[RahulNagaraj]

The Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade were introduced in the US markets back in 2019 and 2020, respectively. However, over the short period of time they have been on sale in the country, both SUVs have managed to gain immense popularity, even outselling their American counterparts on multiple occasions.



The popularity of the Kia Telluride in the US markets is said to have resulted in a long waiting period for the SUV. Reports suggest that Kia is actually ramping up production of the Telluride to meet the demand in the US market.



The popularity of the two SUVs has further been accelerated with both of them receiving rave reviews in the US. The Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade are considered to be among the best vehicles in their segment. The Kia Telluride also won the 'World Car of the Year 2020' award, further adding to its popularity.

However, the main reason for the two SUVs doing so well is their pricing. Both car brands are known to offer models packed with features and equipment, while pricing them competitively making them value-for-money alternatives in their segment. This is true for the Kia Telluride and the Hyundai Palisade as well. The top trims of both the SUVs are priced around US$ 46,000 (exclusive of taxes), undercutting most of its rivals such as the Ford Explorer, Chevrolet Traverse, Honda Pilot and the Subaru Ascent.



However, even with the lower prices, the Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride offer much more than their rivals. The cabins of both SUVs are packed with features and equipment, across all three seating rows.

The two SUVs also look the part. While the Kia Telluride has a boxy design, the Palisade features a more quirky styling in line with Hyundai's latest design philosophy.



Both SUVs are powered by a 3.8-litre V6 petrol engine that produces 291 BHP and 355 Nm. It is paired with an 8-speed automatic transmission and an all-wheel-drive system.



The strategy used by the two brands for the Palisade and Telluride in the US market seems to be similar to that of the Creta and Seltos in India.

Similar to their respective flagship models in the USA, the Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos in India are also based on the same platform, have similar features and are powered by the same set of engine and transmission options; all while being competitively priced in their segment. This has allowed the two models to become two of the best-selling products in the mid-size SUV segment in India.

Link to Team-BHP news

[CEF_Beasts]

Both these cars I wish were available in India!

In India today, there is no SUV in the ₹50 Lakh to ₹65 Lakh range. One end we have the Endeavour/Fortuner and on the other end the smaller GLC/X3 (GLA/X1 are more crossover-ish than SUVs). We seriously need something in between! Both the Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade are perfect candidates for this ₹50 Lakh bracket. They are larger than the Fortuner/Endeavour, with better overall space and at the same time loaded with features to the brim.

Only grouse is neither will many people like to pay ₹50 Lakh for a Hyundai/Kia nor will both of them be long-lasting/abuse-friendly like the Fortuner/Endeavour are.

[TrackDay]

Bad news for American car makers, since they are focused on profits by ignoring smaller cars and here Hyundai-Kia is expanding their portfolio. Soon Hyundai-Kia will enter the pickup territory and maybe even the Escalade/Yukon segments. This will leave the Americans car makers in a 'Deer in Headlights' situation with nowhere to go. Lately the Korean Twins have been tasting success everywhere with the Newer products/Lineup and seems to be on a roll !

[turbo]

Here's Doug Demuro's reviews of both the SUVs in question. Interestingly, its the Hyundai that has more views than the Kia, by roughly 1.5 times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpfAY3LqmXk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvfUdxq1LQ4

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by SenPai_GTi

When Hyundai had sold their in the USA in 1998, they had a huge success, and they still hold the record for the most cars sold in the US industry by a first year company.

You are correct about the success of Hyundai in their launch year but it way back in 1986(found out after Googling a bit). I knew it could not be 1998 because I remember seeing Hyundais in the early 1990s in the US.

In February 1986, Hyundai launched its subcompact Excel model in the U.S. market. Customer response was immediate; in just seven months Hyundai Motor America had sold its 100,000th Excel. Total 1986 sales numbered 168,882 – an industry record for an import car distributor in its first year. Hyundai sales averaged 1,431 units per dealer, another sales record.

Source: https://www.hmmausa.com/a-look-back-...0first%20year.

[SenPai_GTi]

Hyundai has had a very unique approach towards the market, and US tells their success story much better. When Hyundai had sold their first car in the USA, they had a huge success, and they still hold the record for the most cars sold in the US industry by a first year company.

Their initial strategy was to establish a sense of reliability and trust in the customers, by gathering genuine consumer advice and then acting on it by offering generous warranty on powertrain, bumper-to-bumper coverage, roadside assistance. This helped the brand grow and make a decent name for itself. It also allowed them to ensure strict quality levels within the manufacturing plants. As the company grew, they shifted their focus on the design, giving a diversified range of styling to the conventional market design of their rivals. The company hired young and motivated individuals from around the world and launched their new design approach in 2009, called the “fluidic sculpture". This design language benefited India as well, giving us the fluidic Verna, the 5th gen Elantra, facelift i10, etc.

One of the important game changer was bringing the features from high end vehicles into a much affordable lower segment. This is evident in the Indian market as well, with the Creta/Seltos. This helped them attract more buyers, and more of them from the upper segments.

The only factor that Hyundai had to tackle when it entered USA was to clear itself of the reputation as a "cheap, low-quality car manufacturer", which it did by a clever and unique strategy. Maybe some Indian manufacturers (even new EV startups for that matter) could follow the similar order to grow as well. First try to make themselves known as a reliable brand and then focus on giving excellent technology/designs to the market.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

You are correct about the success of Hyundai in their launch year but it way back in 1986(found out after Googling a bit). I knew it could not be 1998 because I remember seeing Hyundais in the early 1990s in the US.

My bad, I confused it with the HMIL (1996) establishment date

[Avenger_123]

We are currently looking for a 3 row SUV here in US, and when you compare what is out there you understand the Hyundai/Kia have really nailed it. Kudos to the engineers and product planners, some key points I feel which makes them stand above competition.

Space - we couldn't find a lot of mid size SUV's except for the VW Atlas which we can use to seat adults comfortably in all 3 rows
Smaller Things- Third row reclining and AC vents, surprisingly lot of the competition doesn't have it, and makes a load of difference for passenger comfort
Exterior, Interiors & Technology - Beautiful interiors, especially the top trims, and with all the latest technology. These look great from outside as well
Warranty - Industry-leading warranty including 100,000 miles powertrain !!
Price - All this and the super V6 engine for less than $50,000 in US !!

They have basically attacked US brands as well as even the Japanese luxury brands. I recently test drove the Acura MDX and didn't see any benefit of paying the additional $10-12K over top trim Hyundai twins, that too without all features like second row ventilated seats !!

I hope these are launched in India, it will be a success for sure. Maybe Pallisade as Telluride they are not building anywhere except USA as far as I know

[vb-saan]

These two are indeed very clever product placement from Hyundai-Kia. Americans love their large SUVs/Trucks, and with the Telluride and Palisade, they get the space and convenience of a butch SUV and the finesse of a crossover. Add to it nice engine options and dynamics, top-of-the-line comfort features and unmatched warranty, these models’ success is no surprise.

[GTO]

Great thread . Have been seeing a LOT of Palisade & Telluride posts on my favourite USA websites, Jalopnik & Reddit. From what I have gathered, the success story is largely similar to the Korean twins here, albeit in a higher segment. Good looks (Telluride), weird looks (Palisade), great feature set, good engines, much better suspensions than before, fairly priced for the package on offer. Have read of crazy markups - check this one out at $10000 - 15000 more! Crazy demand for these SUVs & long wait periods.

Most impressively, I have read of customers who were considering SUVs from the German luxury marques, but eventually picked the Palisade / Telluride. Hyundai-Kia have come a long way from where they were 10 - 20 years ago. They can build good cheap cars and good expensive cars. How many brands do you know that can pull this off so effectively? VW is the only convincing name that comes to mind.

[DriverNo.420]

The Koreans are indeed ahead of the competition today. They think for the long term benefits by giving loads and loads of features and goodies for lower price and selling more cars. The American manufacturers on the other hand are extremely short sighted and profit driven. Due to their impatient nature, they failed in many market where the Koreans now rule.

[viXit]

My Uncle and aunt needed a second car to replace their beater camry and decided to buy an SUV to accompany their 740Li Sedan. The Kia Telluride was their first choice because of it's VFM positioning and feature rich interiors. Many of which were more than just gizmos. The thoughtful implementation of the features and comfort provisions make these cars really awesome to have and live with, instead of just being tech-laden good for nothing Brochure Points.

But the wait periods were RIDICULOUSLY long! Although not a compromise in any way, they went the Acura way and brought home an MDX because they couldn't wait long. Their nation has already opened up post pandemic and they needed a second car soon.

KIA and Hyundai seem to be on a roll everywhere they go. But I disagree with the Creta being VFM like the Palisade is in the United States of Automobiles :P

Creta always feels overpriced to me for what it offers. Heck, even the Sonet is overpriced. IDK if it's brand building to make owners feel that Creta is an expensive car ! or if it's just greed. But can you imagine paying 17L OTR for a sonet with nothing special but for ventilated seats.

I'm running out of expletives trying to explain that in 2014 my Safari Storme, which is perfectly reliable, tremendously comfortable and extremely utilitarian when required costed just 14L OTR from CSD. Paying so much more money for such less car is just mind bogglingly ABSURD!

*don't justify Hyundai ASC being better, we also have a hyundai car and they're just as notorious* The fools wanted to perform and charge us for glow plug inspection and service on a petrol car.

[dark.knight]

Originally Posted by CEF_Beasts

Only grouse is neither will many people like to pay ₹50 Lakh for a Hyundai/Kia nor will both of them be long-lasting/abuse-friendly like the Fortuner/Endeavour are.

I would, and in my opinion Hyundai/Kia has far exceeded Toyota, Honda, Ford and GM, miles ahead in terms of interiors, fit-&-finish, refinement and design. Yes people love to bash the 2 on safety as that's the only thing left and I agree that 3 stars while not unsafe, is not the best score, its passing grade at best.

However, I also want Toyota made for India models tested in GNCAP, as also models from Honda and VW in similar classes or I'll refuse to acknowledge the assumed superiority of theirs in terms of safety.

As for reliability, Toyota is overhyped beyond comprehension. I've owned in all 4 cars from the Korean group combined for over 15 years, zero niggles, zero replacements and zero breakdowns, including some fender benders with other Japanese cars (their fault) which resulted in their cars having a hanging bumper or 4 inch deep dents while my cars had barely paint removal to show for.

I don't want people to think I'm spruiking the brand, heck I'll be happy if people don't buy them as it gives more exclusivity, but they sure deserve much, much more respect than they're getting.

[Arun_S]

General Question on Telluride, when introduced was it coming with Suicide Doors as I am seeing images with that.

When doors are opened with pillarless design they look really good. It would have pulled lot of people .

[clementw]

The US loves its gas guzzlers and big cars. One day the economics of these cars will come to bite them in their back sides, especially if these cars are bought for 1 occupant most of the time.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by RahulNagaraj

The strategy used by the two brands for the Palisade and Telluride in the US market seems to be similar to that of the Creta and Seltos in India.

Excellent article IMHO. Totally agree with this view. Considering the overall market positioning in the US market - they are positioned very similar in pricing and market reach as the 10-20L crossover segment in India.

In fact, it does look like Creta / Seltos were both modelled on the Palisade / Telluride brothers.

Originally Posted by viXit

But the wait periods were RIDICULOUSLY long! Although not a compromise in any way, they went the Acura way and brought home an MDX because they couldn't wait long.

That's a story in itself - they bought a premium Japanese brand, mainly because of the unavailability of a Hyundai. How times have changed!

Originally Posted by dark.knight

Yes people love to bash the 2 on safety as that's the only thing left and I agree that 3 stars while not unsafe, is not the best score, it's passing grade at best.

Bashing is well deserved because it's a choice Hyundai-Kia has made! Both the companies can easily prioritize 4 star/5 star safety if needed (and surely there is no technology gap there) - the same Seltos is sold abroad (the US especially) is a beast in comparison.

Would have made them perfect packages too, at least in my books.