Spy pics: Refreshed 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe spotted camo-free
2010 Hyundai Santa Fe - click above for high-res image gallery
On the way into the office the morning, this blogger sat at a red light, only to notice a new Hyundai Santa Fe pulling up behind. A glance at the grille revealed that this was not the current model at dealerships, but rather the refreshed iteration that should be debuting in the not-too-distant future. Thankfully, a handy camera phone was on hand to snap the images in the gallery below.
As you can see from the photo above, Hyundai's middle crossover offering is getting a new grille in keeping with the one we recently saw on the upcoming new Sonata. The bumper area is also re-contoured into a more subtle version of what is scheduled for the new Tucson coming to the Los Angeles Auto Show. The headlight clusters retain the same shape, but internal detailing has been revised. At the back, new taillights and re-shaping of the bumper area is also visible. No word yet on mechanical changes, although a new direct-injected four-cylinder has been rumored.
Gallery: 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe spy pics
Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Craig 11:03AM (9/25/2009)
Didn't they have a pic of this mixed in with the pics of the new Tucson in Frankfurt?
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Craig 11:47AM (9/25/2009)
Hmmm - the picture has been removed.
Sam Abuelsamid 12:46PM (9/25/2009)
That was a Euro spec Santa fe with a different grille and lights. This is the north american version.
Craig 11:03AM (9/25/2009)
PS: Holy ugly taillights Batman.
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alex 11:24AM (9/25/2009)
agreed. it probably makes it look even worse that the taillights are the only thing that stand out at all. what a boring design.
Craig 11:45AM (9/25/2009)
I actually like the design other than that. The changes are nice subtle (I liked the previous look).
Ligor 12:11PM (9/25/2009)
they must have though the late 90's "Euro" taillights are back in stye
that thing look hideous now, well it was only ok before
is ugly a new trend in the auto industry?
Rar 11:12AM (9/25/2009)
current santa fe style is good.
but, i don't like hyundai's new front grill look.
Hyundai must reconsider their front grill design.
I think that front grill design made by Hyundai calif. design studio.
Unlike Hyundai namyang, russelsheim design studio, only california design studio made ugly design. I think that is the ability of american designer. Hyundai consider withdraw their design facility from US.
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jsjs 3:03PM (9/25/2009)
I have to agree that the new grille stinks and that the designs coming from Hyundai's European design studio is much better than the stuff coming out of California.
The old grille was a nice and clean design, even if a bit simplistic.
Unfortunately, auto manufacturers these days want to distinguish their product w/ increasingly garish grille or headlamp/taillight designs/shapes.
Case in point - anything made by Acura, Infiniti ruining the FX, Lexus making the currently pleasant looking LS fugly and cheap w/ the new grille, etc.
Bob-omb 3:39PM (9/25/2009)
The new grille is Rogue-y. And that is NOT GOOD.
I also hope the white taillights are a SE-model thing only....
bengrith 11:23AM (9/25/2009)
Car and Driver definitely posted pics of this during the Frankfurt Auto Show.
http://blog.caranddriver.com/freshened-hyundai-santa-fe-bows-in-frankfurt/
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Aprime 11:23AM (9/25/2009)
Way to mess up an elegant (and different) design.
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Tsunami Racer 11:24AM (9/25/2009)
i bet it must be the product planner who got these shots and "released" them. cuz i don't think anyone else on the road would have noticed the difference....
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pojoppjopjoppjp 11:30AM (9/25/2009)
Your all wrong. The tail lights look fantastic, lexus-like. The grill is fine. Its the ugly jelly bean shape that sucks! When is hyundai going to hire a real designer? And can you get a manual in one? If not, NO DEAL!
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Aaron 11:59AM (9/25/2009)
Considering less than 5% of cars sold in America are manual transmissions, I doubt this vehicle will have that option. It seems that only low-end cars (Kia Rio), high-performance cars (Chevy Corvette), and work trucks (Ford F-150) have that option anymore.
Ligor 12:13PM (9/25/2009)
nope, they are definitely UGLY
and definitely worse than last years model
they look like what a 16yr old would put on his beat up Honda Civic
jsjs 2:59PM (9/25/2009)
What about Joel Piaskowski, who got hired away by Mercedes-Benz?
Oh, wait, he designed the Genesis coupe and messed that up w/ that awful grille.
Actually, Thomas Bürkle, head of Hyundai's European design center does pretty good work.
AngeloD 12:01PM (9/25/2009)
The clear tail light fad can't die quickly enough.
Bury it next to the front fender vent fad.
Another design marred, like the Mazda 5, by this nonsense.
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XJ 3:06PM (9/25/2009)
Meh...simply a refresh. Barely noticeable. I like the treatment they did to the fog lights. The taillights...not so much.
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P.V. 7:56PM (9/25/2009)
Yikes. What happened to the rear?
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