The 2027 Kia Telluride Is an All-Star SUV That Raises Its Own Lofty Bar

Edging closer to pure SUV perfection.

Rear view of a beige Kia Telluride SUV with illuminated vertical taillights and tinted rear window.

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Published December 26, 2025

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Kia revealed what is arguably its most important car of the decade at the Los Angeles Auto Show: the 2027 Telluride. As one of the midsize segment’s best-selling and award-winning models, the latest second-gen version cranks up the style and pizzazz with million-dollar looks both inside and out.

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When the Telluride first launched in 2019, it became a smash hit and remains a perpetual favorite here at GP. Not only did it set a new bar on how much value one can get in the mainstream market.

Black Kia Telluride SUV parked on a concrete driveway near a modern building at sunset. — The 2027 Kia Telluride has the looks and presence to match your rich neighbor’s full-size Range Rover.

It absolutely excels at nearly everything it’s designed and engineered to do. While it may not be groundbreaking from a performance or technological standpoint, the Telluride is one of the very few prime examples where a car company got everything so damn right.

There are a lot of good cars and hardly any glaringly bad cars out there. However, the Telluride is genuinely and almost nearly impossible to fault.

Car interior with tan leather seats, matching steering wheel, wood trim, and a wide digital dashboard display. — Because it’s a Kia, the Telluride will come jampacked with tech and features.

This time around, the second-gen model brings some very notable changes, such as more powertrain options. Unfortunately, it drops its silky-smooth naturally-aspirated V6 for a base 2.5-liter gasoline turbo-four.

And for the first time, that four-cylinder can be paired with an electric motor as the upgradable option. That makes it the world’s first Telluride Hybrid.

Beige electric SUV with black wheels parked on a grassy field with mountains in the background. — The new Telluride has big shoes to fill from its predecessor, but we don’t doubt it will do so in spades.

But because it’s a Kia, it’ll be loaded up the wazoo with tons of standard equipment and features without costing an arm and a leg. Add in the new Range Rover-like styling both inside and out, it look far more expensive than it will most likely be.

When all is said and done, like the original, the Kia Telluride will remain as one of the greatest automotive bargains of the century.

Silver Kia SUV parked on a gravel road with a lake and snow-capped mountains in the background.

GP100 Winner

2027 Kia Telluride

Specs

Engine	2.5-liter gas turbo-four/gas-electric turbo-four hybrid
Transmission	8-speed automatic (2.5L)/6-speed automatic (2.5L hybrid)
Output	274 hp & 311 lb-ft (2.5L)/329 hp & 339 lb-ft (2.5L hybrid)