DEALER FOCUS – Fresh Autos

Fresh Autos is a dealership that has been in the business of selling quality used cars for years and a long association with Car City, Minchinbury now sees them cover two yards at the Sydney car supermarket.

A friendly and family-oriented dealership, Fresh Autos lives up to the name, with a ‘fresh’ and very transparent approach to the used car trade. SUVs, 4x4s and cars of many makes and models - and to suit many budgets - are available, with the two-yard footprint meaning there’s up to 100 quality second-hand vehicles in stock at any one time.

Every vehicle at Fresh Autos has gone through an in-depth industry inspection, ensuring what you buy is of high-quality.

Fresh Autos provide a 12-month warranty with roadside assist on all their vehicles. Trade-ins are welcome, with competitive prices paid.

Fresh Autos also offer streamlined finance options for approved purchasers, tailored to each applicant’s personal or business needs.

Vehicle delivery anywhere in the Sydney metro area is part of the Fresh Auto service, with door-to-door delivery anywhere in Australia also available.

Fresh Autos - Yard 6 and 7, Car City NSW (591 Carlisle Avenue, Minchinbury).

Open 9:00AM – 5:00PM Monday to Sunday.

Dealer Licence: 20819

CONTACT US
To get in touch with Fresh Autos, click HERE.

4x4 FOR SALE

Here’s a recent arrival at Fresh Autos:

2012 Hyundai Santa Fe Highlander

• Top of the range model
• 2.2lt four-cylinder turbo diesel
• 6-speed sports automatic transmission
• On demand four-wheel drive
• Low kms

In 2012, Hyundai launched their third-generation Santa Fe, which reached Australia later in the same year, replacing the Gen 2 version of the large SUV that had been around since 2005. Styling changes were applied from nose to tail, but were most noticeable at the front, with a wider, bolder grille, sleeker headlights and a similar treatment for the DRLs in the reworked bumper. Moving to the flanks, the differences were less obvious, but the mirrors were tweaked and feature lines changed, with a sharper turn-up at the D-pillar, too. At the rear, there was a shallower rake to the back window, beefier rear bumper design, and tail lights that reflected the sharper approach applied to the headlights.

It should be noted, despite the 2012 build year and listing for the Santa Fe featured here, it’s technically a 2013 model.

While Santa Fe styling changed dramatically with the third generation, the drivetrain carried over almost entirely unchanged - a 2.4-litre naturally-aspirated petrol four-cylinder engine, or a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder. Transmissions options covered a six-speed manual and six-speed sports automatic, with on-demand four-wheel drive standard, regardless of engine or transmission choice. Engine and transmission choices depended on the model grade selected, which for a late-2012/early-2013 Santa Fe started with the ‘Trail’ (2.2 t/d, 6spd manual or 6spd auto) and rose through the ‘Active’ (2.2 t/d or 2.4 petrol, 6spd manual or 6spd auto) and ‘Elite’ (2.2 t/d, 6spd auto) to top out with the ‘Highlander’ (2.2 t/d, 6spd auto).

In a Santa Fe Highlander like the example featured, the 2.2 intercooled turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine produced 145kW at 3,800rpm and 436Nm at 1,800rpm – unchanged from the final Gen 2 version. A 64-litre fuel tank was standard, with listed fuel economy of 7.3lt/100km (combined cycle) and range of up to 1085km.  

Seating for seven in the Highlander is of 2-3-2 configuration, with the rearmost seats best suited for children, as they have the least legroom and no adjustability. That restyle of the rear flanks meant vision was compromised, too, despite the third row’s elevated placement. That being said, access to the third row was good, so adults could use those seats for short trips.

With all three seat rows in use, luggage space was a decent 516 litres, which expanded to 1615 litres when the second- and third-row were folded.

Like most of its contemporaries - that in 2012/13 would have included the Ford Territory, Kia Sorento and Toyota Kluger - the Santa Fe Highlander was a city-focussed SUV, with only mild off-road ability. That meant an on-demand four-wheel drive system that added traction to the rear wheels as required.  

With that in mind, most road tests of the period discussed the Santa Fe’s manners on road, rather than off-road. Overall, the large 7-seater was reviewed positively, with praise for its strong performance up hills, smooth shifting from the six-speed auto, and minimal engine/road noise intruding into the cabin, even with the standard 19-inch alloys and narrow tyres.

Suspension consisted of a MacPherson strut arrangement at the front and independent multi-link rear, with stabiliser bars at each end to limit body roll and make this big (4,690mm long, 1,880mm wide and 1,968kg) SUV feel planted on the road.

As the premium Santa Fe offering in 2012/13, the Highlander came with features that were unavailable or optional on the lower grades, like heated front and (outboard) second row seats, memory function for the power front seats, driver’s seat power lumbar support, Xenon headlights with auto height adjustment, a power sunroof, reversing screen in the rear view mirror and auto dimming door mirrors.

Other standard features included dual-zone climate control, Bluetooth, an 8-speaker sound system, power mirrors, power windows, a chilled storage compartment, combination leather and synthetic leather seat trim, keyless entry and starting, USB/Aux/iPod outlets, CD/MP3 player, variable power steering, front parking sensors and more.

Reflecting this vehicle’s age, there are still a lot of buttons and switches for the heating, air con and audio systems, along with large analogue speedo/tacho gauges that are separated by a screen for the odometer and basic warnings. The centre console screen for the audio system, rear-view camera and satnav is small compared to modern offerings, but larger screens can mean more distractions. Steering wheel buttons for the audio, cruise control and Bluetooth are perhaps more suited to modern expectations.  

To suit families, there were abundant storage options factory fitted, including good-sized bottle holders, a tub under the centre armrest, front seat pockets and a roof-mounted sunglasses holder.

With a 5-star ANCAP rating when new, the Santa Fe Highlander’s safety equipment included seven airbags, ABS, EBD, ESC, Emergency Brake Assist, Traction Control, Hill Descent Control, a Hill Holder and the aforementioned rear parking sensors and rear-view camera.

Whether this Santa Fe Highlander has done any towing is unknown, but the factory braked towing capacity was 2,000kg, with a maximum payload of 632kg.

Finished in Titanium Silver metallic with a black interior, this 2012 Santa Fe Highlander presents well, with low mileage - 143,720km - and service books. For more details, click HERE.

This is just one of the many vehicles Fresh Autos have on site at Car City, Minchinbury. To see more, click HERE.