
It's true that when it comes to crashes, weight is an advantage. But
you can't rely on weight alone for protection, and oftentimes that added
heft increases stopping distances and makes for clumsy handling - the
last thing you need when trying to avoid an accident.
The
Hyundai Santa Fe's no featherweight, and features like its six standard airbags11
and active front head restraints give it the Insurance Institute for
Highway Safety's vaunted "Top Safety Pick."7 It also earned five-star
crash-test ratings in front- and side-impact tests for three years in a
row.14 But its standard Electronic Stability Control,5 tidy handling,
and intelligent braking systems help prevent you from having to rely on
its brute strength alone.