Payne: Hyundai Santa Fe sneaks up on BMW X5 luxury

Posted by Talbot Payne on January 16, 2025

Brighton — BMW makes a state-of-the-art, all-wheel-drive X5 SUV for $88K with a curved 37-inch dash screen, color head-up display, 21-inch wheels, twin wireless phone chargers, leather seats, Level 2 driving assist, WiFi onboard, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto navigation and panoramic roof.

So does Hyundai. For $51K.

The 2024 BMW X5 xDrive50e and 2024 Hundai Santa Fe Calligraphy are $36k apart in price – but nearly identical in luxury and tech features.
Henry Payne, The Detroit News

The gap between luxury and mainstream has been shrinking in the electronic age and Hyundai’s latest Santa Fe SUV is a luxury car hiding behind a mainstream badge. Badges still matter and BMW’s X-ceptional midsize model will continue to justify its rich sticker price with smooth power and that signature twin-kidney grille. But buyers of the Santa Fe can take comfort that they get the same value — in all the areas that matter — for nearly half the price.

The Alabama-made Hyundai even matches the South Carolina-built BMW’s value in offering three rows of seats, clever console amenities and bold styling. Yes, styling.

The Santa Fe turned heads ‘round town. The brand has crafted daring wardrobes since the 2009 Sonata sedan (followed by the Elantra compact, three-door Veloster, and Ioniq 5 and 7 electric vehicles) and Santa Fe continues the trend. With its upright, squared-off stance and horizontal accents, the ute looks like a LEGO married an Ioniq 5.

The letter H is everywhere on the 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe’s design.
Henry Payne, The Detroit News

Look past the Goldfinger-like flat-bronze paint scheme and an H-theme emerges. It’s echoed in the headlights, lower grille and rear taillights that bracket “SANTA FE” stamped across the trunk.

Like Hyundai, BMW has taken the opportunity of a new EV model line to introduce radical new styling — but it’s limited to “i” models like the iX. My BMW xDrive50e (alphabet soup translation: “xDrive” for all-wheel-drive, “50” for model, “e” for plug-in hybrid) brings a familiar, muscular Bimmer look with swollen fenders and blacked-out fascia to convey power.

That power is where the price difference lies.

Where the price is. The $87k 2024 BMW X5 xDrive50e makes an impressive 483 horsepower – about 200 more than the Hyundai Santa Fe.
Henry Payne, The Detroit News

As I merged onto I-96 West, the 3.0-liter, turbocharged inline-6 engine cleared its throat and blew by traffic on the way to cruising speed. The 50e is a battery-assisted, plug-in hybrid system but the eight-speed transmission still must find its cogs, so don’t mistake it for the instant acceleration of the sister all-electric iX (yours for a 12-grand premium).

Dropping into a highway cloverleaf, I unleashed SPORT mode, the seat bolsters gripping my torso for the anticipated kick of 483 horses from the combined gas engine and 194-horse AC motor. Complicated? You bet. Pricey? Of course.

And heavy. All that plumbing mean X5 tips the scales at 5,573 pounds — just 150 shy of the iX, which carries around 106 kWh of battery. X5 goes XL.

Charge the X5’s onboard 25.7-kWh battery overnight on a 220-volt home charger (which adds a couple grand more to your $87K bill) and my Bimmer had an indicated 38 miles of pure battery range on tap for a morning appointment in Sterling Heights.

In ELECTRIC mode, I cruised quietly down Telegraph Road, but don’t expect drag-racer acceleration like iX from the small battery. The X5 eased out of stoplights before hitting I-696 West. My 16-mile journey sucked 30 miles of range off the battery as I pushed the big brick through the air at 75 mph. Better to use HYBRID (gas plus electric) mode on highways and leave ELECTRIC mode for neighborhood chores where aerodynamics are less taxing. As governments force the industry to go all-electric, expect the difference between brands to shrink even more dramatically.

The Hyundai ferries you about with a simple turbo-4 cylinder.

No electric motor, no modes, no charger box on the wall. Just the occasional quick stop at the pump to fill up 513 miles of range (the X5 gets 418 miles on gas alone). For further value, the Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers 10 years or 100,000 miles compared with the BMW’s four years/50,000 miles.

Hyundai is so proud of its four-bangers that its electric Ioniq 5 N track rat can replicate its sound on demand. Sante Fe’s 277 ponies are plenty of giddyap, and I merged quickly onto I-696’s racetrack.

The distinctive, muscular design of the 2024 BMW X5 xDrive50e.
Henry Payne, The Detroit News

That’s all the performance most midsize SUV drivers require. I flogged a BMW X5 M around Autobahn Raceway a decade ago and it was a hoot, but I’m weird like that. If you want to do track days, buy a sports car.

Indeed, without the BMW’s extensive powertrain weaponry, the Hyundai is a serious 1,000 pounds lighter, and I felt it immediately. Some of that added Bimmer heft also goes to sound-deadening. The BMW was one quiet ride even when I put the cane to the inline-6.

The 2024 BMW X5 xDrive50e shows off its twin screens integrated under one piece of glass.
Henry Payne, The Detroit News

Otherwise, Santa Fe’s interior is Bimmer’s peer in all the ways passengers appreciate.

The twin digital screens in both chariots are crisp, quick to the touch. BMW offers a rotary controller so you can manipulate the infotainment screen remotely if you like, but it has the drawback of cluttering the center console — sharing space with Bimmer’s compact, cool chiclet shifter.

The Santa Fe, by contrast, assumes the smartphone generation will be satisfied with the touchscreen — then offers you two huuuuge charging pads for phones. The BMW, too, offers twin charging pads, but they are harder to access in the forward compartment of the cluttered console. Hyundai further improves console ergonomics by using a steering wheel-mounted shifter stalk and superior, tactile buttons on the elegant, Art Deco steering wheel that you can operate without diverting your eyes from the road.

The 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe offers twin screens under one piece of glass.
Henry Payne, The Detroit News

The icing on the cake — er, console — is a double-hinged door that is accessible to the rear as well as the front seats. The Bimmer goes with a fashionable (if less useful) butterfly door. Both second rows are comfortable for six-footers and both have individual seatback USB-C ports so passengers can charge their phones. Both second-row seats will recline, and both vehicles offer third-row seat options (of my testers, only Hyundai had the third row).

In their high-tech cocoons, both brands offer a blizzard of goodies in the infotainment screen to entertain you, including Level 2 driver assist. My favorites? The Hyundai offers special first-to-third-row communication and programmable FAVORITES buttons on the steering wheel (for, say, a shortcut to the phone screen). The Bimmer options automatic lane change while in driver-assist mode, and its head-up display can scroll your favorite music stations.

The pair even boast clever storage items. X5 sports a lower tailgate to help keep backstop items in the boot. Santa Fe offers a second, secret dashboard glovebox for extra storage — maybe where you can stash the 30 grand you saved by buying this fashionable family SUV.

Next week: 2025 Volkswagen Taos

2024 BMW X5 xDrive 50e

Vehicle type: Front engine, all-wheel-drive, six-passenger SUV

Price: $74,275, including $995 destination fee ($87,745 as tested)

Powerplant: Turbocharged 3.0-liter, inline-6 cylinder mated with 25.7-kWh lithium-ion battery pack and electric motor

Power: 483 horsepower, 516 pound-feet of torque

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Performance: 0-60 mph, 4.6 seconds (mfr.); towing, NA

Weight: 5,573 pounds

Fuel economy: EPA 22 mpg city/23 highway/22 combined (as tested); 38 miles on battery alone

Report card

Highs: Multitalented drivetrain; lovely interior

Lows: Crowded console; gets pricey

Overall: 3 stars

2024 Hyundai Santa Fe

Vehicle type: Front-engine, front or all-wheel-drive, six-passenger SUV

Price: $35,674 including $1,395 destination fee ($50,905 as tested)

Powerplant: Turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-4 cylinder

Power: 277 horsepower, 311 pound-feet of torque

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.2 seconds (mfr.); towing, 4,500 pounds

Weight: 4,487 pounds (as tested)

Fuel economy: EPA 19 mpg city/26 highway/22 combined (XLT as tested)

Report card

Highs: Distinctive style; clever interior touches

Lows: Ummm…

Overall: 4 stars

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

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