ROME – It was physiological, and also widely announced, that this fourth generation of the Santa Fe should sooner or later also have a Plug-in Hybrid version in its garage. A version that is “on plug”, which can be recharged from a normal 220 volt socket in the home box. So here it is, in these very sultry days of August gliding on the market of the Old Continent with the aim of imposing itself strongly in its segment (let’s not forget that in the first two series the Santa Fe was produced in 2.5 million units …) .
But let’s go into the details. Its Plug-In system consists of the combination of a third-generation 1.6-liter T-GDi Smartstream petrol engine and a 66.9 kW electric motor. Taken together they offer a combined power of 265 hp and 350 Nm of maximum torque, to which is added the Hyundai CVVD (Continuously Variable Valve Duration) technology, which optimizes performance and consumption. At the push of a simple button, you can switch to pure electric driving thanks to a 13.8 kWh lithium-ion polymer battery, which guarantees a zero-emission range of up to 58 km (WLTP cycle).
What happens when the battery runs out? Just attach the 7.2 kW on-board charger to an electrical column or, as we said, to a compatible home wall-box. In the latter case, charging times can also be set remotely using the smartphone and the Bluelink app and selecting the cheapest consumption time slot to reduce costs.
A lot of technology could not fail to be matched by an automatic gearbox up to the occasion, specifically six-speed, managed through the “shift-by-wire” system. And the standard all-wheel drive with 4WD HTRAC technology from Hyundai could not be missing either, capable of variably distributing power between the front and rear wheels.
And speaking of technology, assisted driving systems and active safety functions also rain on this version, including Remote Smart Parking Assist (RSPA) with which the car parks itself, and Highway Driving Assist ( HDA) which keeps the Santa Fe in the center of the lane while also adapting the travel speed based on navigation data and traffic: if, for example, the navigator reveals that there will soon be a curve, the car decelerates.
Available in the XClass set-up that has practically everything as standard, the New Santa Fe Plug-in Hybrid costs 52,000 euros: a tidy sum, which however can drop by 9,000 euros if you show up at the dealer with a car registered for at least 10 years. to exchange or to be scrapped. Lastly, the usual “5-year unlimited km” warranty, plus the 8-year / 160,000 km battery guarantee.
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