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Ken Gratton27 Jul 2018
REVIEW

Hyundai Santa Fe v Mazda CX-9 2018 Comparison

Can the new Hyundai Santa Fe dispatch Mazda's CX-9, our former car of the year winner?
Review Type
Comparison

New challenger seeks large soft-roader's crown

The second generation of Mazda CX-9 has been warmly welcomed by motoring journalists and buyers alike since its local launch in 2016. But in a recent comparison the Mazda CX-9 taking part lost out to the Hyundai Santa Fe.

For that contest, we pitted the outgoing Hyundai Santa Fe Highlander against the Mazda CX-9 GT, which is one-step down from the flagship Mazda CX-9 Azami.

This time around we've selected the range-topping CX-9, but now it's up against a thoroughly new Hyundai Santa Fe Highlander. Only, the 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel powering the Santa Fe is carried over from the previous model.

The Hyundai is significantly more expensive than its predecessor, which would normally work against it, but not when taking into account the added equipment in this new model.

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Why are we comparing them?

There are plenty of off-road-capable models in the large SUV segment for vehicles priced below $70,000. Many buyers in this segment of the market don't need that sort of traction and off-road ability though. Rather than going bush, what they prefer is a safe, more refined family-sized vehicle that's practical in the suburbs as well – and doesn't cost a bomb to own.

Enter the soft-roaders in this segment. Although the sales figures don't reflect it, the Mazda CX-9 and Hyundai Santa Fe are two of the more credible vehicles battling it out in this sector of the market. The CX-9 is relatively new on the scene, but not as new as the Santa Fe. Both vehicles are well regarded by critics and owners alike.

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Who will they appeal to?

These are out-and-out family wagons. They ride high enough off the ground to clear traffic pacifiers in inner-suburban streets and can tow stuff for the occasional weekend away or trip to the local transfer and recycling station.

Powered by turbocharged four-cylinder engines, the Mazda CX-9 and Hyundai Santa Fe are cheaper to run than the segment's traditional SUVs – often with V6 engines or even V8s under the bonnets.

Yet despite the economical running costs of the two test vehicles, they're not lacking performance. They will cruise comfortably at highway speeds, ready for overtaking at a moment's notice, and they'll also tow up to 2000kg each (or 2200kg in the case of the Santa Fe when fitted with heavy-duty rear springs).

There are few concessions to be made for this level of all-round competence. The CX-9 and Santa Fe not only cope easily with open-road touring, they're equally at home at the shopping centre or negotiating the workday commute.

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How much do they cost?

In standard form, the Hyundai Santa Fe Highlander is priced at $60,500, to which the test vehicle added $295 for the option of beige upholstery – for a total of $60,795. The new model in Highlander trim is over $3400 more expensive than its predecessor, which brings the test vehicle closer in price to the Mazda CX-9 Azami, although the latter remains relatively expensive at $64,790.

Safety features common to both vehicles include six airbags, autonomous emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert, blind spot information, driver fatigue warning, lane departure warning and lane keep assistance.

Packed full of comfort and convenience features as standard, both vehicles are equipped with satellite navigation, rain-sensing wipers, auto headlights, powered tailgate, electrically-adjustable front seats, Bluetooth, digital radio (DAB+), trip computer, multi-zone climate control, keyless starting and alloy wheels.

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The Santa Fe also comes with tyre pressure monitoring, a heated steering wheel and a panoramic sunroof.

Mazda offers the CX-9 with a three-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, which can't compete with the five-year/unlimited-kilometre coverage of the Santa Fe. Both vehicles must be serviced at least one a year, but owners travelling further than 10,000km in a year will look kindly upon the Santa Fe (12-month/15,000km), rather than the CX-9 (12-month/10,000km).

By virtue of its diesel engine, the Santa Fe uses less fuel on longer runs, although the CX-9 pegs that back quite a lot in the city.

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What do they do well?

On the road, both cars are very quiet. There's little to pick between them for wind and road noise. Bearing in mind the performance potential of the two SUVs – each one producing 400Nm or more – the engines are extremely refined, and that's particularly noteworthy in the diesel-powered Hyundai.

There's little diesel-associated vibration and harshness at speeds of 1500rpm and below, unless the transmission catches out the engine, holding a gear too high for too long. For its part, the petrol-only Mazda CX-9 sounds quite sporty, particularly in the mid-range and higher.

Fuel consumption is meagre. Although the diesel Santa Fe is more frugal on longer runs, the petrol CX-9 can actually match the Hyundai on shorter urban jaunts from a cold start.

Driveability is commendable for the two SUVs, with the Hyundai Santa Fe enjoying an edge for steering feel, ride comfort, traction and roadholding. Brake pedal feel of the Hyundai is also slightly better.

The Santa Fe also comes with a heated steering wheel and a panoramic sunroof

Bright LED headlights with intelligent high-beam assist were excellent in both cases, and the lane-keep assist systems fared quite well with the vagaries of Aussie country-road line markings.

The Mazda is roomier inside, but the Hyundai enjoys some packaging advantages in other ways. There's a full-size spare under the boot floor, you can stand under the tailgate if you're around 175cm tall and the seats are more comfortable.

Fitting an ISOFIX-compliant child safety seat was simpler and faster in the Hyundai also, and the Santa Fe features Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The CX-9 is the benchmark for build quality; the doors close softly and there's fully-layered paint around the D pillars under the tailgate.

Our team noted that the Mazda CX-9 is roomier inside

What could they do better?

The Santa Fe's third-row seat is stingy and no place for young teens, let alone adults. It's also slightly harder to raise those seats into position (using a pull cord) than is the case with the CX-9. And the Santa Fe is abysmally lacking in luggage space behind the third-row seats if they're raised and occupied. These are very much 'occasional' seats at best.

Much to the surprise of the two testers, the CX-9 can't match the Santa Fe for driving dynamics. While there was nothing much wrong with the CX-9, it was at a small but significant disadvantage against the Santa Fe for steering feel, roadholding, traction and braking.

Despite all that, the Mazda CX-9 was also outgunned by the Hyundai Santa Fe for ride comfort. The 20-inch alloys and Bridgestone tyres seemed to hobble the Mazda, compared with the 19-inch alloys and Continental tyres fitted to the Hyundai.

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Which wins, and why?

Both these vehicles are very good. They're at the top of the totem pole among the competition. But the position at the top of the pole can only be occupied one at a time. That time is now for the Hyundai Santa Fe.

If we wanted to keep a family SUV well into the teenage years for the fourth or fifth kid we would choose the Mazda CX-9, but assuming the sixth and seventh seats are there for that interim period prior to the older kids getting a driver's licence, the Santa Fe would also be perfectly adequate.

Leaving aside the convoluted long-term logistics of family transport, the Santa Fe is simply a better-value proposition. It's priced keener, drives and rides better, and there's Hyundai's generous warranty and service intervals to boot.

Throw in comparable refinement, fresher styling and superior functionality (other than outright spaciousness) – and the Hyundai Santa Fe Highlander takes the win.

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How much does the 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe Highlander cost?
Price: $60,795 (as tested, plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.2-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder
Output: 147kW/440Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.5L/100km (ADR Combined); 9.2L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 198g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: TBA

How much does the 2018 Mazda CX-9 Azami cost?
Price: $64,790 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.5-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder
Output: 170kW/420Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 8.8L/100km (ADR Combined); 11.2L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 206g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP (2016)

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Want to know more about the vehicles on test? Continue reading here:

Less than two years later...
After voting the Mazda CX-9 our car of the year for 2016, the big SUV is under fire from Hyundai's new Santa Fe.

At the time, we voted for the Mazda CX-9 due to its refinement, spaciousness and driving dynamics. In respect of two of those three criteria, however, the CX-9 has now been surpassed by the Santa Fe, which benefits a lot from local chassis tuning.

What that means for the Santa Fe is a suspension and wheel/tyre combination chosen to iron out uneven road surfaces, dampen noise generated on coarse-chip bitumen and provide higher levels of grip and steering feedback.

Mazda CX-9 won 2016 Carsales Car of the Year due to its refinement, spaciousness and driving dynamics

Power to stop and go

Hyundai's engineers have also taken the lead for traction and braking, with the test Santa Fe's 19-inch Continental tyres keeping wheel spin and torque steer in check, in contrast with the CX-9.

Mazda's part-time (on-demand) 4WD system was slow to come on stream, so with the front wheels alone driving the CX-9 forward, some wheel-spin and torque steer can be provoked. The Hyundai's system is a proper full-time system, and consequently less reactive.

A word of caution: the tyres fitted to the Santa Fe are not fitted to lesser variants in the range, and the gulf between Mazda and Hyundai would probably narrow if comparing mid-range or entry-level models.

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As it stands though, the Santa Fe in Highlander trim offers a better ride/handling balance than the Mazda in high-falutin' Azami trim. Body control is superior on country roads too. And there's slightly more steering feel than in the CX-9.

But the Hyundai is easily the better drive of the two. There's more body roll present when tipping into a bend at higher speeds, and it can feel disconcerting, but the Santa Fe is also hitting higher speeds at that point than the CX-9 can manage.

On its Azami-grade 20-inch wheels and Bridgestone tyres, the CX-9 rolls less, but lateral g forces are transformed into oversteer. The Mazda starts to skate, whereas the Hyundai rolls – but also grips. And the Santa Fe does all that with better ride quality overall.

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Not that any of this matters to typical family buyers, but the Santa Fe is just a smidge more secure.

In defence of the Mazda, we drove the base-grade front-wheel drive CX-9 Sport the day before and found that model's ride was more settled and compliant. Steering feel was better on-centre also. Our suspicion is the lower-profile tyres on the Azami-grade wheels do the CX-9 no favours at all – for ride comfort or driving dynamics.

Brake pedal feel and braking performance was better in the Santa Fe, which brakes harder from moderately high speeds.

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Driver-assist technology that raises the bar

On local roads through outer suburbs and rural townships the Hyundai Santa Fe's lane-keep assist facility put to shame some high-end Euro prestige cars we've driven in the past. The Santa Fe remained on course more often by tracking line markings that eluded more expensive vehicles on the same roads.

A similar system was fitted to the Mazda CX-9 as well. In the Mazda, the lane-keep assist system was adjustable for sensitivity and intervention – the best option being early sensitivity and medium intervention level.

The headlights of the Mazda CX-9 perform well on low beam and feature an intelligent high-beam facility, which progressively dips the lights at the first sign of a built-up area, but it also drops the lights quickly the instant an oncoming car arrives on the scene. Hyundai also offers the Santa Fe with an equally adept intelligent high-beam assist system, and the Santa Fe's active cornering lights work a treat too.

On a test loop measuring 72km, the CX-9 returned a real-world fuel consumption figure of 11.2L/100km, whereas the diesel-engined Santa Fe completed the same run using just 9.2L/100km. But morning and evening commutes over a 20km route revealed that the two SUVs were quite close in terms of fuel use in that context, each posting a figure of around 9.5L/100km, reflecting the CX-9's faster warm-up and the benefit of an idle-stop system.

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Leading-edge style or simple elegance

As a package, the Hyundai Santa Fe's interior looks 'busy' in comparison with the Mazda CX-9. There are more trim materials installed throughout the Hyundai's cabin, and the Santa Fe's centre fascia, dash and instrument binnacle are ergonomically functional, but a little more avant-garde than the conventional design of the CX-9.

The Mazda is roomier inside, which means it holds all the cards for transporting taller passengers and more luggage. Second-row seating in the CX-9 is more accommodating, although adults of average height will have to duck the head under the cant rail climbing on board in both vehicles. Once there, however, the CX-9 offers considerably more legroom and headroom with the seats slid back as far as they go.

And it's the same story with the third-row seating. Getting there in the first place is easier in the Mazda. Even with the third-row seating deployed there's still adequate luggage space between the rearmost seats and the tailgate. The same cannot be said for the Hyundai. And the CX-9 has bottle-sized cup-holders for both third-row seat occupants, whereas the Santa Fe provides that facility on just the right side.

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However, what the Hyundai Santa Fe lacks in passenger-carrying space is offset by seat comfort. Cushioning is softer and the bolstering is better shaped to hold occupants in place laterally, in both front and second-row seats. The latter slides forward easier for access to the third row, and fastening an ISOFIX child safety seat in place is a simpler process in the Santa Fe.

While raising the third-row seats out of the floor is straightforward in both cars, the Mazda actually doesn't require the same degree of manhandling – the seats can be raised out of the floor by a single hand-pull. A cord on the back of each seat in the Santa Fe has to be pulled on a slight angle to unlatch and lift the seat, making the process a little ungainly.

Both cars have the single-position seat for access to the third row on the near (passenger) side, but only the Santa Fe has a button release for quick access to the third row – in addition to the lever. The Hyundai also comes with separate release buttons inside the load compartment to let the second-row seating flop forward for a larger load area. Second-row passengers can also adjust the front-passenger seat from behind to free up even more legroom, if necessary.

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Neither vehicle quite gets it right where climate control is concerned. The Mazda CX-9 has a three-zone system, but the separate controls and adjustable vents for the third zone are located in the second row and don't service the little tackers in the very rear of the vehicle.

Hyundai has settled for just two zones in the Santa Fe, but the occupants in the third-row seat do get separate adjustable vents and a dial to change the fan speed there. The air-con for the rear of the Santa Fe can be disabled from the centre fascia if there's no one seated in the back.

On a cold, wintry day in Gisborne, north-west of Melbourne, the four-place seat heating in both cars was welcome by the testing crew. The Santa Fe went one step better with heating for the steering wheel as well.

Adding everything together, the Hyundai Santa Fe wasn't perfect, but for thousands less than the Mazda CX-9 it's a formidable rival in the segment.

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Written byKen Gratton
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