Where each one leads
Ford Flex
Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.
Hyundai Santa Fe
- Against cars of the same year, the Hyundai Santa Fe comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 1% more often than average) than the Ford Flex (fails 24% more often than average).
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 Hyundai Santa Fe uses 10.7 l/100 km, the 2019 Ford Flex 12.7.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Ford Flex | Hyundai Santa Fe | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 2009–2019 | 2000–2026 |
| New cars registered in Europe | — | 125,237 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | — | 40,380 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | — | 5,884 |
| In traffic in Finland | — | 721 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Ford Flex | Hyundai Santa Fe | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | — | 67% |
| … against cars of the same age | — | −4% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 2.6% | 1.4% |
| … against cars of the same year | +24% | +1% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | — | 2.5% |
| US owner complaints | 1,938 | 7,681 |
| Most complaints about | Electrical system | Engine |
| Model year with most complaints | 2013 (580) | 2017 (970) |
| US recall campaigns | 14 | 46 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 588 | 2,012 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 4 | 52 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Ford Flex | Hyundai Santa Fe | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | — | 5★ (2027) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Ford Flex | Hyundai Santa Fe | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 12.7 l/100 km (2019) | 10.7 l/100 km (2026) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | — | 7.9 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | — | 7.5 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | — | 101 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | — | 135 kW (181 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | — | 1,978 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | — | €55,900 |
| Average odometer in Finland | — | 201,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).