Compare the2022 Toyota HighlanderVS 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe

The Toyota Highlander has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Highlander has standard Whiplash Injury Lessening Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash Injury Lessening Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Highlander has a standard Secondary Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Both the Highlander and the Santa Fe have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Toyota Highlander is safer than the Hyundai Santa Fe:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

There are over 50 percent more Toyota dealers than there are Hyundai dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Highlander’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Highlander third among upper midsize suvs in their 2021 Initial Quality Study. The Santa Fe isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Hyundai vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota fourth in reliability, above the industry average. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles, Hyundai is ranked 7th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Hyundai vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in reliability. Hyundai is ranked 6th.

The Highlander’s 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 104 more horsepower (295 vs. 191) and 82 lbs.-ft. more torque (263 vs. 181) than the Santa Fe’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder. The Highlander’s 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 14 more horsepower (295 vs. 281) than the Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Toyota Highlander is faster than the Hyundai Santa Fe 4 cyl.:

For better stopping power the Highlander’s standard brake rotors are larger than those on the Santa Fe:

The Highlander’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Santa Fe are solid, not vented.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Highlander’s wheelbase is 3.3 inches longer than on the Santa Fe (112.2 inches vs. 108.9 inches).

The Highlander has standard seating for 8 passengers; the Santa Fe can only carry 5.

The Highlander has 29.8 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Santa Fe (141.3 vs. 111.5).

The Highlander has .4 inches more rear headroom, .7 inches more rear hip room and .4 inches more rear shoulder room than the Santa Fe.

The Highlander’s cargo area provides more volume than the Santa Fe.

The Highlander’s cargo area is larger than the Santa Fe’s in almost every dimension:

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Highlander. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The Highlander’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Santa Fe’s (5000 vs. 2000 pounds).

The Highlander’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Santa Fe’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically.

If the windows are left open on the Highlander the driver can close them all at the outside door handle. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows at the outside door handle or from a distance using the keyless remote. (This window function must be activated by your Toyota service department.) The driver of the Santa Fe can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Highlander Platinum has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Highlander’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Hyundai only offers heated mirrors on the Santa Fe SEL/XRT/Limited/Calligraphy.

The Highlander has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning costs extra on the Santa Fe and isn’t available on the Santa Fe SE.

The Highlander’s standard automatic temperature control maintains the temperature you set, automatically controlling fan speed, vents and temperature to maintain a consistent, comfortable environment. The Santa Fe SE doesn’t offer automatic air conditioning.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Toyota Highlander and the Hyundai Santa Fe, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Toyota Highlander outsold the Hyundai Santa Fe by over two to one during the 2021 model year.