There are two types of money printing machines for Hyundai-Kia. The Palisade and the Telluride. The Palisade is, and has always been, the more premium feeling, reliable family "wagon" that looks good and feels good when you're driving it. The Telluride, on the flip side, is the Palisade's sportier corporate cousin that lives fast (even though they previously had the same engine) and wears cool sunglasses while doing it.

There's one glaring problem, though: lightning doesn't always strike twice. While the newly redesigned 2027 Kia Telluride is, on paper, a really great choice for families and now, for those who just want a cool-looking SUV, it might have had a misstep in its recent redesign. Despite it being the premium mid-size three-row family SUV segment, there are others, like the Toyota Hybrid we're going to talk about, that are champing at the bit to take Kia's crown from it.

To understand the Kia Telluride and the competition it faces, we have to go back to the start. When the Telluride made its way stateside in 2020, it was considered the underdog stepping into a segment that was held steadfast by the rule makers: Honda Pilot and Toyota Highlander. Kia and Hyundai were still sort of looked at as the secondary economy cars that you buy in a pinch, even though they were upping their brand cache with more and more premium features.

The Kia Telluride changed the entire game. It really gave families what they desperately needed and wanted — several seating configurations with a maximum of eight, a roomy interior, a nice cargo room, and features that punched way above a standard vehicle. Also, because it was so new at the time, it had the "what is that?!" factor, leading the way with its sporty yet boxy design featuring its glowing amber box-style daytime running lights. It was just plain cool looking.

What really put the Kia Telluride on the map is how quickly auto publications wanted to praise it. It was quickly dubbed "the Range Rover for the middle class." Outlets like Car and Driver added it to their 10 Best Trucks and SUVs list six consecutive times. U.S. News & World Report gave it a 9.5 out of 10. Not to mention, J.D. Power gave it the top midsize three-row SUV accolade for having one of the highest resale values in its class.

Toyota's rugged and roomy SUVs deliver modern comfort, convenience, tech, and more. Here are the ones that seat seven.

It's hard to mess with success. Imagine the way the designers felt redesigning the Kia Telluride into what it is now. That's an impossible task. With the new iteration that debuted recently, it's been made larger in every dimension and heavier, with 400 pounds added overall. Not to get ahead of ourselves, but the adventure-minded X-Pro trim is also only available in the internal combustion version.

Say goodbye to the V6! While there was only one powertrain to speak of in the previous generation, there are now two four-cylinder options in either hybrid or non. We're going to keep it to the hybrid for relevancy's sake, but if you have to have the V6, you can still get your wish in the Hyundai Palisade. Otherwise, the hybrid puts out respectable performance.

Ironically enough, the design team at Hyundai-Kia took the "Range Rover of the middle class" a little too literally because the Telluride looks like a newer Range Rover while the Palisade looks like a more classic one. Daytime, the 2027 Kia Telluride's design looks good; it's sleek with new lines and has the same daytime running light and tail lamp shape as the outgoing model. Nighttime, the lights leave something to be desired. The lights float in the middle of a car that you can barely see coming because the lights are so bright. The interior, except for the five-inch HVAC controls, is untouchable, though.

This is one of the best three-row SUVs you can buy today, due to qualities that are pretty much luxury grade without luxury-grade pricing.

To some, the Toyota Grand Highlander might actually seem redundant compared to their already existing unibody, mid-size, crossover, three-row family SUV: the Highlander. The Grand Highlander offers six inches more in overall length and has almost seven inches more legroom in the third row compared to the Highlander. There's a reason people have been saying that you can't go wrong with a Toyota, either, and the Grand Highlander proves it.

Like the Telluride, the 2026 Grand Highlander comes with an ICE and hybrid powertrains. Unlike the Telluride, there are actually two different hybrid powertrains to choose from. While the standard hybrid might be underpowered in comparison to the Telluride's hybrid, the Grand Highlander's Hybrid MAX is actually overpowered by comparison and tows more.

NA 2.5-liter inline 4-cylinder hybrid

Turbocharged 2.5-liter inline 4-cylinder hybrid

36 combined (FWD) / 34 combined (AWD)

If the powertrain is the Grand Highlander's Trump card, then the interior is the secret weapon. When people say that cars have a third row, you automatically assume that it's not going to be usable, but you would be wrong with the Toyota Grand Highlander. Not to say the Telluride's third row is tiny, but the Grand Highlander does end up having it beat, with the Telluride coming in at 31.2 inches of legroom compared to the Grand Highlander's 33.5. Headroom is essentially identical, but the Telluride does take the cake in the third row's headroom by 0.2 inches, with 37.4 inches to speak of.

If you are looking for a cozy and luxury SUV, you want one that can ride out the bumps in the road with ease - here are the smoothest-riding SUVs.

While the Telluride is the shiny new toy that has some new duds, a new interior, plenty of space, and cargo room, the Grand Highlander has been doing it all and then some. To make the picture even clearer, the Grand Highlander has two powertrains to choose from, a more subdued conservative look, and more cargo space. Not to mention, the Grand Highlanders actually outsold Tellurides in 2025, with 123,281 Tellurides sold compared to 136,801 Grand Highlanders.

If you're not sold on everything we've just pitched, let's look at a few more numbers. According to the Auto Reliability Index, the Grand Highlander has scored an 85 out of 100 with only 8.2 complaints, compared to the Telluride's 23.3 complaints per 10,000 units sold. While older, the Telluride, according to the NHTSA, has more recalls over its lifespan compared to the Grand Highlander. Finally, if you're looking for resale value, the five-year depreciation of the Grand Highlander vs. the Telluride, according to iSeeCars, is 30.4 percent vs. 46.1 percent, respectively.

Of course, it's not all about the dealership experience; it's also about the ownership experience and, more importantly, maintenance. Standard with the Grand Highlander is ToyotaCare, which offers 25,000 miles of complimentary service. Now, the Telluride does counteroffer it with a higher 10-year, 100,000-mile warranty for the powertrain, but historically speaking, the Toyota Grand Highlander doesn't necessarily even need its five-year, 60,000-mile one.

Found an error? Send it info@www.topspeed.com so it can be corrected.

Sources: Toyota, Kia, Hyundai, RepairPal, Auto Reliability Index, NHTSA, iSeeCars

Source: https://www.topspeed.com/toyota-hybrid-makes-kia-telluride-the-wrong-choice/