2023 Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy AWD review

As if the Hyundai Palisade 3-row SUV weren’t snazzy enough, it has been slightly restyled for 2023 to make an already stunning family hauler more eye-popping and safer.

That’s right, this 5-star safety rated SUV adds standard side airbags for rear seat occupants now, while also sprucing up the nose and tail a bit.

Regular readers know that I believe Hyundai and sister company Kia designers already are hitting for power and average with their interior and exterior designs and the new Palisade is a walk-off home run, mic drop kinda SUV, still!

I drove the top-level Calligraphy with AWD, so there’s virtually everything to like, but when I told my wife it was $52,310, she was shocked in a good way. So many of the large luxury trucks now hit $60,000 to $100,000 (I’m looking at you Jeep Grand Wagoneer), that one barely topping $50k seems, well, unlikely.

Know that the average new SUV/truck now costs $55 grand now.

Yet, one can snag a mid-size Palisade SE with front-wheel-drive for just $36,300 and haul eight folks. That’s less cost than most minivans but carrying one additional person. And it’s roomy for all eight.

Naturally, AWD is more popular in our clime, but that adds just $2,000 in any trim, so for less than $40,000 one can slip into the SE or SEL models. That’s value my friends.

New this year is a more rugged (as if that’s needed) XRT model starting at $41,545 including delivery. The XRT adds 20-inch dark alloy wheels, blacked out grille and roof rails, revised bumpers, a power sunroof, and black synthetic leather seats. This blacked out look is a trend across makes now, as I mentioned a few weeks back in my Nissan Rogue review.

Move up to the tested Calligraphy model and you’ll pay $52,095 with delivery. Heck, it’s so well loaded you’ll not add many options. This simply tacked on carpeted floor mats (which should be standard on all vehicles) for $215.

Our eyes tell us it looks great, and if you’ve had one behind you at night you know its unique twin stacked headlight look. So, what about driving it?

The 3.8-liter V6 continues to deliver a strong 291 horses and smoothly via an 8-speed automatic with the Shiftronic feature, which allows a driver to override the automatic with manual shifts. No clutch naturally.

The handling is fairly quick, making it extremely easy to control on the highway and the ride is composed without being plush or floaty. Its long 114-inch wheelbase helps.

For the person who demands choices, there also are five drive modes, Comfort, Eco, Sport, Snow and Smart, which is said to learn your driving style and adjust the shifts to fit your wants and needs. Sport does enliven the acceleration a bit and firms steering too. Yet Comfort was fine 95% of the time.

I mostly engaged Sport when heading onto a freeway as it smooths out initial acceleration, otherwise there’s a bit of a lag when you press the accelerator. That’s not uncommon for vehicles weighing 4,400 pounds or more.

Naturally, using Sport a lot will eat into gas mileage, but as I was cruising in Comfort I managed a pretty impressive 23.9 mpg in about 70% highway driving with up to five (and their luggage) aboard. The EPA rates Palisade at 19 mpg city and 25 mpg highway for AWD models. Front-drive models get one more mpg.

Inside, well you’ll be just as happy here as in any luxury make. The Moonlight Cloud (not white, but dark metallic blue) test SUV featured what it called a light beige Nappa leather interior with grayish fake wood and satin chrome trim. The console is even snazzier with a satin chrome herringbone pattern. The seats were quilted and heated and cooled in the first two rows. Very posh and extremely quiet!

Oh, and the driver’s seat includes a massage feature (3 settings) to help stimulate the wheel handler on a trip and keep them awake.

Overhead is a soft gray simulated suede headliner that helps soak up any excess noise, while up front is a power sunroof and in back a power sunshade over a larger stationary sunroof to provide light to the two rear rows.

Standard also is a heated steering wheel, 360-degree backup camera along with wireless charger in the console and 10.25-inch infotainment screen that’s simple to use.

In fact, the Hyundai dash is so well designed, it’s easy to figure out from the moment a person first sits in Palisade, no fumbling for knobs that aren’t there or scanning vague icons that don’t let you know where to find the heat or radio. Hyundai interiors are among the best designed these days, no matter the price.

The Buttons are all large and logically laid out and the radio tuning is intuitive. No electrical engineering degree or five-day training class is required to learn its intricacies. And Calligraphy comes with a premium Harmon Kardon stereo system including attractive satin chrome-covered door speakers that look as if a jeweler designed them.

Then there’s the digital dash with its turn-signal cameras. What? Flip a turn signal lever and cameras light up in round screens on the instrument panel, one for left turns, one for right, showing you the road and blind spot behind you.

However, that’s just the coolest safety feature. There is a solid package of all the rest you’d expect, like lane departure, smart cruise, blind-spot warning, forward collision avoidance, safe exit, parking sensors and the like.

Also standard are power lowering third row seats, activated via buttons inside the cargo area and its power hatch. Third row seats power down or up, while the second row will power down, but must be manually raised, not a tough task. Also, that third row is fairly roomy, so with the captain’s chairs in the test car seven adults could ride comfortably. Note too that a push button atop the second-row seats, and one on the lower seat side can be pressed to automatically slide the second row seats forward for easy entry and exit of row three.

Another plus, there are air vents overhead for both row two and three and Palisade includes manual side window sunshades for row two.

No real downsides here unless you were hoping for a hybrid model. That’s not available yet, but one would imagine that, or an all-electric version could be coming soon.

As for competitors, well, I feel sorry for them, except maybe the Kia Telluride, which is Palisade’s namesake for its sister brand. Other worthy competitors though include the Toyota Highlander and now Grand Highlander, Ford’s Explorer, Honda’s Pilot, Jeep’s Grand Cherokee L and the Nissan Pathfinder tested here earlier this year.

Hits: Sharp looking SUV, good power, ride and handling, plus AWD and 5 drive modes. Extremely quiet interior and loaded with Harmon Kardon stereo, superior center stack/console design, big screen, heated steering wheel, heated/cooled front seats, massaging driver’s seat, heated second row seats, turn-signal cameras, power hatch, two sunroofs, useful third row seat, wireless charger. Power lower rear two rows of seats.

Misses: Slight acceleration hesitation, except in Sport mode. No hybrid model yet.

Made in: Ulsan, So. Korea

Engine: 3.8-liter V6, 291hp/262 torque

Transmission: 8-speed automatic w/Shiftronic

Weight: 4,423 lbs.*

Wheelbase: 114.2 in.

Length: 196.7 in.

Cargo: 18-46-86 cu.ft.

Tow: 5,000 lbs.

MPG: 19/25

MPG: 23.9 (tested)

Base Price: $52,095 (includes delivery)

Invoice: $50,756

Major Options: Carpeted floor mats, $215

Test vehicle: $52,310

Sources: Hyundai, www.kbb.com, *Car & Driver