Palisade vs Telluride

September 1st, 2024 by

Black 2025 Hyundai Palisade front and passenger side view

The Hyundai Palisade and its cousin, the Kia Telluride, sent shockwaves through the three-row crossover category when they both arrived in 2019 as 2020 models. Reviewers were impressed by their size, refinement, bold exteriors, and luxurious interiors. Both models went on to become significant sellers for their respective brands, resulting in both getting mild makeovers for the 2023 model year. But if you are in the large 3-crossover market, chances are, you will only buy one. Which should you choose? An answer from Dick Smith Hyundai of Greenville might be a bit too obvious. Fortunately, Motor Trend asked the same question.

What is the Same?

The Palisade and Telluride are built off the same platform; from that, they share the same exterior and interior dimensions, including the same leg, head, hip, and shoulder room across all three rows with slight differences in cargo space. There is also little difference in the drivetrain, with both models sharing the same 3.8-liter V-6 engine across their respective model lines, producing the same 291 horsepower and 262 lb-ft of torque. The two models also share the same 8-speed transmission and the same all-wheel-drive system as the models that are so equipped. Unsurprisingly, both models share the same 5,000 lb. maximum towing capacity.

Wolf Gray 2024 Kia Telluride front and driver side view

But They Don’t Look the Same

While you can see that they share the same proportions, the styling is entirely different between the two models. Up front, the Telluride wears a larger version of the Kia corporate “tiger nose” light and grille treatment. Along the side, the Kia is more conventional, with a largely uninterrupted convex body side and a greenhouse that remains black until the body color C-Pillar.

Since 2023, the Palisade has followed the Hyundai design philosophy of eschewing a corporate face and giving every model its own distinctive styling. The Palisade includes a large rectangular grille up front with a matrix-like grille mesh with panels that diminish in height as they descend. The Palisade’s side features more character lines, including a major rising line low on the front and rear doors and additional character lines above each fender. The C-Pillar gets the body-color treatment, giving the rear quarter windows a wrap-around appearance.

Inside, both models feature a wide center console and a 12.3-inch center screen in a single binnacle that covers each model’s digital gauge cluster, and visually, that Is where the similarities end. On the Palisade, the gauge cluster is recessed in a traditional manner, while the Telluride keeps both screens on the same plane. Conversely, the Telluride keeps a traditional shift lever while the Palisade replaces it with a small button bank. This leaves room on the console for climate and other controls, while the Kia has these controls on two horizontal banks of buttons and knobs on the dash.

2024 Kia Telluride Terracotta leather driver seat

Motor Trend added this about the interiors: “Telluride X-Line utilizes darker tones with metal and wood accents to create a more rugged and industrial feel. A low center console with a traditional transmission shifter and rotary drive-mode selector work to accentuate the Telluride’s “trucklike” vibe. The Palisade, on the other hand, creates a much warmer and more inviting atmosphere. Its dashboard features fewer hard edges, instead opting for more curves and angles. The lighter color schemes are accented with wood but also large swaths of piano-black plastic.” These differences largely come down to personal taste.

2025 Hyundai Palisade beige driver and front passenger seats

Differences in Ride and Handling

Though both share the same suspension geometry of struts up front and a multi-link arrangement in the rear, they are tuned differently and wear different tires.

The Kia delivers a sportier ride, while Hyundai’s tuning reflects Motor Trend’s comment: “Really, though, how sporty does a large three-row SUV need to be, anyway?” and concentrated more on comfort. Acceleration is the same, but as Motor Trend put it: “The Palisade pulled ahead slightly when it came to our braking and handling tests, stopping from 60 mph in 118 feet and completing our figure-eight course in 27.0 seconds at 0.63 g (average). The big Kia stopped from 60 in 122 feet and completed the figure-eight test in 27.5 seconds at 0.61 g.” The magazine pointed to the Palisade’s high-performance Hankook Ventus S1 Nobel2 tires vs the Telluride’s Michelin Primacy LTXs for the difference.

Black 2025 Hyundai Palisade driver side view

The Palisade Wins

In the end, Motor Trend nodded toward Palisade as the comparison winner. “With the SUV’s most recent update to its technology suite, interior amenities, and exterior styling, the Palisade is better than ever.” If a large 3-row crossover is on your shopping list, you will certainly want to visit Dick Smith Hyundai in Greenville, which has a huge inventory of Palisades for you to check out and test drive.