[Auto] 2023 Kia Telluride First Drive: A Po[CENSORED]r SUV Gets Better—and Outdoorsy

[Andy アンディ]

How good was Kia's Telluride already? When talking about the improved-for-2023 Telluride upon its debut earlier this year, we defaulted to poking fun at the Hunger Games-style battle people must endure to buy one. Since 2019, the three-row SUV's classy styling, roomy and upscale interior, and knockout value have had shoppers practically duking it out for one, with many paying dealer markups or securing their place in line with a factory order. And that was all before a similar experience spread to other brands due to industry-wide parts shortages that arrived after COVID-related supply shocks.

Perhaps eager to get us to stop talking about buying a Telluride like some kind of House of Dragons episode—and, you know, to sell more Tellurides—Kia announced during the 2023 Telluride drive event that it's increasing production capacity for its three-row star. The automaker's Georgia plant will now be capable of building 120,000 Tellurides annually, a huge boost over the 93,000-some it sold last year. Given the new Telluride's enhancements, namely a huge in-car tech upgrade and the introduction of a new, rugged X-Pro off-road variant, we think Kia might want to face the notion it'll need to add even more production capacity in the future.

What's New, Class Leader?
The Telluride has sat atop our class rankings for midsize three-row SUVs since its launch three years ago, when it promptly won our 2020 MotorTrend SUV of the Year award. Among its few flaws was the merely OK in-car tech, which has now taken a big step forward thanks to dual 12.3-inch screens sharing a single, elegantly curved glass panel. This is the same basic setup found in Kia's new EV6 electric crossover, with snappy graphics and quick touch responses, and it replaces the old Telluride's analog gauges and 10.3-inch touchscreen. It also includes wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It puts the extra screen space to good use by stretching your phone mirroring across a bigger area instead of shoehorning CarPlay into a vaguely phone-shaped section of the screen, leaving a blank space to the right, as the old Telluride did. We wish there were more configurability, especially for the gauge cluster display. The latter offers four similar views of simulated analog tachometer and speedometer gauges (tied to each drive mode) or—if you can find the menu in the central touchscreen—a "dynamic" option that combines digital readouts with a minimalist aesthetic and a small animated Telluride in the center.

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Activate the newly standard Highway Assist 1.5 system—or the optional 2.0 version that adds automated lane changes—and the wee Telluride in the display is flanked by lines that turn green when the lane-centering self-steering function activates. In all, the new displays bring the cabin a touch of modernity that is otherwise unchanged save for some repositioned air vents and USB-C ports sprouting in place of regular USBs in all three rows of seats. Those USB-port locations include the backs of the front seats for easy charging of, say, iPads while the kids in back watch them.

The only external changes are new wheel designs for every trim level, revised bumpers, and a fresh grille. Kia didn't offer a coherent reason why it removed the Telluride's signature (and very po[CENSORED]r) amber-colored LED headlight surrounds, but if we have to guess: The only other Kia with the feature is the K5 sedan, formerly known as the Optima. We figure the K5 likely isn't long for this world, so the Telluride abandons its sole visual link to it in favor of a new headlight design similar to the upcoming EV9 electric SUV's.Can't You Tell-Uride It's The Same?
The 2023 Kia Telluride features the same basic mechanical package it did last year, with a 291-hp V-6 engine powering either the front or all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission. As before, the rear axle has a load-leveling feature, and all four corners are supported by traditional gas shock absorbers and coil springs.

The lone exception is the new-for-2023 X-Pro trim, which can be combined only with the upper-level Telluride SX or SX Prestige variants. This off-road treatment includes longer shocks and springs delivering a 0.4-inch increase in ground clearance and all-terrain tires on 18-inch black-painted wheels. All-wheel drive is standard, and like on other AWD Tellurides, it has a button for locking the center differential. There is no low-range gearing, but the locking center coupling, beefier tires, and extra clearance—enhanced by unique bumpers with shaved-away lower portions—are enough to give it a convincing look.

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We split our driving time in the 2023 Kia Telluride between an SX Prestige X-Line, which adopts some of the same styling as the X-Pro but rides on 20-inch wheels and street-oriented tires (and effectively replaces last year's Nightfall Edition) and an X-Pro, both on the road and off it. As before, the Telluride lineup also includes the entry-level LX, along with S, EX, and SX guises. The X-Line treatment is available on the EX, SX, and SX Prestige.

With no hardware changes, the Telluride SX X-Line drove almost exactly the same as last year's Nightfall. (We drove a 2022 Nightfall Edition from Dallas to San Antonio for the 2023 drive event, providing an excellent back-to-back comparison.) We detected slightly lower road noise in the 2023 model, but the Telluride remains somewhat loud at speed inside. The new Highway Assist 2.0 system worked well, keeping the SUV centered in its lane better than last year's version; its automated lane changes (hit the signal stalk, and the vehicle will switch lanes left or right if there's space) worked as advertised.

X Marks The Pro
After driving the 2023 Kia Telluride X-Line on the street, we switched to an X-Pro model for some light off-roading outside of San Antonio. This is desert-ish scrubland, so we didn't encounter any mud, just dry dirt and rocks along a little trail Kia cobbled together on some ranchland. In short, this wasn't the Rubicon trail, but it matched up with the sort of use case Kia has in mind for X-Pro owners—handling terrain that'd be on the extreme end of what you'd likely attempt with, say, your entire family in the car while trying to reach a more-rugged-than-usual campsite.

With the center coupling locked and traction control defeated, we clambered over the natural and Kia-made Texas countryside mostly without issue. The Kia Telluride's relatively limited wheel articulation—it rides on a fully independent suspension and has a long wheelbase—meant that, occasionally, we found ourselves teetering on two or three wheels. So long as you maintain forward momentum, such situations are thrilling but won't slow down the Telluride.

We accidentally slowed ourselves too much while traipsing diagonally up a steep, short rise during a photo op and ended up balanced perfectly on the front left and right rear, leaving the right front and left rear barely kissing dirt. Without locking front or rear differentials, or seemingly even a brake-based torque-distribution protocol, the Kia's open diffs let the two tires with less purchase spin fruitlessly. Without shifting out of drive, we were able to ease up, let the Kia roll back a foot or so, and scramble over the obstacle with a little more speed.

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Big credit goes to the Telluride's well-chosen rubber, a set of Continental all-terrain tires that—when pressed properly into terra firma, at least—delivered solid grip in the dirt. Bouncing down the trails, the tires' generous sidewall height helped the X-Pro's lifted suspension quietly and comfortably soak up bumps and thumps. Those rugged tires also proved quieter and smoother on pavement than the 20-inch tires on the X-Line.

While a three-row Jeep Grand Cherokee L and its available low-range gearing and height-adjustable air suspension will show the Telluride its taillights off-road, the X-Pro seemed game tackling the midgrade challenges Kia put forward. We look forward to comparing the car-based Telluride's X-Pro effort against the segment's other new or newish off-roaders, namely the Ford Explorer Timberline, Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek, and the upcoming Honda Pilot TrailSport.

Were it our cash on the table, the Telluride X-Pro would be tough to pass up. Not only is it combined with the Kia's attainable yet excellently equipped SX trims, but it looks the business and delivers a more serene highway experience. Every 2023 Kia Telluride rides comfortably, however, and steers and handles smartly. We wish the V-6 engine made more low-end torque, or that Kia would step up and offer its twin-turbo V-6 in the Telluride, but the power is usable despite requiring some revs to uncork. With prices increased only slightly relative to last year's Telluride and the 2023 version's one-two punch of fresher tech and the new X-Pro model, expect Kia and its customers to continue contending with overwhelming customer demand. But, hey, at least Kia is building more Tellurides this year, so you might actually be able to get your hands on one without sacrificing your firstborn child.BASE PRICE    $37,025-$54,120
LAYOUT    Front-engine, FWD/AWD, 7-8-pass, 4-door SUV
ENGINE    3.8L/291-hp /262-lb-ft DOHC 24-valve V-6
TRANSMISSION    8-speed auto
CURB WEIGHT    4,100-4,500 lb (mfr)
WHEELBASE    114.2 in
L x W x H    196.9 x 78.3 x 69.3-70.5 in
0-60 MPH    7.2 sec (MT est)
EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON    18-20/24-26/21-23 mpg
EPA RANGE, COMB    450-490 miles
ON SALE    Now

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