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Brian, a Santa Fe is seriously hard-pressed to get close to 30 mpg on the highway. With your length of commute that would be a major issue - mine's only a couple of miles to the train station. It's a great fit for tall people, which was a requirement for me (6'6 240). It's just too bad Hyundai don't sell the excellent and frugal 2.2 CRD version of it in North America because mileage is the only real downside.
As for engines, the 2.7L might do better mileage-wise under some scenarios but the gearing on the 4A is very low. I haven't seen any real differences on the reported mileage of others compared to the 3.3L with the 5A and it would have to be significant to cover the required timing belt change down the road in the 2.7L. It's very expensive - I think in the $800 range. I had originally agreed to buy the 2.7L but switched to a 3.3L with AWD. The AWD system is the same as what Porsche uses on some of its cars and the mileage impact is minimal. I'd actually recommend the AWD if you are going with an extended powertrain warranty and don't like the feel of FWD. That FWD feeling is more pronounced in larger vehicles.
It's too bad Honda doesn't have an Accord wagon. The newest Accord has finally bucked the trend of terrible front legroom for tall people which most sedans, wagons and hatches share unless you can pony up for a very expensive Euro wagon, and few of them are fuel sippers.
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