Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid outscores Toyota Highlander: Auto Bild ratings

Hyundai Motor Co.’s Santa Fe hybrid has earned higher ratings than Toyota Motor Corp.’s Highlander, one of its strongest rivals, in an evaluation of sport utility vehicles by German automotive publication Auto Bild.

According to Hyundai Motor on May 30, test driving conducted by Auto Bild of the two hybrid SUVs showed the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid earning an overall score of 547 points out of 800, beating the Toyota Highlander Hybrid, which scored 498 points.

The Santa Fe had higher scores than the Highlander in six categories, including comfort, powertrain, driving capability, connectivity and price, according to the top South Korean automaker.

In the category of interior space and equipment, the Santa Fe Hybrid was behind the Highlander with a score of 82 points versus 85 points for the Japanese SUV.

The biggest point difference came in the category of costs -- with the Santa Fe Hybrid scoring 95 points at a price tag of 56,650 euros compared to 76 points for the Highlander, priced at 63,490 euros.

“The Santa Fe Hybrid’s higher Auto Bild ratings are meaningful in that the superiority of our cars has been recognized in the tough German market,” said a Hyundai Motor official.

Write to Hyung-Kyu Kim at khk@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.