The Kia Telluride is one of the newest SUV models on the market today, and it’s already made a big splash. Car reviewer after car reviewer has left a positive review on the Telluride, and those reviews really hype the vehicle up. But nothing is perfect, so Car and Driver tried to see if there was anything at all that was wrong with the Telluride.

The 10,000-mile test drive

As Car and Driver does with many cars, it took the Telluride on a 10,000-mile test drive to see what owning the Telluride would be like for the average customer. And, as Car and Driver admitted, even after 14,000 miles, Car and Driver couldn’t find anything terribly wrong with the Telluride. It simply lived up to the hype. 

That said, Car and Driver’s team of reviewers did manage to find three minor issues with the Telluride. Those three criticisms came from one reviewer. He said that, first, the Telluride’s rear wiper doesn’t have a wide enough spray pattern to clean the rear glass. Second, if you use the rear-climate button, you then have to use the touchscreen to adjust its setting. Lastly, the way the tailpipe is positioned makes it seem like you chose the base engine.

That’s it; those were the only criticisms of the Telluride that Car and Driver’s harshest critic could come up with. And, like Car and Driver said, even after that critic made those complaints, he still praised pretty much every other aspect of the Telluride. It simply is that good of an SUV.

The Kia Telluride has no major flaws

The rest of Car and Driver’s 10,000-mile review for the Telluride was full of praise. For example, one critic took the Telluride on a 1,300-mile road trip and averaged a cruising speed of about 80 MPH. Despite that, though, Car and Driver says that the Telluride actually beat the EPA’s estimated fuel economy. The EPA says that the Telluride gets about 24 mpg, while that Car and Driver reviewer averaged 25 mpg.

On top of that, after over 10,000 miles on the road, the Telluride had no reliability issues, according to Car and Driver. Car and Driver only spent $161 to get the Telluride its routine maintenance. In terms of other potential costs, Car and Driver didn’t experience any wear and tear or repair costs. 

To put it simply, as Car and Driver said, “We have failed. The Telluride has not.” 

Why the Kia Telluride is such a great vehicle

Obviously, the people at Kia just made a great car, and that’s why the Telluride is so good. But furthermore, the Telluride offers a lot for its price tag. The Telluride is an SUV with third-row seating, so it’s a very roomy SUV that can seat many people and hold a lot of stuff to begin with. Kia also offers plenty of trims and options for the Telluride, but even the basic Telluride has a great interior.

The Telluride does only have one engine option, and that’s a 3.8-liter V6 that generates about 291 hp. It’s not the most powerful engine, but as far as Car and Driver and every other reviewer are concerned, it’s a really great engine in every other area. Furthermore, compared to its competitors, the Telluride is pretty affordably priced as it starts at about $32,000. 

That said, very few cars are truly issue-free if you put enough miles on them. That’s why Car and Driver is now going to do a 40,000-mile test drive of the Telluride. Despite those additional miles, Car and Driver still predicts that the Telluride will perform well.