2020 Kia Telluride SX Review - Meeting Expectations

Tim Healey
by Tim Healey
Fast Facts

2020 Kia Telluride SX AWD Fast Facts

3.8-liter V6 (291 horsepower @ 6,000 rpm; 262 lb-ft @ 5,200 rpm)
Eight-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
19 city / 24 highway / 21 combined (EPA Rating, MPG)
16.1 city, 9.9 highway, 13.3 combined. (NRCan Rating, L/100km)
Base Price
$43,490 (U.S) / $53,995 (Canada)
As Tested
$46,860 (U.S.) / $56,279 (Canada)
Prices include $1,045 destination charge in the United States and $1,995 for freight, PDI, and A/C tax in Canada and, because of cross-border equipment differences, can't be directly compared.

My review of the all-new 2020 Kia Telluride last year was mostly positive.

There’s a reason for this – I thought it was pretty damn good. Especially given its price point, and that it was Kia coming up with a very good three-row crossover, seemingly out of nowhere.

Yep, Kia, a brand that hadn’t been a player in this segment since its last attempt, a body-on-frame SUV called Borrego, ran into the economic headwinds of the Great Recession. Kia had help from corporate partner Hyundai – that brand’s Palisade is the more urbane sibling to Telluride – but still, Kia’s reentry to the segment seemed remarkable.

After living with the Telluride for a week as opposed to a day, that remains true.

Kia sent me a top-trim SX with all-wheel drive. Telluride offers just one engine: A 3.8-liter V6 that makes 291 horsepower and 262 lb-ft of torque. Fuel economy is listed at 19 mpg city/24 mpg highway/21 mpg combined.

In addition to the all-wheel-drive system, the SX I tested had 20-inch blacked-out wheels replacing the 18-inch wheels found as standard kit on the lower-trim EX, LED headlights and fog lamps, rear sunroof, second-row captain’s chairs, 12-way power driver’s seat, memory for the driver’s seat and side-view mirrors, premium audio, park-distance warning, blind-spot monitoring, surround-view camera, and HomeLink.

An optional $2,000 Prestige Package added a head-up display, 110-volt inverter, Nappa leather, premium cloth for the headliner and visors, heated and cooled second-row seats, and rain-sensing windshield wipers. Carpeted floor mats added $210, while a carpeted cargo mat added $115.

With the $1,045 destination price, a vehicle that based at $43,490 reached $46,860.

For that mid-$40K price tag, you get a pretty capable family hauler.

[Get new and used Kia Telluride pricing here!]

The boxy, masculine shape is handsome, and the interior also charms, although I think the Palisade’s cabin is arguably even prettier. Still, the Kia’s controls are laid out logically, with two rows of buttons on the center stack that are easy to use. Even the faux wood trim looks good. Only the tacked-on info display looks out of place – it feels like an afterthought.

The V6 is strong enough for both grocery-getting and highway cruising, although there’s too much weight on tap for those who expect truly blazing acceleration. The eight-speed automatic that provided some wonky shifts during the press-launch drive seemed better behaved during my loan.

Firm yet artificial steering feel awaits drivers, and the Telluride’s mass and mission unsurprisingly mean it’s no corner-carver. But it acquits itself well enough – there’s little of the body-roll blues or yacht-like float that tends to afflict full-size three-row crossovers.

That’s one of the Telluride’s strengths, one that it shares with the Palisade. While no one in their right mind expects a three-row crossover to be even in the vicinity of “fun-to-drive”, the Telluride is at least dynamically sound enough to suggest that some other automakers weren’t even trying with their land barges. Yes, the recently redesigned three-row Ford Explorer also acquits itself well on-road, and the also redesigned Toyota Highlander is no slouch. But Kia could’ve just slapped together a soft-roader with family-friendly features, and it didn’t. It gave us a full-size crossover that actually doesn’t totally suck to drive.

More importantly, Kia priced it right. Other standard features include Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, leather seats, heated and cooled front seats, lane-keep assist, highway-driving assist, park-distance warning for reverse, blind-spot collision assist, rear cross-traffic alert, forward-collision avoidance assist, adaptive cruise control, rear occupant alert, safe-exit assist, UVO infotainment, navigation, 10-inch touchscreen, tri-zone climate control, heated steering wheel, satellite radio, front sunroof, and wireless cell-phone charger (these appear to be features standard on EX trims, with the options listed earlier in this review added to or replacing the features on SX trims).

Again, those features and the ones listed above added up to just under $47K. A similarly-equipped Highlander Platinum starts for a grand more, and both the Explorer Limited and Platinum are gonna hit your wallet harder (and the Limited doesn’t offer a gas V6).

I’ve driven the Highlander (review forthcoming) and the Explorer, and while both are fine vehicles, I’m hard pressed to figure out why I should pay more for either of them. Kia’s biggest competition comes from the Palisade, of all places, since it’s priced similarly. At least, for Toyota’s sake, the Highlander is somewhat close in pricing, and we’re not even factoring the ever-fluctuating incentives here.

You’ve probably been seeing Tellurides all over your town over the past year. Now you know why.

[Images © 2020 Tim Healey/The Truth About Cars]

Tim Healey
Tim Healey

Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.

More by Tim Healey

Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 60 comments
  • Hoodedhawk1 Hoodedhawk1 on Mar 09, 2020

    My '17 Sedona has over 50,000 miles and the interior (leather) still looks great. Its been abused by kids and dogs as well as general hauling and I'm really pleased with it. I think depreciation worries are overplayed, especially when factoring what you pay versus MSRP. The Honda/Toyota groups are willing to put some money on the hood these days, but Kia put a lot of money on the hood as well as a great finance rate. I paid $12,000 less for the Kia than a similarly equipped Toyota/Honda. My rate of depreciation would be atrocious had I paid MSRP, but I paid considerably less than MSRP for the van. Also, I plan to drive the thing to 200,000 miles, so it won't be worth much anyway. I would not have considered buying a Kia 6 or 7 years ago, but a rental Sportage in '16 changed my perception, and I've been really happy driving the Kia. I'd still rather drive a pickup, but a blended family and 4 teenagers dictated the need for the van.

  • Bd2 Bd2 on Mar 09, 2020

    The Telluride has won just about every award/ranking/comparison in North America and the if it did lose out, was to its corporate cousin, the Palisade. It's now down to the Telluride and 2 Mazdas for World Car of the Year.

    • Bd2 Bd2 on Mar 11, 2020

      1st CUV/SUV to win the trifecta of NA Utility of the Year, Motor Trend's SUV of the Year and Car & Driver's 10Best.

  • ToolGuy North America is already the greatest country on the planet, and I have learned to be careful about what I wish for in terms of making changes. I mean, if Greenland wants to buy JDM vehicles, isn't that for the Danes to decide?
  • ToolGuy Once again my home did not catch on fire and my fire extinguisher(s) stayed in the closet, unused. I guess I threw my money away on fire extinguishers.(And by fire extinguishers I mean nuclear missiles.)
  • Carson D The UAW has succeeded in organizing a US VW plant before. There's a reason they don't teach history in the schools any longer. People wouldn't make the same mistakes.
  • B-BodyBuick84 Mitsubishi Pajero Sport of course, a 7 seater, 2.4 turbo-diesel I4 BOF SUV with Super-Select 4WD, centre and rear locking diffs standard of course.
  • Corey Lewis Think how dated this 80s design was by 1995!
Next