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- Great second row amenities including ceiling vents, sunshades, USB ports
- Four cupholders within reach of the driver
- Best in class second row leg room
The Exterior
I’ll say it right away: the Telluride is one of the best-looking SUVs on the road.
The bold front grille with “Telluride” spelled out gives major confidence, and the chrome accents are just enough without being overdone. The body lines are clean and strong, and overall it gives me serious Range Rover energy... without the luxury price tag.
You’ll often hear the Telluride compared to the Hyundai Palisade, and that makes sense—they’re basically fraternal twins. They function identically for families but have a different look and vibe.
First Row
From the driver’s seat, the Telluride feels incredibly well thought-out.
- Supportive, comfortable seats with lumbar adjustment
- Leather-wrapped steering wheel with a great feel
- Clean, intuitive layout
This interior is designed for real life.
- Wireless charging pad for your phone
- Four cupholders within reach of the driver (yes, FOUR 🙌)
- Large center console
- Multiple USB ports + 12V outlet
There’s also Kia’s fun tech:
- Passenger Talk (talk to kids in the back without turning around, love this)
- Quiet Mode (mutes rear speakers so you can listen to podcasts while kids sleep)
- Sounds of Nature (cool idea… rainy sounds might be risky with potty-training toddlers 😅)
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come standard, which is what most parents are using anyway.
Second Row
I normally prefer a bench seat to captain's chairs but in the Telluride... SKIP THE BENCH. Its only available on the lowest trim and it has really bad seatbelt overlap making it impossible to properly install multiple carseats. But the good news is, the captain's chairs are great.
With captain’s chairs, legroom is fantastic—even with the driver’s seat set for my height (I’m about 6 feet tall).
Second-row highlights:
- Ceiling vents + climate controls
- Sunshades on both sides
- Two USB ports per seat (YES)
- Comfortable seating
Car Seat Setup
There are lower anchors and tether anchors in both captains chairs so you can safely put two rear or forward facing car seats in the second row. In the third row there is one set of lower anchors on the driver’s side so you could put two rear-facing car seats back there either using the seat belts or one using the lower anchors. There are also 2 tether anchors in the third row, but, and this is a big but, the 2 tether anchors are next to each other and like I said before, the middle seat is super narrow so really there is only room for one forward facing car seat in the third row. This means you can fit at most 3 forward facing car seats in this car. Another thing to note, is this car does not have the car seat tilt so if you have the bench seat with rear facing car seats on either outboard seat there is no way to get to the third row.
Important note: In the second row, the buckles are rigid and slightly recessed!!! Use our booster recommendations (found at bottom of page).
Third Row
The Telluride's third row is pretty good!
- Knees don’t touch even with minimal legroom
- USBs, vents, lighting, and cupholders back there
- Easy access with a simple button kids can use themselves
HOWEVER, the middle seat of the third row is so small its essentially useless. No one and no carseat is fitting in that seat. The Telluride is a 6 passenger car in my eyes.
Trunk
With the third row up, cargo space is better than many competitors—and yes, the Vista stroller fits with a little rearranging.
There’s also:
- Under-floor storage (perfect for emergency clothes or hiding gifts)
- Trunk lighting
- Buttons in the cargo area to fold seats
Safety
The 2021 Kia Telluride is an IIHS Top Safety Pick. It also comes equipped with a comprehensive suite of Kia Drive Wise driver assistance technologies including forward collision-avoidance, blind-spot monitoring, lane-keeping assist, and rear cross-traffic alert
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