What A Mom Thinks About The All #NewSantaFe Sport

That is a beautiful picture right? I am the last person you would normally hear describe a car as beautiful; but after experiencing the all new Santa Fe through the breathtaking views of Park City, Utah, it is simply the word that I will forever equate with the car and the adventure. I was invited to trial the newly redesigned Hyundai (pronounced like Sunday if you didn’t know) Santa Fe while staying at the Montage Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah.

The event was extremely organized, and we had lots of fun activities to do while we were visiting to thoroughly get the feel behind the wheel. We treated to a fabulous dinner complete with a climactic Dragon’s Breath frozen treat.

The morning started off with a presentation explaining the new features and how the New Santa Fe was totally redesigned from the ground up! As a mom, of course, I was most impressed by the features of stain and water resistant interior. The picture below is an actual drop of coffee that is not absorbing! Good news for moms like me with messy toddlers. It would be a dream come true to not have to hop into a vehicle that smelled like spilled milk and cookies.

The Santa Fe is equipped with class leading standard safety features like driver-side knee airbags to keep you from falling down under the seat. There are a toal of 7 airbags in the 2013 SanteFe Sport which is the car that I drove. Other standard features included are rollover sensors, ESC, ABS, hillstart assist control and downhill brake control. I would imagine living in or visiting the mountains, you would want and utilize each and every feature. I know I used downhill brake control more than once zooming around!

After the presentation we did a walk around of the Santa Fe Sport and then we paired off to begin our journey through the mountains. I thought it was pretty interesting that they picked such a  high altitude to have such a large group of media test drive a version. I know I had a hard time performing simple tasks like stairs with the lack of oxygen. (Remember I live below sea-level in South Florida) It was amazing to see the Santa Fe perform exceedingly well in such conditions!

My driving partner was Jeana from Surf and Sunshine, and she was up first. We had a travel itinerary to follow from mile marker by mile marker to help us navigate. While she was driving, I had a chance to check out all of the bells and whistles. I am often the passenger in my family, so what happens on that side of the car is the most important to me. I did the three point check.

• Passenger Fold Down Mirror and Light– Check! I cannot stand it (and neither can my husband) when I have to move the rear-view mirror to check my makeup, look at my teeth or see what the kids are doing without calling their attention. It isn’t very safe either and just causes discord. Thank you Hyundai for thinking of my family’s harmony.
• Room with a Car Seat – I need room for my legs, purse, and what ever else I have stashed at my arms reach. Usually snacks, toys, diaper bag, etc. I was very pleased to see that I had a plethora of room. I could have my camera bag, snacks, water bottles, purse, iPad and my shoes (off my feet) after I moved the seat up to represent a full-sized car seat in place.
• Trunk Space – I need it. Plain and simple. I travel often, and bring a ton of crap. With kids, you always do. Do you know how much space a double stroller takes up? Or a week’s worth of groceries when you shop at Sam’s?

• Panoramic Sunroof- Just look at it. Of course you want one. Think of the hours of entertainment for the kids. I have driven mine around town with a panoramic sunroof. It made for a pleasant trip with less fighting while they were entranced with a view they do not see very often. This comes with the Technology pacakage along with a heated steering wheel, manual rear side window shades and a Navigation system with 8-inch touchscreen.
• Remote keyless entry system w/ alarm – I am one of those people AAA has cancelled for locking their key in the car. When you have a push button start, you can’t. See my point. I need it and it comes standard.
• Rearview camera – I think all vehicles that I drive should have this. I like to see exactly which neighbor’s bike I am running over. This comes with the Leather & Premium Equipment Package along with heated rear seats, premium door sill plates and more.

The later half of the afternoon we spent at Olympic Park and at Sundance. I got to go down the Alpine Slide! I could have stayed there all day watching the crazy kids ski-jump into the water. They were simply fearless.

Want more? Check out the video @SlashGear did below! Vincent and Rob hooked up their car with this handy camera pictured above, and we followed him or him us to get a lot of the coverage Jeana & I are the featured silver car from 5:39 on. don’t we follow well? There are so good shots of our car going over a bridge and trekking up crazy mountains!

There is one point around 7:43 where all you can see is them eating our dust! Then at 8:23 we switch and get to eat theirs. It was really fun testing the Santa Fe to see how it handled rocky, gravely corners overlooking steep mountains. Nothing like literally living on the edge! Technology is so cool! Check out the whole video below.

Want a Guy’s Point of View?

Along the trip I was able to connect with a genre I normally do not network with. It was great fun hanging with the guys and seeing what the “Three Amigos” thought. More interested in a guy’s point of view? See what these fellas have to say. Looks like a thumbs up to me.

• James from Man Tripping
• Phil from Gunaxin
• Eric from Discovery