1 new inn
2 new grill
3 much larger boot
4 faster acceleration
5 easier gear selection
6 new cabin look
7 less weight
8 serious tech features
The 2018 Kia Telluride isn’t a big hitter in the SUV market, but it’s made some inroads as a sport-utility-like car: It’s bigger than the Jeep Grand Cherokee, for one, and has a more muscular design with more seats than the smaller Jeep.
But if you’re unsure which is the better SUV, Edmunds has a “ten-point test.” One point was the fuel-economy of the vehicles, the next was performance, the next was safety, the next was infotainment, the next was real-estate, the next was interior size, the next was cabin/cluster of digital cameras, the next was speed, and the last was reliability.
So what did Edmunds find, in comparing the two compact SUVs:
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 1.4 litres/100 km combined rating; Kia Telluride: 2.3 litres/100 km combined rating.
• Kia Telluride: 10.4 cubic metres with rear seats up and six-passenger capacity; Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 12.7 cubic metres with rear seats up and seven-passenger capacity.
• Kia Telluride: 160 cubic metres with rear seats up and four-passenger capacity; Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 180 cubic metres with rear seats up and seven-passenger capacity.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 560 kg dry, Kia Telluride: 495 kg dry.
So what else did Edmunds find about the two:
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: Cost $41,395 for the model we tested; Kia Telluride: $44,998 for the model we tested.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: Range Rover Velar-like exterior styling; Kia Telluride: Land Rover Discovery-like interior styling.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: Quiet, comfortable ride; Kia Telluride: Quiet, comfortable ride, creature comforts including touch-screen, driver-assist features (safety and parking sensors, power driver-assist).
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: Nice-feeling ride; Kia Telluride: Depressingly noisy ride.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 5.1-litre V8 engine; Kia Telluride: 5.0-litre V8 engine.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 15.3 seconds from 0-100 km/h; Kia Telluride: 10.7 seconds from 0-100 km/h.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 2.7 litres/100 km average fuel economy; Kia Telluride: 4.8 litres/100 km average fuel economy.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: 6-passenger capacity; Kia Telluride: 7-passenger capacity.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: From test base of $41,195 to the final sticker price of $45,078 for our test model, and $69,395 for the Kia Telluride.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: Optional $740 Wrangler-inspired power sliding door; Kia Telluride: Optional $1,995 second-row captain’s chair.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: $1,920 sport seats; Kia Telluride: $800 rear-seat captain’s chairs.
• Jeep Grand Cherokee L: From test base of $31,092 to the final sticker price of $45,078 for our test model, and $69,395 for the Kia Telluride.
