KIA Telluride

Design & Quality

Stepping into Telluride’s cabin makes you feel a lot luxurious, and the reason is the remarkable design of the cabin. The first thing you notice is the huge space, then the premium materials like Nappa leather upholstery in black or dual-tone black and ivory-white, enhanced by faux wood, satin chrome, and brushed aluminium inserts. After a quick time, you know the quality of the materials, with soft-touch surfaces and durable plastics. The 12.3-inch dual panoramic display is the major attraction, which has navigation, audio, rearview monitor, and parking guidance with pinch-to-zoom functionality. At a price point of the Telluride, Kia is offering you a cabin which looks a lot upmarket compared to pricier rivals. Overall, the layout comes across as intuitive, and controls are designed with attention to detail.

Front Seat

The driver’s seat is as good as it gets, offering a nice and comfy position, great visibility thanks to large windshields and a high seating position. The 8-way power adjustments, lumbar support, and ventilation to keep you cool in scorching heat. The leather-wrapped, multi-function steering wheel has all controls for audio, cruise, and voice commands, and it is quite sleek to operate. The heated and ventilated front seats boost comfort further throughout the years, tackling all weather conditions

Electronic Parking Brake

An electronic parking brake with Auto Hold, located behind the gear selector, is easy to operate, especially during stops on inclines, a huge relief in UAE’s hilly areas and traffic-heavy zones.

Rear Seat

One of the key aspects of the Telluride is comfortably seats 7 or 8 across three rows, with generous legroom and headroom. This is what makes it a perfect family SUV, and a lot goes into buying decisions when it comes to the overall comfort for passengers. Telluride has always been quite strong here, with the second row with reclining captain’s chairs (SX 7 Seats) or a bench, both with ventilation. Third-row access is easy and quick, thanks to sliding second-row seats that fold at the push of a button. ISOFIX anchors support up to two child seats, something families can’t live without. It is well-known that the rear seat comfort of this SUV is legendary among families in the UAE, with enough space and great comfort.

AC Vents

This strong tri-zone automatic climate control is here to make everybody’s life a lot easier and convenient by making the cabin cool. There are dedicated vents for the second and third rows, so when the cabin is full with people, everyone gets enough cool air. This is a critical feature for UAE’s sweltering summers, and it comes across as quite effective.

Storage Options

The cabin has sufficient storage considering most of the time families will travel in the car, and more people mean more stuff to carry. But, no worry, you can store a lot with innovative spaces across the cabin. With a large glovebox for documents, a deep centre console for gadgets, and door-mounted bottle holders (1-litre capacity). A rear armrest compartment adds extra space for those long family road trips.

Armrest

Front and rear centre armrests are offered for that additional comfort and storage, with standard for extra convenience.

Charging Options

The Telluride keeps devices powered with a wireless charging pad, USB ports across all rows, and a 12V socket. A smart audible alert makes sure that you don’t leave your phone behind.

Boot Space

Being a full-size SUV, it is natural that the Telluride has a huge and segment-best boot space of 601 litres behind the third row, and if you wish to expand, whenever that extra luggage is required, it can go up to 2,447 liters with the second and third rows folded flat.

Safety is paramount, with:

• Six airbags
• Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS)
• Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
• Trailer Stability Assist

• Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist

• Blind-Spot Collision Warning (BCW)

• Lane Keeping Assist (LKA)

• Lane Following Assist (LFA)
• Rear Cross-Traffic Alert
• Safe Exit Warning

• Smart Cruise Control

• 360-degree camera
• Tire Pressure Monitoring System
• ISOFIX child seat anchors
• Hill-Start Assist
• Intelligent High Beam
• #60-degree camera with dynamic parking guidelines

The Kia Telluride's massive dimensions, like the length of 5,000 mm, 1,990 mm in width, and 1,750 mm in height, with a 2,900 mm wheelbase, make it a huge SUV with a strong road presence. And, such a large SUV comes high. It's 203 mm ground clearance, which easily takes on all types of driving conditions across the UAE. The exterior design represents a balance between bolder aggression and stylish elegance. The dual-pane panoramic sunroof, standard across variants, makes the cabin bring natural light, giving a sense of space.

Front

The Telluride’s front fascia is undoubtedly gutsy, defined by a sizable, gloss-black Tiger Nose grille with Telluride name embossed prominently on the hood. The vertically stacked all-LED headlights, complete with integrated daytime running lights (DRLs) and turn indicators enhance the overall front design. The rounded edges of the headlights nicely blend in with the overall styling, while slim air curtains and LED fog lamps on the front bumper not just look good but also improve the overall aerodynamics and visibility. A split air dam below the grille is another smart feature giving a rugged touch, which suits UAE’s blend of urban and off-road environments.

Side

The side profile of the Telluride is a great piece of design work, where you can clearly see a combination of strong built quality with nicer soft design elements. Since this is a full-size SUV, and its ability to navigate effectively, it has 20-inch machined alloy wheels that fill the arches. The tires look stylish, high-end and provide a planted stance. The body cladding over the wheel arches and lower door panels, paired with chrome window surrounds and slim roof rails, represents the best way to give it rugged yet superior SUV character. The clean, flowing lines of the bodywork make the overall body language unique, and along the way make Telluride look highly capable and appealing. The panoramic sunroof is a great feature that gives a premium to the overall look, elevates the side profile.

Alloy Wheels

The Telluride rides on 20-inch alloy wheels (245/50 R20), which not just boost overall exterior design but promise superior navigation with an excellent grip and durability on UAE’s varied roads. The wheels’ ability to handle everything from smooth highways to sandy trails, with one driver commenting, as wheels feel sturdy and give you the much-needed confidence across a variety of terrain, also sets it apart for its image of a full-size SUV.  

Rear

At the rear, the Telluride gets that bold presence with inverted J-shaped LED tail lamps connected by “Telluride” lettering across the boot lid, making it look like a distinctive light signature at night. A roof-mounted spoiler and gloss-black air curtains further enhance its sporty appeal, while the rugged rear bumper, complete with a large silver skid plate, underlines the SUV’s off-road capability. The power rear liftgate, standard across variants, makes life a lot easier by quick access to the cargo area, and families love this SUV for its practicality.

Colors

The Telluride is available in multiple exterior colours like Snow White Pearl, Gravity Grey, Sangria Red, Ebony Black, Everlasting Grey, Sparkling Silver, Dark Moss, and Black Copper.

City Performance

Not just space, comfort and practicality front, the Telluride also shines on the driving dynamics. When it comes to city drive the 3.8L V6 engine with an 8-speed automatic is remarkable with smooth, responsive power and a lot easier to drive. Notwithstanding the size of the SUV, it is surprisingly quite effortless to move around, with features like the 360-degree camera, light steering, and parking sensors being great convenience. With fuel mileage of nearly 1o km/l during our drive is not bad either for a large SUV like the Telluride.

Highway Performance

On highways, the Telluride is excellent to say the least, and honestly, no surprise for us. The 295 hp of power is quite enough for this mighty SUV to not just overtake, but have some fun during an open lane. The drive modes (Sport for spirited drives, Eco for efficiency) and a self-levelling rear suspension are some key elements in offering you stability at high speeds. The low NVH levels create a serene cabin, perfect for long drives for intercity trips.

Ride and Handling

The MacPherson strut front and multi-link rear suspension is designed to offer you a plush ride, absorbing bumps on UAE’s roads with ease, and they do complete justice.  The 203 mm ground clearance and AWD system, paired with Snow, Sand, and Mud terrain modes, are a superb addition to make light off-road adventures like desert camping enjoyable. You will notice the steering is light and accurate, another key element of your smooth ride and handling. You will conclude just like we did, that the Telluride handles like a smaller SUV, but you feel the weight in sharp turns.

• 12.3-inch dual panoramic displays with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto

• 12.3-inch digital multi information display

• 20-inch machined alloy wheels
• Nappa leather upholstery

• Heated and ventilated front and second-row seats

• Tri-zone automatic climate control

• 12-speaker Harman Kardon audio system

• Keyless entry and push-button start
• Electronic parking brake with Auto Hold

• Drive Mode Select (Comfort, Eco, Sport, Smart)
• Terrain Mode Select (Snow, Sand, Mud)
• Wireless charging pad

• Dual-pane panoramic sunroof

• 360-degree camera
• Head-up display
• Remote engine start
• Power boot

You can buy the Telluride from among the 4 available variants in the UAE, right now.

• SX (AED 163,695): It comes fully loaded with all features, including Nappa leather, 360-degree camera, and head-up display.
• LX (AED 163,695): identical to SX with minor trim differences.
• EX: Extra features additions including leather seats, sunroof, power seats, and wireless charging.
• SX 7 Seats: Here you get captain’s chairs, advanced ADAS, and heated second-row seats.

Zigwheels Recommendation: We believe most of the buyers, families most likely, focus on utmost comfort and convenience. The SX 7 Seats variant makes a lot of sense, and it is our top pick, and not hard to back it up. You get captain’s chairs, heated second-row seats, and advanced ADAS, promising executive-class comfort and excellent safety. While the SX and LX are fully-loaded and nearly identical, and the EX provides greater value, the SX 7 Seats comes with higher flexibility, high on luxury, practicality, and suits both daily drives and road trips.

If you’re on the lookout for a big, safer and comfortable family SUV in the UAE, the Kia Telluride is frankly hard to beat. It has all the ingredients of a luxury SUV without the crazy price tag.

Our time with it made us believe it completely. Be it your everyday commute, or long family trips, you know how airy and quiet the cabin is, and the generous legroom for everyone (even adults in the third row), and the features list is rather extensive. There is a massive panoramic sunroof, ventilated seats for our hot summers, and a touchscreen system that’s actually easy to use. Plus, the 3.8L V6 has plenty of power, and the AWD allows you to handle both city and weekend desert detours.

In a nutshell, the Telluride stands out as one of the UAE’s best family SUVs, with a mix of style, space, and affordability.

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