Suburban Dad: 2007 Hyundai Veracruz

When you read the reviews by our friends over at Mother Proof, you often hear their little ones talk about the desire to sit in the “way back.” My kids, too, used to love that concept, but the older they got the less alluring it became, and now they fight constantly over avoiding getting stuck in the third row.

Hyundai has taken some unique approaches to helping little ones get into the “way back,” and that may be the feature I found most appealing. Moving the second-row seat can be a one-handed affair, raising a lever on the outside edge of the second-row seat. While it can be done with one hand, it probably needs to be a strong hand. What’s really cool is the little handle that’s tucked away on the inside wall of the car that kids can grab to pull themselves up and into the third row. Finally, once there, Hyundai has provided pull straps on the back of the second-row seats so the kids can pull those seats back and let the rest of the carpoolers in. It was pretty nifty.

My 10-year-old really enjoyed sitting back there, given that it comes with a regular two-prong power outlet and air-conditioning vents over his head. He also liked that the third row only sat two people (the second row can seat three), so he didn’t feel so claustrophobic. The legroom in the third row was plentiful (for him), and even the second row offered decent adult legroom.

The Veracruz is a new vehicle for Hyundai, and like all its first-time offerings, there are still some areas that need improving. There’s a very noticeable lean in turns, more so than I noticed in either the GMC Acadia or the Mazda CX-9. While I enjoyed the sound system’s performance, the controls and readouts looked like something off the boom box I dragged to the beach in high school. This isn’t the first time I’ve noticed this in a Kia or Hyundai, and I know better-looking sound systems are out there. Suburban Dads really want cool-looking radios, not cheap-looking ones that make our friends laugh at us behind our backs.

My family grew more enthusiastic about the Veracruz the longer they were in it, which was over three days, and its look even drew the attention of my brother-in-law, in town on vacation from Denver. I think he might be adding it to his list of possible next cars.

If this is where minivans are headed (along with other large crossovers like the Acadia, Saturn Outlook and CX-9), I can go along, but these crossovers have got to get better mileage. In heavy city driving, I was only able to get 13 mpg in the Acadia and around 15 in the CX-9. In trips that were more highway oriented, I got about 16 in the Veracruz. For my money, I’d want a car that averages around 20 mpg.

Related
2007 Hyundai Veracruz Expert Review (Cars.com)
More Hyundai News (KickingTires)

Comments

maybe if you wouldnt drive all city, you wouldnt have gotten 13 in an acadia.. you must be redlining the car at every light! I got 27 on my last trip in my GMC acadia! thats MORE than the sticker!!

[Dave T.]

We hate to argue with you but many of us at Cars.com have driven both the Outlook and the Acadia in both types of traffic and never broken the 20 mpg figure. It's HIGHLY unlikely you've gotten 27 mpg when the new EPA 2008 adjusted mileage for the vehicle is 24 mpg hwy for the FWD model and the old EPA mileage is 26 mpg. Were you driving conservatively? 55 mph with a/c off?

[505Accent]

I happen to LIKE how the stereo in the Veracruz looks, as well as the one in my '07 Santa Fe Limited. It seems that Hyundai is designing all of their stereos across all vehicle lines to be similar in looks and function, which is a good thing in my book. Who needs "cool-looking" when you can't figure out how to work the $%&! thing without opening the manual (are you listening, Scion)?

I personally hate the styling, its very 1990s and not modern whatsoever! Saturn for me!!

I drove my ACADIA 70mph with the sunroof open and I got 26.5mpg from full to empty.

[L.L.]

This is a nice looking car but i would rather have a GM. Hyundai could never offer OnStar or the nice XM radio. I am currently driving a Saturn Outlook which I have rented from Avis Rental Car. It drives great and i love it! Everything from the styling to the handling! I almost was in an accident with it yesterday evening when i was trying to merge onto a busy highway. An 18 wheeler almost slammed into the rear of the car so I had to swerve hardly into the next lane to avoid collision and it always seemed to be in my control!! I was very impressed. Lets see a sissy Hyundai do that!! Hyundai should take more time in making their cars.! U can tell their cars are very cheap and foreign once they are driven a few thousand miles from their apperance. I hate hyundai!!! They need to stick to selling cars in asia were they are appreciated for their hard work and where they belong!!!

i bought my 2007 hyundia veracruz couple of week ago fully loaded for 32,658. In i Average 19.6 city in 27 highway with the a/c on at about 75mpg. My neighbors mistake it for a Lexus truck My kids love it and the sound System could be better but I love everything about my veracruz

[cody]

Are people who are posting their mileage actually calculating the mpg? You know, filling it up completely, driving it for a while, filling it up completely again, and dividing the miles driven by the gallons of gasoline?

It seems like a lot of people are posting mpg based on the silly readout from the instrument cluster.

[Dan]

I've beaten the old EPA highway numbers (haven't bought a car since they've changed) in every car I've ever driven (when they were running right). Cruise control does wonders. City mileage I've always come in right around their estimates.

It seems that the pictures aren't showing: "IMAGE NOT AVAILABLE" @ 10 AM central time. :-(

[505Accent]

L.L.- Are you serious??? Are you 12, perhaps? Please do everyone a favor and stick with GM vehicles and leave the "sissy Hyundais" to those of us who know better. Hopefully the new Outlook/Enclave/Acadia fare better reliability wise than their predecessors.

[cody]

505,

LL's comments were a bit off, but please, if you're going to site the questionable reliability of GM vehicle predecessors, post some specifics.

For one, the new triplets really don't have predecessors, since they're the first unibody big utes GM has built. I guess you might call the Trailblazer/Envoy/Rainier their predecessors, but if you were to do that, you would have to admit they were/are quite reliable SUVs...

[ermatthe]

Front wheel drive acadias are rated at 18/26 under the EPA's new standards and AWD models are rated at 18/24. I've never heard a single person complain about poor gas mileage.

And the Average MPG computer is pretty dang accurate in most vehichles I've ever driven.

[superhappy]

I use to just drive cars and never could understand people that "loved" their cars. Now, I understand, its been 2 weeks since I have been driving my Veracruz and its awesome. I really love it and enjoy just driving it. My mom had let me borrow her lexus rx330 for a couple of weeks while I tried to find my next car and the veracruz drove just as good and just as roomy. Just go test drive it... wow!
I didn't like the look initally but after the test drive, fell in love and never looked back.

[cody]

I've only riden in a couple of cars with the mileage calculator in the instrument cluster, but the readouts didn't seem to be very accurate. One in particular (Volvo S40) consistently showed that it was getting mileage in the high 20s and low 30s, when in reality it was getting low 20s to teens when the mileage was calculated at the pump.

[Mike]

L.L.- so you are driving a rental Outlook, and you had to swerve to avoid an accident, so that makes it a great vehicle? Have you tried the same maneuver in a Hyundai Veracruz? Yeah, didn't think so. Hyundai is doing great in the US car market, and their SUVs are very nice. GM has nice fullsize SUVs like the Tahoe and Suburban, but their smaller offerings leave much to be desired IMHO. You should seriously DRIVE a vehicle before making ignorant comments about it. Your anti-Asian-carmaker bias is obvious. And BTW, I own a Ford and a Lexus, and love em both!

KEEP IN MIND THAT MILEAGE IS SECOND WHEN PURCHASING THESE TYPES OF VEHICLES. SUV'S IN GENERAL DON'T EXCEL IN HANDLING EITHER. THE CHANGE INTO CROSSOVERS ISN'T A BETTER ALTERNATIVE TO THE MINIVANS PURPOSE, TO SERVE HAULING FAMLIES AND CARGO. THE VANS ARE BETTER IN SPACE AND MILEAGE AND ABOVE ALL, SAFER. BUT MANY BUYERS ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING THAT ADDS A IMAGE WITH ADDED PRACTICALITY. NOT SO SMART AFTER ALL.

speak english, not gangsta.

"speak english, not gangsta" Why don't you learn English dumb ass...better yet, try different language since your English is regrettable.

I SPOKE ENGLISH, WHILE YOU SPOKE WITH LITTLE INTELLIGENCE BY STATING "GANGSTA" THAT SURE ISN'T PROPER. THINK BEFORE RESPONDING NUMBCHUCK. WE ARE HERE FOR OPINIONS NOT CORRECTING POSTS. ENOUGH SAID, STAY ON TRACK.