Exploring the New Santa Fe
Hyundai astounded the globe when unveiling its latest Santa Fe, shaking up expectations by deviating from its classic crossover styling with a squared off form that brings to mind a Land Rover Defender. During a discussion with the South Korean motor vehicle maker at the 2023 Los Angeles Auto Show, CarBuzz gathered intel that a similar disruption looms on the horizon for the following generation Hyundai Palisade.
“We’re also redesigning the Palisade,” Olabisi Boyle, VP of product planning, stated when asked if the new Santa Fe might take away sales from the larger SUV. In response to customer requests, Hyundai has added a third row, which was available intermittently on the previous model. “It’s still going to be smaller than the Palisade. As we are doing all of the upcoming models, we are designing them to fit each segment which is suitable.”
“I’m sure you’re eager to hear more about the upcoming Palisade,” she said with a smile. “We want to take the things that people love and make them even better. I’m so excited for its release, but I don’t want to give away too much!”
Boyle hinted that the revamp of the Palisade would be considerably offbeat yet not necessarily similar to the Santa Fe. In other words, examine to observe totally distinct styling, not something that appears like a Defender imitation.
This provides the potential for a range of entertaining possibilities, of which we have highlighted a couple. In keeping with the Land Rover motif, we wouldn’t complain with should the next Palisade be designed more reminiscent of a Range Rover. Otherwise, it would be great to see Hyundai craft a sportier Palisade N-Line or even an N model to rival the Ford Explorer ST.
No matter what path Hyundai takes for the next Palisade, Boyle is certain that the Santa Fe won’t be stealing its sales. “I’m sure we’ll make our current customers happy,” she remarked regarding the Santa Fe. “We did our research and we wanted to create an SUV for America, built in America. It has a more powerful look, which is usually more angular – something that Americans would expect of an SUV.”
Though the specifics of the next-generation powertrain for Palisade remain unclear, Boyle is confident that Hyundai has “a lineup that addresses the gap” between internal combustion and full electrification. “We have HEVs (hybrid electric vehicles) and PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) to ease the transition,” Boyle stated, “and we also have more efficient ICE vehicles (internal combustion engines) plus next-generation ICE vehicles.”
Next year, we will likely see the full-production Hyundai Ioniq 7, offering an all-electric alternative to the Palisade. “I won’t divulge the timeline, but we have showcased some fantastic concepts. We’ll just have to wait and see,” Boyle hinted. “Within the next 18 months, vehicles that you’ve seen and admired will become a reality. You’re guaranteed to get some exciting surprises (like the Santa Fe).”
