It grows on you, the 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe. Slowly, at first, with its smooth lines and sculpted appearance, bold front grille and stylish lights. When the vehicle passes you by the first time or two, you might even fail to notice it – but you will, once you look a little closer. Where the Sonata echoed one of the most popular sedans on the road (HondaAccord), the Santa Fe pretty much stands on its own with a look that may never get your blood rushing but a style you’ll never get tired of, and one that will hold its appeal even as trends change and sheet metal gets twisted into new shapes. It should keep its looks over time, then – just be sure the vehicle you choose fits together better than our tester did. Given Hyundai’s recent run of quality awards, it was slightly surprising to find wide variances in fit at the liftgate, doors, front fascia and headlights. We can only hope that ours was the exception, not the rule, as these were among the first units to roll off the Montgomery, Alabama plant.

Stylistically, however, the new Santa Fe has about as much in common with the old Santa Fe as the old Excel has with the new Sonata. Gone is the round-mound design, replaced by monochromatic body panels, sharper creases and a better integrated mix of plastic and metal. Case in point: the Santa Fe is seven inches larger than its predecessor, but it looks scarcely larger at all, thanks to a wider track and sleeker sheet metal. Among the few items that Hyundai carried over from the outgoing Santa Fe are the roof rack and the liftgate handle.

They should have ditched the handle. It’s clumsy, and, well, a bit old school. What is decidedly new school is the Santa Fe’s interior. It’s obvious to us that Hyundai sank significant cash into the interior design; unfortunately, the interior also suffers from poor finish, especially in the center dash area where the plastic and wood grain trims didn’t fit flush. Other than that, there are very few corners snipped inside the cabin. For example, all compartment lids and covers are nicely dampened. The compartment on the top of the dash is especially nice – lined, dampened, and easy to open and close with just a finger. Other highlights include pleasant bright blue back lighting, including the cupholders, and an excellent graphic display for the environmental controls and gauges. Seats are nicely upholstered with leather or cloth, and the seating position is good, save for a seat bottom that feels too flat and lacking in support. Second-row seats are also comfortable, a place where occupants sit up high, and the third-row – well, you can climb back there if you want. Just avoid sitting back there for any length of time, unless you have a thing for your chiropractor.

Overall, the interior design is excellent, and the Santa Fe is spacious, too. With more legroom than the Honda Pilot, among others, the Santa Fe rides much bigger than it is, with plenty of room for legs and heads in the front two rows. It falls right in the mix with other mid-size SUV leaders, in fact, offering around an inch more front legroom than the Honda Pilot, RAV4 or the Toyota Highlander, while coming up about an inch short for rear legroom, compared to the RAV4 and the Pilot. Rear legroom comparisons between the Highlander and the Santa Fe come out almost identical – 38.8 inches for the Santa Fe, and 38.4 inches for the Highlander.

One thing the Santa Fe has going for it, however, is large rear doors. They make it easy to get into and out of the Santa Fe – and that includes wrangling with a child and her seat. Cargo room is slightly compromised by the existence of an in-floor compartment, which comes in handy should you have smaller items you’d like to keep out of sight and out of the way. Thanks to the compartment, however, the third row folds flat into the “floor” making available room easier to use. Without the third row, cargo room is big enough to handle most things, including a bushel of bamboo/ Other features inside the cabin include air vents mounted on the B-pillar to cool rear passengers, along with a rear climate control center.