 We all remember the early Hyundais of the late '80s... total junk.  I am admittedly impressed with the design, ride, noise level, performance and quality so far of my new 2009 Santa Fe AWD Limited.  I would definitely recommend pitting at least 2 dealerships against each other's quotes to price match (or beat) as I did.  Doing this, I got the limited model for slightly less than the SE retail price after rebates and the "Cash for Clunkers" deal.