Kia Goes Big With New Telluride PHEV SUV Concept
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At the Kia Motors Press Conference at CES 2016, another sneak peak at what we would later know as the Kia Telluride was thrown onto the screen. The smooth lines and tall stature of the vehicle had everyone wondering what it would be. Electric? Plug-in hybrid? Fully autonomous?
We didn’t have to wait long, as one short week later, Kia pulled the covers off at the North America International Auto Show and revealed it as the Kia Telluride Concept, and the good news is that it is not just the oversized gas-powered SUV that it looks like.
The teaser image had me thinking it was a large SUV. Just another big gasmobile to clutter up highways and lock more drivers into vehicles with terrible mileage, and I was beyond excited when details of the car were shared at the North America International Auto Show (and in corresponding press release), revealing that the concept was, in fact, a plug-in hybrid.
Similar to the recently announced Chrysler Pacifica PHEV, the Kia Telluride Concept is a welcome theoretical entry into the large SUV market that is in need of some EV/PHEV love. While the Kia Telluride is only a concept, it is one more indicator of where Kia leadership sees the brand headed, and Kia has a history of taking concepts from prototype to production quickly, depending on how they are received, so there’s hope for the Telluride.
“The Kia Telluride makes an aesthetic statement for the Kia brand as a bold, all-new luxury SUV with an abundance of advanced technology, focusing particular attention on the experience and comfort of second-row occupants,” said Tom Kearns, chief designer, Kia Design Center America. “Longer, wider and taller than the recently redesigned Sorento CUV, Telluride allows us to envision what a full-size seven-passenger SUV from Kia could look like.”
The Telluride features front and rear doors that open in opposing directions, allowing the cabin to be opened much wider than conventional SUV doors. This makes getting in and out of the SUV much easier and adds a bit of glamour to an otherwise typical SUV.
Opening up the manual of the Telluride reveals a dense array of technology packed into the cabin, starting with the seats. All four seats in the Telluride feature integrated “smart sensors” that capture health information that can then be displayed on the interior door panels. You may be asking what place health sensors have in a car, and Kia has the answer.
Kia has developed a “Light Emitted Rejuvenation” system that emits passenger-specific LED light from an overhead panel specifically tailored to improve passengers’ energy levels and overcome jetlag. The health sensors may be destined to forever remain in concept mode, but it seems plausi
ble that the customized LED lights could be used to help keep a driver awake on late-night drives.
Switching to the user interface, the Telluride includes the new “Swipe Command” interface from Kia. This suite of sensors is integrated with the infotainment system, allowing rear seat passengers to scroll through and select media with a swipe of the hand, bringing Disney magic to life in the form of rear seat gesture recognition wizardry.
The powertrain in the Telluride is a powerful plug-in hybrid electric vehicle powertrain built around a 201 kilowatt V6 gasoline engine paired with a 97 kilowatt electric motor for nearly 300 kilowatts of combined all-wheel-drive power that is expected to achieve 12.68 kilometers/liter of gasoline. Not a mind-blowing efficiency, but a decent rating for a large SUV like the Telluride. No details were shared on the all-electric-range (AER) of the Telluride or the size of the battery.
Images by Kia Motors
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