Towing with a Hyundai Santa Fe

Shutterbug

Shutterbug

Well-Known Member
Joined
29 May 2007
Messages
2,603
Visit site
Anyone tow a trailer with a Hyundai Santa Fe 2.0 TD Automatic?

According to dealer it has a towing weight of 2000kg and I will only ever be towing a 505 with one 16'2 horse.

Any recommendations/words of warning would be much appreciated.

Will be towing on a B+E licence
 
No personal experience but my understanding was that the Santa Fe and the Kia Sorrento were two of the better towing vehicles out there. Certainly at the lower end of the budget anyway. Not sure how the newer models compare mind you. My friend loved her older one for towing
 
I considered one for towing. I only didn't go for it because the automatic has a lower towing capability (2t as your dealer said) than the manual 2.5t (which had a 6 month wait!) it has good towing reviews as far as I looked and is a good solid car. My friend who doesn't tow bought one and it's a really nice car! She gets about 36mpg around town on the auto.
 
Thanks guys. Nopage123 as I will be towing on a B+E licence I only need to consider the weight of the trailer and the weight of the load which is roughly 1550kg, trailer is 905kg and horse is about 600kg. On a B licence as I understand it you must take the max loaded weight of the trailer which would be 2340kg so with an empty trailer I would be illegal, add the horse and I would defo be illegal. I already asked ROG about the legalities and weights. It's a minefield isn't it
 
I had an auto Santa Fe, and while I didn't tow the horse with it, I can tell you a funny story about leaking diesel from the high pressure fuel injection pump on the A9 (and A80-whatever) all the way from Assynt to Strathaven.
 
Caol Ila said:
I had an auto Santa Fe, and while I didn't tow the horse with it, I can tell you a funny story about leaking diesel from the high pressure fuel injection pump on the A9 (and A80-whatever) all the way from Assynt to Strathaven.
Click to expand...

Oh dear - do tell
 
It had a small, intermittent diesel leak so I took it to a garage, who said they couldn't find any diesel leak. A week or so later, OH and I took our trip to Reiff and Assynt, and on the way back, perhaps 20 or 30 miles from Ullapool at the Braemore Junction, we notice that the fuel gauge needle has dropped like a rock and there are puffs of white smoke coming out of the back of the car. We nearly don't make it to Contin, but we just about manage to limp into the "thank God petrol station" and notice quite a lot of diesel dripping underneath the car. Whoops. Fill up and then drive all the way to Kingussie to stop for fish and chips, which is prescient because my old Land Rover's final journey also involved a trip to the Kingussie chippie. More diesel dripping under the car, but we press on and stop in Perth to fill up again.

Somewhere between Perth and the Dunblane roundabout, we are going up a slight hill and the car loses all power. It is by now pi$$ing with rain. I pull into a layby. OH gets out of car to look. There is lots of white steam/smoke everywhere. OH offers to drive, if car will start, which it did so he does. Miraculously, it gets all the way back to Strathaven. I call RAC, who diagnose a faulty fuel injection pump. It's an expensive part. I tell to RAC man that I'm not sure if it's worth it, since the diff is also kind of b u ggered, in that it doesn't work; you get a sharp judder when you go from a stop to a start, and nice RAC man explains that when the diff goes completely, the wheels will lock in an awkward place, like the middle of a roundabout or junction, and you won't move, which would be rather unamusing.

Car went on ebay after that.

In fairness to the car, it did have over 160,000 miles on it. I am told that the dodgy diffs on them are a known fault with those cars, but the fuel injection pump going is more of a super high mileage issue.
 
Last edited:
I tow with a Santa Fe, as do 2 of my friends. Mine is an old one and my friend's are both newer. All our cars are manual, not automatic and are diesel, not petrol. Mine has automatic 4 wheel drive, the newer ones you can engage or disengage the 4 wheel drive. Mine is a 2 liter engine, the newer ones are both 2.2 engines. Like you, we all have a double horse box and one horse in it.

None of us have ever had a problem. Up steep hills, in and out of fields, reversing and manoeuvering. My car feels stable and I feel safer towing with this vehicle than I ever would with a car. Having said all that, I wouldn't be happy if I had 2 horses as the engine is small enough, but for one horse it's grand. Mine is 10 years old and I have owned it for 6 years. I don't find it heavy on fuel and it gets a regular full service once a year. I have had to replace a few parts as it is an old vehicle. I would recommend it, as would my friends.
 
Thanks guys. I won't have to tow with two for another few years as my little guy is only 2 years old atm. I'm hoping this car will last me a few years towing one out and about and I can save up and buy something to tow them both. At the moment this looks like the ideal car to not eat through my wallet taking me to work but still be able to tow my main horse out and about.

Thanks for all your comments x
 
I have an old one with permanent 4wd and it is a good towcar. Two ponies or one horse. But one it hit ten years old I have thrown really silly money keeping it on the road. But I still like it. I suppose any older car will need major parts at some point.
 
Its been serviced every year since 2004 and had a new timing belt at 60,000 miles - I get a 3 month warranty on it so getting those both checked by a diesel mechanic as soon as I pick it up and any issues it will be straight back to the garage. Im off to pick it up this morning. It test drove really nicely yesterday, although I almost gave myself whiplash when I forgot I dont have a clutch and hit the brake with my left foot - luckily I was on a little quiet side road about to reverse round a corner so wasnt going too fast and nothing behind me. But at least I know the brakes are good:D Gonna take a bit of getting used to driving an Auto
 
Hi, I have a Santa Fe and its great for towing a 16.2, Word of caution though if you are going to get a trailer that has max towing weight greater than 2 tonne you will need to get the trailer replated to 2 tonne, as its not the weight you are carrying but the max weight you could carry that is considered. Have you already got the trailer? If not I have a great Ifor williams 401 for sale that is plated for less than 2 tonne.
 
friz said:
Hi, I have a Santa Fe and its great for towing a 16.2, Word of caution though if you are going to get a trailer that has max towing weight greater than 2 tonne you will need to get the trailer replated to 2 tonne, as its not the weight you are carrying but the max weight you could carry that is considered. Have you already got the trailer? If not I have a great Ifor williams 401 for sale that is plated for less than 2 tonne.
Click to expand...

INCORRECT

There is no law or rule which states that the vehicle towing capacity must be able to handle the max MAM of the trailer

There are internet MYTHS though !
 
I was advised by VOSA previously that had to be capable of towing max NAM maybe I was advised incorrectly 4 years ago
 
friz said:
I was advised by VOSA previously that had to be capable of towing max NAM maybe I was advised incorrectly 4 years ago
Click to expand...
You were indeed given the wrong info

I suspect they said that the Gross Weight of the trailer should not exceed the towing capacity but gross weight is not the same as plated MAM weight
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top