2020 Hyundai Palisade Review & Test Drive - Hyundai's New Flagship SUV

The lakes and mountains of Idaho make the perfect backdrop to test the 2020 Hyundai Palisade, an eight-passenger, three-row SUV that’s just the right size for family vacations or daily drop-offs. Edmunds special correspondent Elana Scherr puts the Palisade through its paces, testing passing ability, infotainment and cargo space.

How does the Palisade compare to pricier competition from Lincoln or the tried-and-true family haulers from Honda? Overall, the Palisade seems like a great value, especially in the top level trims, offering all the tech, safety, and even luxury of much more expensive SUVs for under $50,000 and including Hyundai’s great warranty.

2020 Hyundai Palisade Review

The Hyundai Palisade is a replacement for Hyundai's current three-row SUV, the Santa Fe. The all-new Palisade boasts a fresh design, advanced technology, and all the convenience features you would expect in a family-friendly vehicle in the midsize-SUV segment.

Hyundai is bolstering the 2020 Palisade's flagship status by loading it with technology features sure to impress even the most finicky family. Front and center is a 10.3-inch central touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with a Bluetooth system that supports two phone connections — one for audio streaming and one for making calls. Up to seven USB ports are available, ensuring that nearly everyone can keep their devices charged at the same time.
The Palisade's tech features also ensure that occupants are kept safe. Numerous advanced safety systems are standard, including blind-spot monitoring, lane centering, and forward collision warning and mitigation. Also included on every Palisade are a driver attention monitor and Safe Exit Assist, which sounds an alert if passengers are in danger of opening the door into an oncoming vehicle. Some trims also come with a sideview camera that activates when the turn signal is flicked on, but we haven't found this feature very useful in other cars.

This especially roomy interior cabin now accommodates 6-foot-tall passengers in any seat. It has 18 cubic feet of cargo space to spare behind the third row or 46 cubic feet with the second row folded. When comparing by the numbers, it's a give-and-take row by row with the segment's roomiest offerings.

But subjectively, the Palisade feels among the most spacious. It distributes its cabin volume well, utilizing smart packaging and design that both frees up storage space and helps emphasize a feeling of interior airiness. One notable example is the new push-button gear selector. It looks elegant, but it also saves a heap of space up front, opening up a large storage area between the front footwells.

Every Palisade is powered by a 3.8-liter V6 producing 291 horsepower and 262 lb-ft of torque, paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission. Front-wheel drive is standard, with Hyundai's HTRAC all-wheel-drive system available as an optional extra. The AWD system gains a snow traction mode this year, which alters torque distribution and engine output to help drivers keep power on the road. There's even a locking differential for increased low-traction control.

Read more about the 2020 Hyundai Palisade: https://www.edmunds.com/hyundai/palisade/2020/

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