There are some automotive manufacturers that have undoubtedly surprised me in sending their newest redesigned model, and this year so far, the most impressive has been Kia with their redesigned Telluride.

The Kia Telluride was already a great success for Kia, bringing the masses a well-to-do mainstream three-row mid-sized crossover. In wondering where the brand would go when it came time to redesign the Telluride and not upset its newfound base and fans of the respected crossover, I now wonder no more after spending a week with the top-trimmed Telluride X-Pro SX Prestige AWD, which is a play on a more off-road-friendly version but brings all of the vehicle’s available equipment to the table.

Receiving a full redesign for the 2027 model year, the new Telluride is quite the looker, turning heads as it takes on a few cues from vehicles like the Range Rover. Its new style is more in your face and avoids fading into the background, as many other crossovers in such a category do with their vanilla flavors with sprinkles. Here, we’re working more with Crème brulee or maybe Tiramisu, not your everyday dessert, but one recognizable as being tasty and attractive in its essence – that’s the new Telluride.

Performance and Driving Character

Receiving a new powertrain working with the brand’s turbocharged 2.5-liter inline 4-cylinder engine, the new Telluride gets 274 horsepower and 311 lb-ft of torque. Yes, that would be slightly down on horsepower, but we now get much more torque over the outgoing V6 engine, which feels good mostly in the midrange throttle input. Overall, the engine is a good match for the Telluride, but there are times when you just want a little more oomph, especially out of the hole where there’s a taste of turbo lag. As such, the new Telluride is a hair slower to 60 mph than the outgoing V6-powered model, where the 2027 takes 8.1 seconds.

Coupled with its all-wheel-drive system, the Telluride X-Pro SX Prestige does well to keep a sure footing without unwanted drama as its all-terrain tires grapple with the pavement, but seldom do so with some chattering feedback from the knobby rubber in turns. Such a disposition of the all-terrain tires, something I think most Telluride buyers would never take full advantage of, along with the X-Pro’s slightly higher suspension setup and painted recovery hooks up front and out back. However, in choosing this trim, I suppose buyers will play the tune that it’s better to have it than need it and not have it.

Out on the road, the new Telluride has a compliant ride and handles itself well to road imperfections. The suspension tuning through its fixed-rate dampers does an excellent job of soaking up rises, bumps, and undulations. Taking the Telluride X-Pro SX-P off-road you have assurance from its center and rear limited slip differential. There’s also a welcoming, supple feel to the ride even on small rock-laden surfaces, which I believe is an attribute to the softer all-terrain tires that wrap 18-inch black finished alloy wheels. The 18-inch wheels do look rather smallish, where the large body design of the Telluride seems to dwarf them, which seems to be the only area that I don’t like about the exterior look. Otherwise, the Telluride has certainly matured and fallen deep into near-luxury territory.

Fuel Economy

Fuel economy takes a slight hit with the X-Pro SX Prestige trim, where I would have hoped the turbocharged 4-cylinder didn’t drink as much regular unleaded fuel, mostly matching its EPA estimates of 17 mpg city, 22 mpg highway, and 19 mpg combined in the real world. However, there is an all-new Telluride hybrid that is now available, which will greatly increase the EPA figures for a combined 35 mpg. Highway cruising range is about 418 miles from its 19-gallon fuel tank in my Telluride X-Pro SX Prestige AWD test vehicle.

Interior and Technology

Inside the redesigned Telluride is a new space that’s even more inviting than before. Fundamentally, we have a cabin that’s verging on the luxury side of things, where its premium theme has been tweaked to offer up several soft-touch surfaces and forged-looking carbon-fiber trim through many surfaces. Even though the colors don’t necessarily contrast in my test vehicle, you can opt for more eye-catching hues along with bright color-selectable LED ambient lighting.

The infotainment system carries from other new Kia models and has an attractive edge with the implementation of themes where you can set certain graphical setups from Star Wars to NBA type themes, which is a nice play thanks to Disney. The integration of wireless Apple CarPlay works well as I imagine Android Auto will. Another exceptional feature here is the dual wireless smartphone charging pads, which have a unique elevated and grippy square that fits most modern smartphones to hold them in place. Though, heat is still an issue for some as I was not surprised to see my iPhone stop charging at 80% due to it getting too hot on the charging pad.

The seating areas again are spacious, and the generous features of front and second-row heating and ventilation extend through many trim levels. There are clever storage areas and neat cup holders that can be stored out of the way to open up additional cubby space in the upper portion of the large center console. Again, there’s a bit of Range Rover flavor sprinkled throughout.

Cargo and Safety

Out back, the cargo area is sufficient once again with 22.3 cubic feet of storage behind the third row seat backs, which can mechanically fold down to open up to 48.7 cubic feet or as much as 89.3 cubic feet by pushing a button to fold the second row seat backs down. The cargo area is accessed by a smart power tailgate. You can also tow up to 5,000 pounds.

Kia has certainly created an attention-getter in the new Telluride, where it undoubtedly punches above its class in most areas, with the one exception of overall acceleration performance. Coupled with the advanced active safety features that include the highlights of the highway driving assist 2 system, which only requires that you touch the steering wheel for semi-autonomous driving, the trick blind spot monitor display, the digital review mirror, and the 360-degree camera system.

Pricing

On the pricing scale, the Kia Telluride remains an attractive offering, adding to its new attractive looks and long list of equipment, starting at $39,190 before any options or fees for the base LX trim, one of a total of 10 trim levels. Moving all through the 10 trim levels to my Telluride X-Pro SX Prestige AWD, you’ll look to spend its as-tested price of $59,580, which includes the $995 add-on of the eye-catching Terrain Brown Matte Paint and $250 for carpeted floor mats. Kia has done a good thing here, and I am all for it as it will certainly capture remarkable sales. Get MSRP or Dealer Invoice Pricing on the 2027 Kia Telluride.