Compare the2023 Hyundai Santa FeVS 2022 Honda CR-V

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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Both the Santa Fe and CR-V have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Santa Fe has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The CR-V’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Santa Fe are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The CR-V doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy has standard Parking Collision Avoidance Assist that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The CR-V doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Santa Fe SEL Premium/Limited/Calligraphy has a standard Surround View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The CR-V only offers a rear monitor.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Santa Fe has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the CR-V EX/EX-L/Touring has a rear cross-path warning system.

The Santa Fe SEL/XRT/Limited/Calligraphy has a standard Blue Link, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The CR-V doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Santa Fe and the CR-V 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 and available all wheel drive.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Hyundai Santa Fe is safer than the Honda CR-V:

	Santa Fe	CR-V
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	16%	27%
Neck Stress	149 lbs.	175 lbs.
Neck Compression	13 lbs.	70 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	244	309
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	27%	37%
Neck Stress	99 lbs.	160 lbs.
Neck Compression	89 lbs.	96 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	222/167 lbs.	276/243 lbs.

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

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 Hyundai Santa Fe is safer than the Honda CR-V:

	Santa Fe	CR-V
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	61	71
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	376	386

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

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Santa Fe its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 112 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The CR-V is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2022.

Warranty

The Santa Fe comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The CR-V’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Santa Fe 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Honda covers the CR-V. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the CR-V ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The Santa Fe’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the CR-V’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Santa Fe for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Hyundai will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Honda doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the CR-V.

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Santa Fe has a standard 760-amp battery. The CR-V’s 410-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 82 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 24th.

Engine

The Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 91 more horsepower (281 vs. 190) and 132 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 179) than the CR-V’s 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Honda CR-V:

	Santa Fe	CR-V
Zero to 60 MPH	6.2 sec	8.6 sec
Quarter Mile	14.6 sec	16.7 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	98.4 MPH	84.9 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Santa Fe uses regular unleaded gasoline. The CR-V requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Santa Fe has 4.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the CR-V (18.8 vs. 14 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Santa Fe’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the CR-V:

	Santa Fe	Santa Fe 2.5T	CR-V
Front Rotors	12.8 inches	13.6 inches	12.3 inches

The Santa Fe stops shorter than the CR-V:

	Santa Fe	CR-V
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	119 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Santa Fe Calligraphy’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the CR-V (255/45R20 vs. 235/65R17).

The Santa Fe’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the CR-V LX/SE’s standard 65 series tires. The Santa Fe Calligraphy’s tires have a lower 45 series profile than the CR-V Touring’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Santa Fe has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the CR-V LX/SE. The Santa Fe Calligraphy’s 20-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels on the CR-V Touring.

Suspension and Handling

The Santa Fe has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The CR-V’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Santa Fe’s wheelbase is 4.2 inches longer than on the CR-V AWD (108.9 inches vs. 104.7 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Santa Fe is 1.7 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the CR-V.

The Santa Fe Calligraphy AWD handles at .83 G’s, while the CR-V Touring pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Santa Fe Calligraphy AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.6 seconds quicker than the CR-V Touring (26.7 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .6 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The Santa Fe has 5.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the CR-V (111.5 vs. 105.9).

The Santa Fe has 1.1 inches more front headroom, 2.8 inches more front legroom, 2.4 inches more front hip room, 1.2 inches more front shoulder room, 1.3 inches more rear legroom, 6.8 inches more rear hip room and 2.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the CR-V.

The front step up height for the Santa Fe is 1.5 inches lower than the CR-V (17.5” vs. 19”).

Cargo Capacity

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

	Santa Fe	CR-V
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	42.4”/77.4”	37.5”/71”
Max Width	54”	54”
Min Width	43.4”	41.5”
Height	31”	41”

Towing

The Santa Fe’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the CR-V’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Honda CR-V is only 1500 pounds. The Santa Fe offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Sway Assist on the Santa Fe uses the Electronic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The CR-V doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

Servicing Ease

The Santa Fe uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The CR-V uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

The Santa Fe Calligraphy has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The CR-V doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The power windows standard on both the Santa Fe and the CR-V have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Santa Fe is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The CR-V prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Santa Fe Calligraphy’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 CR-V SE/EX/EX-L/Touring’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

The Santa Fe SE/XRT/SEL’s standard variable intermittent wipers have an adjustable delay to allow the driver to choose a setting that best clears the windshield during light rain or mist. The CR-V LX’s standard fixed intermittent wipers only have one fixed delay setting, so the driver will have to manually switch them between slow and intermittent.

The Santa Fe’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the CR-V’s standard halogen headlights. LED lights also light instantly and last over twenty times longer than halogen.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Santa Fe to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The CR-V doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

When the Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The CR-V’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

Both the Santa Fe and the CR-V offer available heated front seats. The Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the CR-V.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The CR-V doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The CR-V doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Santa Fe Limited/Calligraphy’s Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The CR-V doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Hyundai Santa Fe and the Honda CR-V, based on reliability, safety and performance.