South Korea’s auto giant Hyundai Motor Co. has released the upgraded version of the Santa Fe sport utility vehicle (SUV) with an enhanced design and additional safety features to solidify its position in the country’s burgeoning SUV market.

Hyundai Motor said Wednesday it started taking orders for the Santa Fe facelift with trims in newly designed chrome radiator grille and door handles to give more luxurious looks. The highest trim Inspiration has chrome-plated metallic silver exterior mirror caps with double-glazed soundproof windows.

Safety and convenient features added include a blind-spot view monitor to help drivers recognize the situation at the back of the car and an air control system that automatically controls the air flow when driving through tunnels and using windshield washer fluids.

It also is embedded with a rear-seat entertainment system for the first time among Korea’s SUV models and rear-seat speaker volume controls.

Hyundai Motor set the prices of the new Santa Fe between 26.95 million won ($22,681.37) for the cheapest model and 35.95 million won for the highest trim of the gasoline model. The 2.0-liter and 2.2-liter diesel engine models are available at higher prices.

By Moon Ji-woong and Lee Ha-yeon

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