Compare the2023 Kia TellurideVS 2023 Infiniti QX80

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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Both the Telluride and QX80 have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Telluride 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 QX80’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.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Telluride’s standard Downhill Brake Control allows you to creep down safely. The QX80 doesn’t offer Downhill Brake Control.

The Telluride’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The QX80 doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the Telluride uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The QX80 uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the Telluride and the QX80 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, 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, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia Telluride is safer than the Infiniti QX80:

	Telluride	QX80
OVERALL STARS	4 Stars	3 Stars
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	2 Stars
HIC	281	384
Neck Injury Risk	27%	36%
Neck Stress	275 lbs.	439 lbs.
Neck Compression	32 lbs.	95 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	164/998 lbs.	983/651 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	3 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	1.2 inches
Neck Injury Risk	36%	37%
Neck Stress	131 lbs.	219 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	351/369 lbs.	452/534 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Kia Telluride is safer than the Infiniti QX80:

	Telluride	QX80
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.5 inches	1 inches
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	14 inches	16 inches
Hip Force	640 lbs.	684 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Telluride, with its four-star roll-over rating, is 6.4% to 9.4% less likely to roll over than the QX80, which received a three-star rating.

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 Telluride its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 29 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The QX80 has not been tested, yet.

Warranty

The Telluride comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The QX80’s 4-year/60,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Telluride 4 years and 30,000 miles longer than Infiniti covers the QX80. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the QX80 ends after only 6 years or 70,000 miles.

There are almost 4 times as many Kia dealers as there are Infiniti dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Telluride’s warranty.

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Telluride has a standard 800-amp battery. The QX80’s 780-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Telluride’s reliability 29 points higher than the QX80.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Telluride second among upper midsize suvs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The QX80 isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Infiniti vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 48 more problems per 100 vehicles, Infiniti is ranked 25th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Infiniti vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 83 more problems per 100 vehicles, Infiniti is ranked 23rd.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Telluride gets better mileage than the QX80:

			MPG
Telluride
	FWD	3.8 DOHC V6	20 city/26 hwy
	AWD	3.8 DOHC V6	18 city/24 hwy
QX80
	RWD	5.6 DOHC V8	14 city/20 hwy
	AWD	5.6 DOHC V8	13 city/19 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Telluride uses regular unleaded gasoline. The QX80 requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

Transmission

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the Kia Telluride, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the QX80.

Brakes and Stopping

The Telluride stops much shorter than the QX80:

	Telluride	QX80
70 to 0 MPH	162 feet	185 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	113 feet	130 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	133 feet	155 feet	Consumer Reports

Suspension and Handling

The Telluride SX 4x4 handles at .81 G’s, while the QX80 AWD pulls only .72 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Telluride SX 4x4 executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.3 seconds quicker than the QX80 AWD (27.3 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .57 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Telluride’s turning circle is 2.5 feet tighter than the QX80’s (38.8 feet vs. 41.3 feet).

Chassis

The Kia Telluride may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1550 to 1650 pounds less than the Infiniti QX80.

The Telluride is 1 foot, 1.3 inches shorter than the QX80, making the Telluride easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Unibody construction lowers the Telluride’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The QX80 uses body-on-frame design instead.

The design of the Kia Telluride amounts to more than styling. The Telluride has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .34 Cd. That is lower than the QX80 (.367). A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the Telluride get better fuel mileage.

Passenger Space

The Telluride has 2.5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the QX80 (155 vs. 152.5).

The Telluride has 1 inch more front headroom, 1.8 inches more front legroom, .2 inches more rear headroom, 1.4 inches more rear legroom, 1.3 inches more third row headroom and 2.6 inches more third row legroom than the QX80.

The front step up height for the Telluride is 2.9 inches lower than the QX80 (19.5” vs. 22.4”). The Telluride’s rear step up height is 3.5 inches lower than the QX80’s (19.3” vs. 22.8”).

Cargo Capacity

The Telluride’s cargo area provides more volume than the QX80.

	Telluride	QX80
Behind Third Seat	21 cubic feet	16.6 cubic feet

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Telluride easier. The Telluride’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 30.7 inches, while the QX80’s liftover is 35.8 inches.

The Telluride’s cargo area is larger than the QX80’s in almost every dimension:

	Telluride	QX80
Length to seat (3rd/2nd/1st)	20.4”/49.8”/83.8”	18.4”/48”/81”
Max Width	54.4”	50”
Min Width	43.5”	49.8”
Height	34.5”	36”

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Telluride’s liftgate can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The QX80 doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Ergonomics

The Telluride SX Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The QX80 doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Telluride’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The QX80’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the Telluride and the QX80 have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Telluride is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The QX80 prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Telluride to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The QX80 doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Telluride EX/SX has standard front air conditioned seats and the Telluride SX Prestige also has them in the second row. This keeps the passengers comfortable and takes the sting out of hot seats in summer. The QX80 doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Telluride owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Telluride will cost $1685 to $3745 less than the QX80 over a five-year period.

The Telluride will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Telluride will retain 54.84% to 55.57% of its original price after five years, while the QX80 only retains 44.39% to 44.89%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Telluride is less expensive to operate than the QX80 because typical repairs cost much less on the Telluride than the QX80, including $65 less for a starter and $319 less for a timing belt/chain.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Telluride will be $40118 to $41934 less than for the Infiniti QX80.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® chose the Kia Telluride as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Infiniti QX80 isn't recommended.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Telluride second among upper midsize suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The QX80 isn’t in the top three in its category.

Motor Trend selected the Telluride as their 2020 Sport Utility of the Year. The QX80 has never been chosen.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Telluride as the 2020 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The QX80 has never been chosen.

The Kia Telluride outsold the Infiniti QX80 by almost 14 to one during 2022.

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