Where each one leads
Hyundai Santa Fe
Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.
Volvo XC40
- Against cars of the same age, the Volvo XC40 comes out better at its first MOT test (passes 4% more often than average) than the Hyundai Santa Fe (passes 4% less often than average).
- Against cars of the same year, the Volvo XC40 comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 68% less often than average) than the Hyundai Santa Fe (fails 1% more often than average).
- Fewer Volvo XC40 cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (1.6% against 2.5%).
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 Volvo XC40 uses 9.1 l/100 km, the 2026 Hyundai Santa Fe 10.7.
- New Volvo XC40 cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 70 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 101 for the Hyundai Santa Fe in 2022.
Too close to call: NHTSA overall safety rating; real-world fuel use in Europe, petrol hybrid (l/100 km).
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
| Hyundai Santa Fe | Volvo XC40 | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 2000–2026 | 2017–2025 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 125,237 (2010–2022) | 403,118 (2017–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 40,380 | 168,961 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 5,884 | 70,048 |
| In traffic in Finland | 721 | 12,265 |
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
| Hyundai Santa Fe | Volvo XC40 | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 67% | 90% |
| … against cars of the same age | −4% | +4% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 1.4% | 0.3% |
| … against cars of the same year | +1% | −68% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 2.5% | 1.6% |
| US owner complaints | 7,681 | 217 |
| Most complaints about | Engine | Electrical system |
| Model year with most complaints | 2017 (970) | 2021 (52) |
| US recall campaigns | 46 | 13 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 2,012 | 1,219 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 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
| Hyundai Santa Fe | Volvo XC40 | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2027) | 5★ (2026) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Hyundai Santa Fe | Volvo XC40 | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 10.7 l/100 km (2026) | 9.1 l/100 km (2026) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | 7.9 l/100 km | 7.8 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | 7.5 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | — | 8.0 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 101 g/km | 70 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 135 kW (181 hp) | 130 kW (175 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 1,978 kg | 1,848 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €55,900 | €54,220 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 201,000 km | 77,000 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).