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Hyundai has been dominant when it comes to sales in recent years. When Hyundai first started in the American market, its first car, the small Excel hatchback, turned out to be a reliable, affordable, and surprisingly well-built vehicle. Hyundai continued to develop from its humble beginnings by offering some fantastic family vehicles over the years.

Regarding its family vehicles, one Hyundai SUV is pulling ahead of the pack in sales and has the potential to become the top-selling SUV in the Hyundai lineup. Here is everything you need to know about the Hyundai Santa Fe, how well it is selling this year, and what it can do to pull ahead of the competition.

The rising sales figures of the Hyundai Santa Fe

The Hyundai Santa Fe is the automaker’s long-running midsize SUV. The Santa Fe was initially released for the 2001 model year as Hyundai’s first SUV and was one of the first vehicles from the company to appeal to a wide range of Americans due to the popularity of SUVs in the states. This popularity continues today, with GoodCarBadCar reporting 49,518 Santa Fes have been sold so far this year, which is a 15.59% increase in sales compared to last year. The current iteration of the Santa Fe starts at $28,450 MSRP, according to U.S. News. For this price, buyers get a solid amount of passenger space for the price, a great list of standard features, and solid fuel economy with nearly 30 mpg expected on the highway.

When it comes to features, the Hyundai Santa Fe comes with wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Bluetooth audio, and four USB ports as standard equipment. Wireless phone charging, a 10.25-inch touch screen, and a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster are also available. Hyundai’s digital key can also be loaded and used on smartphones, alongside a push button start. The Santa Fe also received nearly perfect safety ratings from the IIHS with a “Good” score in every category other than headlights.

Which Hyundai models are outselling the Santa Fe?

The Hyundai Elantra sedan continues to dominate the U.S. sedan market, with 61,314 units sold so far this year. While this number is impressive on its own, it is even more impressive when you consider how much sedans have fallen in popularity throughout the U.S. market in total. Despite the U.S. family car market shifting from sedans to crossover SUVs as a whole, the Elantra is selling 51.5% more than last year.

The other Hyundai model selling better than the Santa Fe is the Hyundai Tucson, which has sold 82,884 units so far this year, a 21.13% increase compared to last year’s sales. The Tucson is in many ways very similar to the Hyundai Santa Fe, although it is smaller with better fuel economy and a lower starting price.

What can the Santa Fe do to pull ahead of the Tucson?

The Hyundai Santa Fe and Hyundai Tucson are very similar vehicles, with the Hyundai Santa Fe offering a larger cabin and a bigger engine and the Tucson offering a smaller, more efficient package at a lower price point. The Santa Fe doesn’t necessarily need to do anything to pull ahead of the in-house competition, as the Santa Fe and Tucson offer different experiences for different types of customers. For larger families, the Santa Fe is perfect, while younger, more budget-oriented families are more at home in the Tucson.

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