2010 Hyundai Santa Fe facelift
Popular Hyundai Santa Fe SUV receives a mid-cycle facelift. New powertrain technologies include a six-speed automatic transmission and R-diesel engine!
Three years and seven months after Koreas leading automaker brought its second generation Santa Fe SUV to the market, Hyundai has released the very first image of the facelifted 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe. The mid-cycle facelift will bring Santa Fe an array of improvements including exterior and interior updates, along with new powertrain technologies.
Exterior of the 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe will host a plethora of styling updates, including a slightly revamped three-bar signature grille and heavily revised bumper in front, while rear will feature a slightly restyled pair of tail-lamps and tweaked rear bumper with integrated rear fog lamps. The facelift will also bring a set of new 17-inch five-spoke alloy wheels, chrome door handles and side mirror integrated turn signals.
Inside, the facelifted Santa Fe will benefit from higher quality materials, new seat upholstery and new interior color choices. The revised Santa Fe will also feature a slightly updated center stack and leather-covered steering wheel. The model will also see some equipment upgrades such as smart key, start-stop button, parking assist system with rear camera and a display located in the rear-view mirror inside the car, while active head-rests will improve Santa Fes already top notch safety.
With sales of more than 500.000 units so far, the Santa Fe has been Hyundais best selling SUV for years. Credits for such a great sales go to Santa Fes attractive exterior styling and competitive powertrain technologies under the hood. For the 2010 model year, the new Santa Fe SUV will also undergo some radical technical changes. Among all, the most important improvements will be the newly developed six-speed automatic transmission and highly advanced R-diesel engine.
Hyundai has already announced many of its midsized vehicles, including Santa Fe and Sonata sedan, are going to benefit from the all-new six-speed auto tranny, co-developed between Hyundai and Kia. According to Hyundai, the new six-speed auto tranny is 12kg lighter and was constructed with 62 lesser parts compared with the 5-speed auto transmission that it is replacing.
The highly anticipated Hyundai Santa Fe is joining the all-new Kia Sorento as the second vehicle in the Hyundai-Kia range to be equipped with the state-of-the-art four-cylinder diesel engine that is available in two configurations (2.0L and 2.2L). With a power output of 135 kW and 392 Nm of torque, the 2.0L version of the R-Engine outperforms any competitive offering (147 kW and 436 Nm are delivered by the 2.2L version). Both R-diesel engines also satisfie strict European (EURO5) emission standards.
The facelifted 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe is expected to go on sale in South Korea in August this year, while other International markets, such as North America, Australia and Europe should get the new Santa Fe in December this year.
