Compare the2023 Hyundai PalisadeVS 2023 BMW X7

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Hyundai Palisade are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The BMW X7 doesn’t offer height-adjustable front seat belts.

Both the Palisade and X7 have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Palisade has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The X7’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Palisade are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The X7 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Both the Palisade and the X7 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Palisade its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 29 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The X7 has not been tested, yet.

The Palisade comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The X7’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Palisade 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than BMW covers the X7. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the X7 ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 2 times as many Hyundai dealers as there are BMW dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Palisade’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than BMW vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 39 more problems per 100 vehicles, BMW is ranked 15th.

On the EPA test cycle the Palisade gets better mileage than the X7:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Palisade uses regular unleaded gasoline. The X7 requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Palisade is .9 inches wider in the front and 1.1 inches wider in the rear than on the X7.

For better maneuverability, the Palisade’s turning circle is 2 feet tighter than the X7 w/Rear Steering’s (38.7 feet vs. 40.7 feet). The Palisade’s turning circle is 4 feet tighter than the X7 xDrive40i’s (38.7 feet vs. 42.7 feet).

The Hyundai Palisade may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1150 to 1250 pounds less than the BMW X7.

The Palisade is 6.9 inches shorter than the X7, making the Palisade easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Palisade has standard seating for 8 passengers; the X7 can only carry 7.

The Palisade has 4.3 inches more front legroom, 1.2 inches more front shoulder room, .2 inches more rear headroom, 4.8 inches more rear legroom, 2.7 inches more rear shoulder room, 1.2 inches more third row headroom and 7.3 inches more third row shoulder room than the X7.

The front step up height for the Palisade is 2 inches lower than the X7 (18” vs. 20”). The Palisade’s rear step up height is 1 inches lower than the X7’s (19.5” vs. 20.5”).

The Palisade’s cargo area provides more volume than the X7.

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Palisade easier. The Palisade’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 29.6 inches, while the X7’s liftover is 32.5 inches.

The Palisade’s cargo area is larger than the X7’s in almost every dimension:

The Palisade’s liftgate lifts up in one piece, completely out of the way of loading and unloading, while sheltering the cargo loading area. The X7’s tailgate’s top part raises up, but the bottom part lowers, getting in the way of loading and making an uneven surface for sliding cargo.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Palisade has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the X7 only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

Optional air conditioned front and second row seats keep the Palisade’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The X7 doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

The Palisade (except SE) offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The X7 doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Palisade is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The X7 doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Hyundai Palisade and the BMW X7, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Hyundai Palisade outsold the BMW X7 by almost three to one during 2022.