Once upon a time, compact sport-utes were little more than four-wheel drive buckboards, thrown together with minimal attention to styling or comfort.  They were the cheap workhorses of the line, intended to live hard lives and disappear quietly.  When was the last time you saw a Suzuki Samurai or a Daihatsu Rocky running around town?

These days, the compact SUV has grown up into an alternative to a mid-size station wagon or even a minivan.  Case in point; the 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe.  Like other small utes, it’s based on a passenger car platform and is more suited to pavement than mud.  It brings good road manners and distinctive styling to the bargain-basement end of the sport-ute market.

As I’ve said before, if someone says “Hyundai” and you roll your eyes, you’re out of the loop.  This Korean manufacturer’s name is no longer synonymous with low-quality products.  For 2001, Hyundai has strengthened its lineup of compact and midsize car and branched out in new directions, with the all-new Santa Fe SUV and XG300 near-luxury sedan.  This is no half-hearted effort, either.  The Santa Fe hits the streets with a long standard options list and pricing below that of the competition from Honda, Jeep or Ford.

Hyundais are becoming quirkier and quirkier looking as the years go by.  The Santa Fe looks as though it was designed by a fourteen-year-old boy.  And that’s not a bad thing, sometimes.  The deep dips in the front fenders and hood give the little truck an unmistakable and cute, if slightly pugnacious, face.  The fenders are aggressively flared front and rear, and the Santa Fe seems to be arching its back like a drenched cat.  Out back, the taillights are integrated into an unusually curvy rear end and Hyundai has installed one of the best tailgate handles in the industry, a beefy, easy-to-grip unit.  Overall it’s a distinctive, unconventionally sporty design that stands out in the boxy SUV crowd.

The kids have been at work inside the Santa Fe as well.  If you like the way it looks outside, you’ll like the curvy, swoopy dash which curves around into the doors.  It’s hard to tell if the large dip on top of the instrument panel is intended to be a coin tray or if it’s just an accident of one curve meeting another.  The materials feel good under the fingers.

Pop the hood, and the Santa Fe’s engine sits low in the engine bay, to keep the center of gravity low and the little truck stable on the freeway.  The shy-looking motor is also a bit symbolic, however, as the Santa Fe is a bit lacking in power.  The Santa Fe can be had with four- or six-cylinder power.  After driving the 181-horsepower V6 and finding it a bit lacking, it’s a sure bet that the 149-horsepower four-cylinder isn’t going to be any better.   Getting up to freeway speed quickly can be a chore, or an impossible dream depending on your level of patience.  The 2.7 liter V6 doesn’t lack for power on paper, but the Santa Fe is nonetheless sluggish.  The four-speed automatic transmission will occasionally hunt for a lower gear on the freeway; the manual available with the four-cylinder might improve matters in this department.

It’s a good little commuter, however.  Underneath the skin, the Santa Fe rides on a heavily modified version of the midsize Hyundai Sonata’s platform.  Like the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V, the Santa Fe is happy to deal with heavy traffic, crowded streets, and that urban SUV specialty, the occasional clipped curb.  MacPherson struts in the front and a fully independent trailing arm suspension at the rear make a compliant, almost squashy ride.  Like other Hyundais, the Santa Fe is more softly sprung than the competition, contributing to a comfortable ride on the freeway but also to some unsettling body roll in emergency braking and lane change situations.  The little sport-ute is stable and well-balanced; it just doesn’t always feel confident.  Anti-lock brakes and traction control are available options.

Santa Fes equipped with four-wheel drive have a full-time 4WD system which splits torque 60/40 front to rear.  It’s more of an on-road SUV than a bruiser for the mud pits, and the carlike ride makes that obvious.  The Santa Fe will be a good friend in bad weather, but don’t expect to follow a Jeep Liberty up the side of a mountain.

The best thing of all, of course, is the price.  What the Santa Fe gives up in outright passing power, it more than makes up for in value.  Air conditioning, 16″ wheels, a roof rack, cruise control, a first aid kit and tinted windows are standard equipment on the Santa Fe GLS.  That’s pretty impressive, considering the base price of $19,299.

Specifications:
All specs are for the 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe, which we tested.

Length:     177.2 in.
Width:        72.6 in.
Height:        65.9 in.
Wheelbase:    103.1 in.
Curb weight:    3720 lb.
Cargo space:    29.4 cu.ft. (seats up); 78.0 cu.ft. (seats folded)
Base price:    $19,299
Price as tested: $19,379
Engine:     2.7 liter DOHC V6
Drivetrain:     four-speed automatic, front-wheel drive
Horsepower:     181 @ 6000
Torque:     177 @ 4000
Fuel capacity:    17.2 gal.
Est. mileage:    19/23