Hyundai Venue vs Toyota Grand Highlander

The 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander was a standout in Toyota's lineup of crossovers and SUVs, offering a range of options from all-gas to hybrid-powered models. Built on the TNGA-K platform, it shared its underpinnings with the regular Highlander, RAV4, Sienna, and Camry, distinguishing itself from the body-on-frame Sequoia. With a length of 201.4 inches and a 116.1-inch wheelbase, it was larger than competitors like the Kia Telluride, providing a spacious interior. Its design, inspired by rugged vehicles, featured a blockier style with a trapezoidal grille and narrow headlights, reminiscent of the 4Runner. The Grand Highlander was available in three trims: XLE, Limited, and Platinum, with interior options ranging from Softex synthetic leather to real leather in higher trims. It boasted features like a 10-way power-adjustable driver seat, heated front seats, and a large center console, making it a comfortable and well-built road-trip vehicle.

In contrast, the 2024 Hyundai Venue was offered in SE, SEL, and Limited trims, with prices ranging from $21,275 to $24,525. The Limited trim, with its Ecotronic Gray paint and carpeted floor mats, brought the MSRP to $24,735. Despite its affordability, the Venue's design was appealing, with a mature and subdued appearance. Inside, it featured hard plastic materials but maintained a sense of style with striped seats and white trim. The digital instrumentation and 8-inch touchscreen infotainment display were highlights, offering modern graphics and logical menu structures. The Venue was thoughtfully designed, with quality finishes and a high level of detail, making it a stylish and high-quality small SUV.

The 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander offered three engine options, starting with a 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine producing 265 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque. For those prioritizing fuel efficiency, a 2.5-liter four-cylinder hybrid option delivered 245 combined net horsepower and 177 lb-ft of torque. At the top, the Hybrid Max powertrain, a 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder hybrid, produced 362 combined net horsepower and 400 combined net lb-ft of torque. Both gas and hybrid engines were available with front-wheel drive (FWD) and all-wheel drive (AWD), while the Hybrid Max was AWD only. The Hybrid Max offered impressive acceleration with a zero-to-60 time of 6.3 seconds. The Grand Highlander was known for its solid brakes and adequate acceleration, though its size made it less maneuverable than smaller models. It featured three drive modes—Sport, Eco, and Normal—with additional modes for AWD models.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue was equipped with a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine producing 121 horsepower and 113 pound-feet of torque. Weighing 2,612 pounds in base SE trim, it was paired with a continuously variable transmission (CVT) that maximized available power. The Venue excelled in city and suburban environments, offering nimble handling and excellent visibility. However, its suspension struggled on rough pavement, resulting in a busy ride quality. On highways, it maintained pace with traffic but sounded harsh under heavy acceleration. The Venue lacked all-wheel drive, with power directed to the front wheels, and offered 6.7 inches of ground clearance. It achieved an EPA gas mileage rating of 31 mpg in combined driving, though our testing averaged 30.3 mpg.

The 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander was notably larger than its rivals, measuring 201.4 inches in length with a 116.1-inch wheelbase. This extra length translated to increased storage space, with a total cargo capacity of 97.5 cubic feet. Behind the second-row seats, it offered 57.9 cubic feet, and with all three rows up, 20.6 cubic feet were available. The Grand Highlander provided ample head, leg, and shoulder room in every row, ensuring comfort for passengers, even in the third row.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue, with its increased ground clearance, offered easy access to the front and back seats. Despite its small dimensions, it provided decent comfort, with a driver's seat featuring a manual height adjuster and a tilt-and-telescopic steering wheel. The front seats had fabric inserts, artificial leather bolsters, and heated cushions. The back seat technically accommodated three people, but two would be more comfortable. Taller passengers might find the hard plastic front seatbacks uncomfortable. The Venue offered limited storage space and lacked rear air conditioning vents. Cargo room was comparable to a compact car, with 18.7 cubic feet available in the trunk and 31.9 cubic feet with the back seat folded down.

The 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander came with a 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system, a significant improvement over previous models. An intelligent assistant, available via a connected-services subscription, responded to voice commands for tasks like adjusting temperature and changing radio stations. The subscription also included cloud-based navigation and live agent assistance. Standard features included dual-device Bluetooth connectivity, wireless Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto. The Limited and Platinum trims featured an 11-speaker JBL stereo. Streaming audio integration and Sirius XM satellite radio were available, with a three-month trial. Toyota's tech offering had improved, but careful consideration of subscription options was recommended.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue featured an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment display with modern graphics and logical menu structures. Standard features included Bluetooth connectivity, wireless Apple CarPlay, wireless Android Auto, Bluelink connected services, and a six-speaker sound system. The Venue Limited added a navigation system, SiriusXM satellite radio, a wireless smartphone charger, and Bluelink+. However, the upgraded system required wired connections for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, making the wireless charger less useful. Despite this, the Venue Limited's infotainment system was sophisticated, with an impressive native voice recognition system.

The 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander had not yet been crash-tested by the NHTSA or IIHS. However, it came with Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 (TSS 3.0) as standard, including automatic emergency braking, lane-departure alert with steering assist, lane-tracing assist, road-sign recognition, and blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert. Adaptive cruise control was also standard, offering four following-distance settings.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue featured Hyundai SmartSense, including forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, a driver monitoring system, and a rear-seat reminder system. The Venue SEL added blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, and the Limited trim included cyclist detection. The Venue lacked adaptive cruise control and lane-centering assist. The IIHS rated the Venue with Good ratings in three crash tests and an Acceptable rating for the Limited trim's LED headlights. The NHTSA gave the Venue an overall rating of four stars.