2023 Kia Telluride vs 2024 Toyota Sequoia

Kia can barely keep up with demand for the Telluride, and its dealers and customers have told the company not to change a single thing, so you’d think it unnecessary for the automaker to invest a single penny upgrading the popular three-row crossover SUV.

Kia would disagree.

This year, the 2023 Telluride gets minor styling changes, new technologies, and some off-roading attitude in the form of new X-Line and X-Pro trim levels. We headed to San Antonio, Texas, to sample the Telluride’s new kit. And we remain impressed with this excellent family-size sport-ute.

The Toyota Sequoia gained a standard hybrid powertrain when it entered its third generation, just last year. While the tech updates were widely celebrated and the facelift considered unobjectionable even by its harshest critics, the move to hybrid power proved to be something of a mixed bag. Increased towing and hauling power bolstered the obvious advantage of improved fuel economy, but impact was somewhat dampened by the reduction in cargo and third-row space to accommodate the new battery.

Verdict: The Sequoia may not be the most capable full-size SUV in the segment, and it’s certainly not the most spacious. It is, however, the only hybrid in its class, and it offers a blend of seating capacity, towing power, and fuel efficiency you won’t find elsewhere—at least, not if you don’t want to go diesel.