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The Hyundai Palisade's biggest battle has been trying to move out from underneath the Kia Telluride's shadow. The Telluride, upon which we have bestowed many accolades, including multiple 10Best awards, has always had the advantage of locality; it was designed for the U.S. and Canadian markets specifically, while the Palisade was built to appeal to many more markets. For 2026, Hyundai may finally have the Palisade it needs to earn its own spot in the limelight.
You can catch the second generation's redesign from five miles out. The 2026 Hyundai Palisade revels in square braggadocio, teaching ambitious young bricks how to reach their final form. Between this and the Hyundai Santa Fe, as well as Kia's block-fronted crossovers, we wonder how long it will be before South Korea runs low on its supply of rectangles.
And as with the Santa Fe, Hyundai designers let the silhouette speak without much adornment. The daytime running lights at the front corners, stacked and hued like a battery-charge indicator bar, are the boldest flourish. Not only will you not confuse a 2026 Palisade with any previous model year, but you can't lose a 2026 Palisade in a parking lot either. Taillights share the same architecture as the front DRLs, but their demure red hue and layout as a footer for the angled metallic D-pillars convey more grace than audacity.
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Between the extremes, the Palisade relies on a sloping roof and rising accents along the rockers to emphasize converging lines, although the carved arches in the fenders remind us of the Toyota Sequoia. The SEL and Limited trims wear black rocker panels to heighten the illusion of a tapering body. The Calligraphy gets shiny rockers to emphasize luxurious heft, and the off-road-focused XRT Pro trim shows off chunky, embossed rockers.
The top-spec Calligraphy interior impresses not only for its design and materials, but also for its dearth of weak points. Everywhere you look, you find pleasing textures in pleasing shapes. There's luxury you expect to find only in a higher tax bracket, like thick leather stitched over ample padding, adjustable calf bolsters in the first and second rows, and heated third-row seating. Even the ambient lighting is posh; instead of exposed LED strips, interior designers use fixtures as sconces from which light emerges.
The functional touches are there, too, such as the deep cubby in the center tunnel, the separation of the climate-control panel and the infotainment screen, adjustable armrests on the second-row captain's chairs, and a plethora of buttons in the cargo bay for getting the second and third rows to do synchronized dances for loading unwieldy fare. Speaking of which, the 19 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row comes up two cubes short of the previous-generation Telluride; lowering the third row unlocks 46 cubic feet of room, matching the Kia.
The only real misses are also functional. We suspect that Hyundai installed power-operated second-row captain's chairs in the name of luxury. For reasons we're not clear on, button actions to move the chairs aren't intuitive, and worse, the relevant motors move the chairs slowly enough to make a La-Z-Boy recliner seem like a type A go-getter. Those who endure the wait while seeking third-row access will then need to slide through a snug aperture between the seatback and doorframe. The easiest way to reach the third row is to step on the rocker's too-narrow step and walk between the captain's chairs. Owners with the second-row bench won't have that option.
The second-row seats are thoroughly comfortable, but like almost all such captain's chairs we've sampled of late, they're light on real support. The third row welcomes adults for brief journeys, but Palisade owners shouldn't keep grown folks back yonder longer than necessary. The tapered roof eats into headroom, and there's no room to slide one's toes under the second-row seats, which is unfortunate in a row where every millimeter of freedom counts for so much.
For as sumptuous as its cabin is, the 2026 Palisade's true pièce de résistance lives under the hood and floor. An updated version of Hyundai's hybrid powertrain found in the Santa Fe and Tucson, the Palisade's newest motivator combines a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder, two electric motors in the six-speed automatic transmission case, and a small lithium-ion battery with an estimated 0.8 kWh of usable capacity. The Palisade's 329 horsepower and 339 pound-feet of torque are important for two reasons: First, the new Palisade weighs more than the old one (especially with the hybrid hardware bolted on), and second, the nonhybrid V-6 has been downsized from 3.8 liters to 3.5, losing four ponies in the process.
The power gains are paired with better fuel economy. The EPA rates a 2026 Palisade with front-wheel drive and the gas V-6 at 19 mpg in the city, 25 mpg on the highway, and 21 mpg combined—average figures that append an asterisk of mediocrity to the Palisade's great overall package. EPA numbers for the two front-wheel-drive hybrid trims should please every buyer. The Palisade Hybrid FWD Blue SEL (Blue models prioritize fuel economy above all else) is rated at 33 mpg in the city, 35 mpg on the highway, and 34 mpg combined. Hyundai touts a potential range of 619 miles between fill-ups, the number based on the Palisade's 18.2-gallon fuel tank and the Blue's combined economy. The EPA says the standard front-drive hybrid returns 31 mpg city, 32 mpg highway, and 31 combined.
Front-wheel drive isn't the only game in town, though. Buyers can sacrifice a couple of miles per gallon in exchange for all-wheel drive. With four driven wheels, the Palisade Hybrid's estimates land at a solid 29 mpg city, 30 mpg highway, and 29 mpg combined, which still trounces the nonhybrid on paper. That said, we drove a preproduction Palisade Hybrid AWD over nearly 1500 miles, and the overall efficiency our (admittedly heavy) feet mustered was 25 mpg. But in our 75-mph highway fuel-economy test, the Palisade did better, managing 28 mpg. That's still 2 mpg below its EPA highway figure, but enough for 500 miles per tank, slightly below the theoretical maximum range of 528 miles that Hyundai cites. We also tested a production-spec V-6 Calligraphy, and there, our observed economy almost matched the EPA's 20-mpg combined rating.
Those hybrid horses do not go to waste. The Palisade Hybrid uses its hiked-up output to achieve the best acceleration in the lineup. Our 5032-pound test example weighed 130 pounds more than a V-6 Palisade in Calligraphy trim and 240 pounds more than an XRT Pro AWD trim (luxury is heavy). Despite that, the Calligraphy hybrid scooted to 60 mph in 6.6 seconds, beating the V-6 Calligraphy by 1.4 seconds and the XRT by 1.5 seconds. Passing acceleration scored better as well, the hybrid gunning from 30 to 50 mph in 3.8 seconds, and from 50 to 70 in 4.7 seconds, outdoing the V-6 Calligraphy by 0.3 second and 1.1 seconds, respectively. You won't win any cups at the drag strip doing the quarter-mile in 15.0 seconds at 95 mph, but you will beat a V-6 Palisade driver by 1.1 seconds. The Palisade Hybrid needed 172 feet to stop from 70 mph, about the same as the V-6.
The electrified powertrain delivers two more bonus points—one on the go, one when parked. One of the electric motors in the transmission helps power the wheels and handles regenerative braking. Its torque fills in the gaps during acceleration, making for smoother pulls at lower revs compared to the V-6. The other electric motor acts as a starter-generator. When the Palisade is parked, new powertrain programming lets the driver run it on battery power as if killing time in an EV, omitting the need for frequent gas-engine operation when running the climate control, for instance. Drivers can even instruct the car to juice the hybrid battery beforehand for maximum downtime endurance.
None of the upgrades compromises the Palisade's character as an easy cruiser and smooth handler either. As has been the case since the Palisade's introduction, the steering is as precise as it is numb, and the brake pedal is unaccountably light—traits increasingly common to bestsellers in the segment. That's it for flaws worth talking about. A skidpad result of 0.83 g on 265/45R-21 Pirelli Scorpion MS tires beats our result in a V-6-powered 2026 Palisade Calligraphy AWD by 0.01 g. In real-world driving, the hybrid felt easier to hustle, with slightly more body control through corners, abetted by the e-motors' instant torque and seamless power delivery.
The 2026 Hyundai Palisade Hybrid makes generous additions to what was already a compelling feature set. The hybrid starts at $45,760, and every trim level is $2220 more than the equivalent V-6, which makes it a cinch to recommend the more efficient and higher-performance hybrid every time. Adding the hybrid is a smart evolution to keep the Palisade riding the back bumper of its nemesis on the other side of the corporate showroom.
Specifications
Specifications
2026 Hyundai Palisade Hybrid Calligraphy AWD
Vehicle Type: front-engine, front-motor, all-wheel-drive, 7-passenger, 4-door wagon
PRICE
Base/As Tested: $60,380/$60,880
Options: Creamy White Pearl paint, $500
POWERTRAIN
turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 16-valve 2.5-liter inline-4, 258 hp, 260 lb-ft + 2 AC motors, 17 and 72 hp (combined output: 329 hp, 339 lb-ft; 0.8-kWh [C/D est] lithium-ion battery pack)
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
CHASSIS
Suspension, F/R: struts/multilink
Brakes, F/R: 13.6-in vented disc/12.8-in disc
Tires: Pirelli Scorpion MS
265/45R-21 108V M+S PNCS
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 116.9 in
Length: 199.4 in
Width: 78.0 in
Height: 69.5 in
Passenger Volume, F/M/R: 63/58/37 ft3
Cargo Volume, Behind F/M/R: 87/46/19 ft3
Curb Weight: 5032 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS
60 mph: 6.6 sec
1/4-Mile: 15.0 sec @ 95 mph
100 mph: 16.6 sec
120 mph: 29.5 sec
Results above omit 1-ft rollout of 0.4 sec.
Rolling Start, 5–60 mph: 7.1 sec
Top Gear, 30–50 mph: 3.8 sec
Top Gear, 50–70 mph: 4.7 sec
Top Speed (C/D est): 130 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 172 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft Skidpad: 0.83 g
Interior Sound
Idle: 34 dBA/2 sone
Full Throttle: 71 dBA
70-mph Cruising: 67 dBA/22 sone
C/D FUEL ECONOMY
Observed: 25 mpg
75-mph Highway Driving: 28 mpg
75-mph Highway Range: 500 mi
EPA FUEL ECONOMY
Combined/City/Highway: 29/29/30 mpg
