Yahoo Autos Kia Telluride vs Hyundai Palisade: 2024 comparison
The 2024 Kia Telluride and 2024 Hyundai Palisade are two of the most popular three-row family SUVs on the market and for good reason: They’re excellent! It stands to reason, then, that an awful lot of people are trying to figure out which one might be better for them.
Before diving deeper into answering that question, there’s something very important to know: They are twins. You see, Hyundai and Kia are sister brands. Basically, a common chassis/platform and powertrain were developed, and each brand went their separate ways to finish the job with designs unique enough that they hide the common DNA. There’s indeed a lot more differentiating them than so-called “badge engineered” vehicles (for instance, a Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable), but their shared basics are also a big reason why they’re so good. So too are Hyundai and Kia’s common attribute of providing abundant value for your money, plus their many shared technology features.
So let’s take a look at some of those differences, plus those areas where they’re equal.
Read our full 2024 Hyundai Palisade Review
Read our full 2024 Kia Telluride Review
Which has a nicer interior?
If “nicer” is defined by the quality of materials and construction, this is basically a tie. The Palisade and Telluride don’t share interior bits and pieces, but if they came from the same supplier with the same quality standards, we wouldn’t be surprised.
Really, this comes down to aesthetics and some minor functionality differences. The Palisade’s design is more modern and organic in appearance, while the Telluride is blockier – not unlike its exterior. Interior controls are more front-and-center in the Kia, whereas they blend into the design of the Palisade. Speaking of which, the key functionality difference comes down to the center console. The Telluride has a more traditional setup with a PRND shifter surrounded by open cupholders and a bin. The Palisade has a push-button shifter surrounded by various climate and vehicle control buttons. In the Kia, those are split between the dash and center console. The Palisade’s cupholders and phone storage are then all together in a covered bin behind those controls.
Which is better? Objectively, the answer is neither. It comes down to personal preference. Get ready to hear that a lot.
Which has better infotainment technology?
Hyundai and Kia share nearly all the same technology features and, not unlike the chassis, unique designs masking a common infotainment operating system and hardware concept. Each has a 12.3-inch touchscreen with a row of physical menu shortcut buttons (including the excellent customizable star button that’ll call up whatever you want such as Apple CarPlay). Upper trims get a 12.3-inch instrument panel screen. Although the touchscreen user-interface and IP displays have different graphics and layouts, overall usability is similarly excellent.
Which is safer?
Tie!
Both received the best-possible rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: Top Safety Pick+. The NHTSA also awarded both five-star crash ratings.
They also offer the same exceptional safety and driver assistance systems. Standard equipment includes forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, rear cross-traffic collision avoidance, lane-keeping steering assist, blind-spot warning, rear parking sensors, a driver inattention warning system, rear occupant alert, safe exit assist and adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability and lane-centering steering assist (Highway Driving Assist). The Highway Driving Assist II system, available on both, adds enhanced steering assistance and automated lane changes to the adaptive cruise control plus machine learning that allows the system to adapt to your driving style
Which has the bigger back seat?
The boxier Telluride is ever-so-slightly bigger and should feel a bit airier inside as a result. In terms of actual space for your legs and heads, the differences are so minor it makes no difference. Importantly, they both have one of the most spacious and comfortable third-row seats among crossovers. Even full-sized adults can fit comfortably for extended periods of time, which also means teens and smaller folks will be even more comfortable. As with most three-row vehicles, there is a choice of a second-row bench and captain’s chairs, which equate to a choice of eight- or seven-passenger capacity.
