2005 Hyundai Santa Fe Review
Price Estimate: $993 - $1,606





+44
Edmunds' Expert Review
by the Edmunds Experts
Pros
- Reasonable price, strong warranty, roomy interior, long list of standard features, solid construction, good crash test scores.
Cons
- Thirsty at the pump for a small car-based SUV, soft suspension limits handling ability.
What’s new
The base trim level has been dropped. The 2.7-liter V6 is now standard (the LX still gets the 3.5-liter V6), as is an automatic transmission. Also newly standard this year are four-wheel antilock brakes and traction control. Exterior changes include a new grille surround, side cladding, taillamps, tailgate handle, rear bumper design and alloy wheels. Inside, there is new seat fabric, an upgraded two-tone color scheme and a revised instrument cluster. A power driver seat is now standard on the LX, and a compass is included with the optional sunroof.
Edmunds says
The Santa Fe offers a consumer-friendly blend of space, comfort, features, performance and value that make it a compact SUV worth considering.
For sale near Columbus, OH
30 listings
- 60,429 miles
- 1 accident, 2 owners, personal use only
- 5 Seats, 16 City / 21 Hwy MPG
- Joe's Autos (121 mi away)
- AWD/4WD
- Alarm
- Rear Bench Seats
- Fold Flat Rear Seats
- 2500lb Towing Capaci...
Close
Located in Toledo, OH
ABOUT THIS VEHICLE We have been serving the Toledo area since 1990, and our key to success has always been customer service. We want you to be a HAPPY...
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: No
Personal Use Only: Yes
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Clean Title
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: No
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
18 Combined MPG (16 City/21 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: KM8SC73D05U928085
Stock: 6025
Certified Pre-Owned: No
Listed since: 05-08-2025- 81,219 miles
- No accidents, 2 owners, personal use only
- 5 Seats, 15 City / 21 Hwy MPG
- Auto Land Hyundai of Uniontown (166 mi away)
- AWD/4WD
- Alarm
- Rear Bench Seats
- Fold Flat Rear Seats
- 2500lb Towing Capaci...
Close
Located in Uniontown, PA
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: Yes
Personal Use Only: Yes
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Clean Title
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: No
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
17 Combined MPG (15 City/21 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: KM8SC73E45U966959
Stock: 28890M
Certified Pre-Owned: No
Listed since: 03-04-2025
Cost to Drive
Monthly estimates based on costs in Ohio
$194/mo for Santa Fe GLS
Santa Fe GLS
vs
$175/mo
Avg. Midsize SUV
See Edmunds pricing data
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Hyundai Santa Fe Owner Reviews
Most Helpful Owner Reviews
Trending topics
Favorite vehicle to date
4.25 out of 5 starsbristol6, 01/08/2015
2005 Hyundai Santa Fe LX AWD 4dr SUV (3.5L 6cyl 5A)
2005 Santa Fe LX AWD. The first car i ever owned was a Hyundai. Since then i owned a BMW, a Dodge, a Mazda, and a Chevy, and I have returned again to Hyundai. My Santa Fe is reliable, capable, comfortable, and relatively easy to maintain. They are fairly common vehicles so parts aren't hard to find. Plenty of space inside, and enough room in the cargo space to stow whatever you want. … Folding the back seats down is easy and quick. I put some Toyo All-Terrain tires on mine, and i am comfortable driving it across fields, through mud, snow, ice, and sand. If you're looking for a reliable fun midsize SUV that you can take anywhere, this is your ticket.
Great running SMALL suv
3.63 out of 5 starsdrivenamerican, 09/20/2013
2005 Hyundai Santa Fe GLS Fwd 4dr SUV (2.7L 6cyl 4A)
Our Santa Fe was bought used and now has 102,000 miles on it. The
2.7 liter is underpowered but gets great gas mileage. There are a few design flaws such as the third brake light hanging in the rear window, and the back 3 spark plugs are under the intake manifold, changing them is expensive and a pain. the last thing is the drivers seat does not go back far enough for taller drivers.
Yea for Santa Fe
5 out of 5 starsJOANNA KRIEGER, 07/21/2016
2005 Hyundai Santa Fe GLS AWD 4dr SUV (3.5L 6cyl 5A)
Whenever I , or have mechanic check, all fluid levels, NEVER NEEDED ATTENTION. The tightest best running engine of any car I have owned. Oil always looks clean. Teams fluid, same. Acquired in 2006. 2005 model.
Time to move on, with no problems
3.75 out of 5 starsMatt, 08/11/2009
2005 Hyundai Santa Fe GLS AWD 4dr SUV (2.7L 6cyl 4A)
I bought this vehicle with 17k mi on it. It now has 137k mi. I have only had one major issue. The throttle position sensor went out. After I found a mechanic who could identify the problem, it only too an hour to fix and the cost was minimal. The factory tires lasted 100k mi. Another problem that was really a non issue, is that when I let the gas get too low the check engine light … lit up after i filled it up and stayed on till i used half that tank of gas. I averaged about 20 mpg on all highway miles. It still runs great, just time to move on.
2005 Santa Fe Highlights
GLS
Base MSRP Excludes Destination Fee | $21,649 |
---|---|
Engine Type | Gas |
Combined MPG | 19 MPG |
Cost to Drive | $194/month |
Seating | 5 seats |
Cargo Capacity All Seats In Place | 30.5 cu.ft. |
front wheel drive | |
Warranty | 5 years / 60,000 miles |
Safety
Key safety features on the Santa Fe include:
- Alarm
NHTSA Overall Rating
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration offers independent analysis.
- Frontal Barrier Crash RatingOverallNot RatedDriver4 / 5Passenger5 / 5
- Side Crash RatingOverallNot Rated
- Side Barrier RatingOverallNot RatedDriver5 / 5Passenger5 / 5
- Combined Side Barrier & Pole RatingsFront SeatNot RatedBack SeatNot Rated
- RolloverRollover3 / 5Dynamic Test ResultNo TipRisk Of RolloverNot Rated
IIHS Rating
The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety uses extensive crash tests to determine car safety.
- Small Overlap Front Driver-Side TestNot Tested
- Small Overlap Front Passenger-Side TestNot Tested
- Moderate Overlap Front Test – OriginalGood
- Moderate Overlap Front Test – UpdatedNot Tested
- Side Impact Test – OriginalAcceptable
- Side Impact Test – UpdatedNot Tested
- Roof Strength TestNot Tested
- Rear Crash Protection / Head RestraintPoor
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