Kia has launched production of the 2020 Kia Telluride at its Georgia plant.
Kia recently announced production of the new Telluride at its plant in West Point, Georgia. From here, plant employees will assemble the brand’s largest SUV alongside the Sorento and Optima. The EPA also published official fuel economy figures for the 2020 Kia Telluride. How does it stack up to its three-row competition?
For reference, the only engine option in the 2020 Kia Telluride is a 3.8-liter V6. In either front- or all-wheel drive configurations, it puts out 291 horsepower and 262 lb-ft of torque. That engine comes mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. Pricing starts from $31,690 for a base LX and runs up to $45,490 for a fully-loaded SX.
2020 Kia Telluride vs. the competition: Fuel economy (MPG)
The fuel economy figures below reflect options with the most comparable displacement to the 2020 Kia Telluride. Models like the 2019 Ford Explorer, with smaller turbocharged engines, may represent better fuel economy than what’s listed here.
All figures are listed by their City / Highway / Combined figures in U.S. miles per gallon (MPG). While some 2020 figures are out, most of the cars on this list are 2019 models.
*N/A: Naturally-aspirated
The numbers
| Model | Engine | FWD MPG | AWD MPG |
| ’20 Kia Telluride | 3.8L V6 (N/A) | 20 / 26 / 23 | 19 / 24 / 21 |
| ’19 Chevy Traverse | 3.6L V6 (N/A) | 18 / 27 / 21 | 17 / 25 / 20 |
| ’19 Dodge Durango | 3.6L V6 (N/A) | 19 / 26 / 21 | 18 / 25 / 21 |
| ’19 Ford Explorer | 3.5L V6 (N/A) | 17 / 24 / 20 | 16 / 22 / 19 |
| ’19 GMC Acadia | 3.6L V6 (N/A) | 18 / 25 / 21 | 17 / 25 / 20 |
| ’19 Honda Pilot1 | 3.5L V6 (N/A)1 | 20 / 27 / 23 | 19 / 26 / 22 |
| ’19 Mazda CX-9 | 2.5L I-4 (Turbo) | 22 / 28 / 24 | 20 / 26 / 23 |
| ’19 Nissan Pathfinder | 3.5L V6 (N/A) | 20 / 27 / 23 | 19 / 26 / 22 |
| ’19 Subaru Ascent (Base) | 2.4L H-4 (Turbo) | AWD only | 21 / 27 / 23 |
| ’19 Toyota Highlander (LE) | 3.5L V6 (N/A) | 20 / 27 / 23 | 20 / 27 / 23 |
| ’19 Volkswagen Atlas | 3.6L VR6 (N/A) | 17 / 24 / 19 | 17 / 23 / 19 |
Thanks to their turbocharged engines, the Mazda CX-9 and Subaru Ascent put up the most impressive EPA fuel economy figures in the segment. Older vehicles with aging powertrains, like the Ford Explorer’s Duratec engine, fall to the back of the pack. The 2020 Kia Telluride, however, runs in the middle of the pack on fuel economy. It does manage decent numbers, just falling short of the Honda Pilot and Nissan Pathfinder. Both of those models have similarly-sized V6 engines.
More coming soon
TFL will be driving the 2020 Kia Telluride on the media event later in March. Stay tuned to TFLcar.com for more updates!
