-liter I-4 motor along with a couple of electric motors like the Santa Fe here. The output numbers are decent at 219 horsepower and 163 lb-ft of torque. Despite making less power than the Santa Fe, the Venza is as quick as the Santa Fe with a similar 0-60mph sprint time and 15.8-second quarter-mile run time. The Honda CR-V makes less power than both the Venza and the Santa Fe hybrids and has a disappointingly-low top speed of 103 mph only. Despite that, the SUV isn’t laggy when it comes to 0-60mph sprint. The Ford Escape Hybrid is the least powerful option here with only 200 horsepower along with 155 lb-ft of torque on tap.

2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid Ride and Handling

The 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid doesn’t disappoint in terms of ride and handling too, like its performance department. Due to the standard AWD layout, the SUV feels confident over slippery tarmacs as well as broken patches of roads but the ride can get unsettling as the read condition decreases. Smooth roads are the best places to enjoy this vehicle while slight to moderate undulations don’t bother the Santa Fe Hybrid much. The NVH levels are significantly lower inside the cabin, even lower than the regular models of the Santa Fe as well. The steering feels responsive and light at low speeds while higher speeds weigh it up decently.

2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid Braking Performance

The braking performance of EVs has been receiving massive accolades for quite some time now due to the regenerative braking and single-pedal driving capabilities. However, hybrids haven’t been similarly lucky yet. The 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid gets a pair of 13.6-inch rotors at the front along with 12-inch rotors at the rear. Unfortunately, though, the stopping distance of the SUV is unknown but we expect it to be at par with the rivals in the class.

The Toyota Venza Hybrid gets smaller, with 12.0-inch rotors at the front and 11.1-inch rotors at the rear. With this setup, the SUV halts from 60mph within 137 feet, marginally longer than the segment standard. The Honda CR-V gets even smaller, with 11.1-inch rotors at the front and 10.2-inch rotors at the back but has a decent, 134-feet stopping distance. The Ford Escape’s brake sizes have been kept under the wraps but it also showcases a decent braking performance with its 137-feet stopping distance.

Fuel efficiency is the department where the hybrids are designed to excel at but the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid doesn’t impress. According to the EPA, the SUV returns an average of only 36mpg within the city limits while highway driving sees 31mpg only. The combined fuel efficiency is rated at 34mpg. The lower fuel economy numbers have been compensated by a bigger than average gas tank of 17.7 gallons that allows the Santa Fe Hybrid to cover as much as 637 miles while driving inside the cities and 548 miles while out on the highways.

The Toyota Venza Hybrid has a much better 40mpg of city mileage and 37mpg of highway mileage. Moreover, the combined mileage of the vehicle is rated at 39mpg. However, it loses out to the Santa Fe Hybrid in terms of driving range numbers due to its smaller14.5-gallon gas tank. The Honda CR-V is almost as fuel efficient as the Venza Hybrid here but sees a similar fate to the latter due to an even smaller, 14-gallon gasoline tank. The Ford Escape Hybrid is the most fuel-efficient SUV here with 44mpg of city mileage and 41mpg of combined mileage on tap. Despite getting 14.3-gallon gasoline storage, the Escape Hybrid covers an impressive 629 miles of city driving distance before heading towards a gas station.

In the recent past, Hyundai has been grabbing plenty of attention with its design both inside and out, and the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid is a sparkling example. However, right after stepping inside the SUV, your inner self might go like “Whoa! Buttons..buttons everywhere!”. Both the center stack and the left side of the steering wheel are laden with a plethora of physical buttons for several functions and you don’t even get a gear selector stick either. Instead, there are buttons for selecting each mode while a rotary knob sits beside the gear buttons for switching the drivetrain and driving modes. There are a decent amount of soft-touch materials on the dashboard and the door panels with white stitching and right from the SEL Premium trim, leather upholstery replaces the basic one. Both headroom and legroom are plentiful on the front seats and both the driver and the front passenger get some creature comfort techs such as heating, ventilation, and power adjustments as well. Furthermore, the driver’s seat gets memory settings on the top-end Limited trim. The rear seats are decently spacious but tall passengers might feel a bit cramped though. The cargo capacity behind the rear seats is excellent at 36.4 cu-ft.

With the Venza Hybrid, Toyota did focus on aesthetics and comfort apart from robustness. The overall layout of the Venza’s cabin is quite straightforward and the dashboard looks much less congested than the Santa Fe’s dashboard. The front seats of the Venza lack a bit in terms of headroom but it is adequate for tall passengers too. The cargo capacity of the Venza disappoints the most. The Honda CR-V Hybrid has the most versatile and practical interiors among the rivals here, a trait carried forward from the regular CR-V. The cargo capacity behind the rear seats might seem less than the Santa Fe’s space on paper but feels spacious enough in the flesh. There is nothing special or appealing about the Ford Escape Hybrid’s cabin but it gets plenty of standard features and space for all the occupants.

Some of the key interior features available with the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid include:

• Leather upholstery
• Power-adjustable passenger seat
• Heated and ventilated front seats
• Driver’s seat memory settings
• Heated rear seats
• Leather-wrapped and heated steering wheel

How intuitive is the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid’s infotainment system?

The infotainment system of the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid brings all the necessary features and connectivity options along with an 8-inch infotainment display. From the SEL Premium trim onwards, the system is upgraded with a 10.25-inch touchscreen display. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard across the trim levels along with a wireless device charging pad, satellite radio, HD Radio, USB ports, and Bluetooth. The SEL Premium gets navigation and an upgraded 12-speaker Harman Kardon audio system.

Some of the most notable infotainment features available with the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid include:

• 8-inch/10/25-inch infotainment display
• Android Auto and Apple CarPlay
• Navigation
• USB ports
• Bluetooth
• Wireless device charging pad
• HD radio and satellite radio
• 12-speaker Harman Kardon audio system

On the outside, the 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid looks identical to the regular version of the SUV with some minor tweaks. During the last facelift in 2021, the exterior design became quite busy looking with several design cues merged together to give the SUV a futuristic look. At the front, the huge front grille with the front bumper mounted LED headlamps look unique but a bit polarizing while the rear end gets a delectable design. The side profile of the SUV gets some tasteful and strong character lines and there is black plastic cladding under the body panels to give a subtle rugged appeal to the vehicle.

Toyota did something appealing with the Venza’s exterior design and its rear-end design might slightly remind you of the Jaguar F-Pace. On paper, the Venza is slightly smaller in dimensions than the Santa Fe Hybrid and it shows when comparing them side by side as well. The Honda CR-V’s exterior design still looks strong with a character of its own but might feel slightly dated when compared to the Santa Fe or the Venza here. The Ford Escape’s exterior design is the most understated and simple one among the rivals here and it is on the compact side as well when compared to the rivals.

Some standout exterior features include:

• 17-inch/19-inch wheels
• LED headlamps and tail lamps
• Panoramic sunroof
• Keyless entry
• Heated ORVMs
• Rain-sensing wipers

Hyundai has maintained a strong standard for the safety of its vehicles and with the 2022 Santa Fe Hybrid, it did the same. The SUV received a full 5-star rating from the NHTSA while the IIHS gave it the Top Safety Pick + certification too due to its exemplary performance in all the tests. Apart from the superb build quality, the SUV gets several ADAS techs as standard which are Forward collision mitigation, Lane keeping assist, Blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert, and Adaptive cruise control. Going higher up the trim levels will further get you techs such as a Surround-view camera system and Remote Smart Parking Assist.

Some of the standout safety features include:

• Forward collision mitigation
• Lane keeping assist
• Blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert
• Adaptive cruise control
• Remote Smart Parking Assist
• Surround-view camera system
• Blind spot camera

2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid vs 2022 Toyota Venza Hybrid

The Toyota Venza Hybrid is a newer contender than a majority of the rivals in the segment, and it gets plenty of things right too. Starting off with fuel efficiency, it ranks among the respectably fuel-efficient hybrids in this class and doesn’t compromise on the performance part as well. On the interior part, the Venza fares better than the Santa Fe due to the latter’s button-heavy layout but the Santa Fe moves ahead in terms of standard features onboard. The Venza seems like a better investment since it trumps the Santa Fe in some key areas such as fuel efficiency and design.

2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid vs 2022 Honda CR-V Hybrid

The Honda CR-V Hybrid has been around for quite some time now and has retained a top spot in the class due to its strengths. It might disappoint purists with its lower-than-average top speed but it gets both the performance and the fuel economy part absolutely right. On the inside, it is slightly more practical and spacious than the Santa Fe but the latter feels slightly more modern in terms of overall cabin design. On the outside, the CR-V Hybrid feels handsome enough, especially when compared to the polarizing front fascia of the Santa Fe.

2022 Hyundai Santa Fe hybrid vs 2022 Ford Escape Hybrid

The Ford Escape Hybrid is a great city vehicle due to its compact size and exemplary fuel economy numbers. The interior of the Escape is as spacious as the Santa Fe’s cabin but the design needs much improvement though. The practicality part is absolutely alright with plenty of space for both passengers and cargo alike. Performance is the weakest part of the Escape but it can be ignored considering the respectable EPA ratings it has.

If you’re someone who doesn’t mind the latest design language of Hyundai and wants a comfy hybrid SUV, the Santa Fe makes a good option. The SUV feels right at home for shoppers who prefer to be behind the wheel almost every time since Hyundai offers several creature comforts such as heating, ventilation, and plenty of power adjustment options. The performance and practicality aspect of the Santa Fe is quite strong but the subpar fuel economy numbers might act as a deal-breaker.