Compare the2023 Subaru AscentVS 2023 Kia Telluride

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Ascent have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Kia Telluride doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

The Ascent has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Telluride doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Ascent. But it costs extra on the Telluride.

Both the Ascent and the Telluride have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, around view monitors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

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

	Ascent	Telluride
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	190	281
Neck Injury Risk	21%	27%
Neck Stress	229 lbs.	275 lbs.
Neck Compression	8 lbs.	32 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	159/292 lbs.	164/998 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	210	378
Neck Injury Risk	33%	36%
Leg Forces (l/r)	35/30 lbs.	351/369 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 Subaru Ascent is safer than the Kia Telluride:

	Ascent	Telluride
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	37	41
Chest Movement	.5 inches	.5 inches
Abdominal Force	73 lbs.	93 lbs.
Hip Force	274 lbs.	440 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	81	137
Spine Acceleration	27 G’s	47 G’s
Hip Force	346 lbs.	449 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	149	450
Spine Acceleration	52 G’s	52 G’s
Hip Force	637 lbs.	640 lbs.

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

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Subaru Ascent is safer than the Telluride:

	Ascent	Telluride
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Torso	GOOD	GOOD
Torso Max Deflection	.98 in	1.18 in
Pelvis	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE
Pelvis Force	915 lbs.	1026 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Torso	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Torso Max Deflection	1.18 in	1.46 in
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Pelvis Force	201 lbs.	491 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD

Warranty

The Ascent’s 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Telluride runs out after 100,000 miles.

Reliability

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 2 places higher in reliability than Kia.

Engine

The Ascent’s 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder produces 15 lbs.-ft. more torque (277 vs. 262) than the Telluride’s 3.8 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Subaru Ascent is faster than the Kia Telluride:

	Ascent	Telluride
Zero to 60 MPH	6.9 sec	7.2 sec
Quarter Mile	15.2 sec	15.4 sec

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Ascent lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability without compromising ground clearance. The Telluride doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

Fuel Economy and Range

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

			MPG
Ascent
	AWD	2.4 turbo flat-4	20 city/26 hwy
		Limited/Touring/Onyx 2.4 turbo flat-4	19 city/25 hwy
Telluride
	AWD	3.8 DOHC V6	18 city/24 hwy

Transmission

The Ascent has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Telluride doesn’t offer a CVT.

Brakes and Stopping

The Ascent’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Telluride are solid, not vented.

The Ascent stops much shorter than the Telluride:

	Ascent	Telluride
70 to 0 MPH	176 feet	177 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	114 feet	126 feet	Motor Trend

Suspension and Handling

The Ascent’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (54.2% to 45.8%) than the Telluride’s (55.7% to 44.3%). This gives the Ascent more stable handling and braking.

The Ascent Touring handles at .80 G’s, while the Telluride SX 4x4 pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Ascent Touring executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.5 seconds quicker than the Telluride SX 4x4 (27.2 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 28.7 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Ascent’s turning circle is .8 feet tighter than the Telluride’s (38 feet vs. 38.8 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Ascent has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Telluride (8.7 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Ascent to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Ascent’s minimum ground clearance is .3 inch higher than on the Telluride X-Line/X-Pro (8.7 vs. 8.4 inches).

Chassis

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Ascent Limited is quieter than the Telluride SX 4x4:

	Ascent	Telluride
Full-Throttle	70 dB	75 dB
70 MPH Cruising	64 dB	67 dB

Passenger Space

The Ascent has .3 inches more front headroom, .8 inches more front legroom, .3 inches more third row legroom, 2.2 inches more third row hip room and 1.9 inches more third row shoulder room than the Telluride.

The front step up height for the Ascent is 1.8 inches lower than the Telluride (17.7” vs. 19.5”). The Ascent’s rear step up height is 1.2 inches lower than the Telluride’s (18.1” vs. 19.3”).

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Ascent is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Telluride. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Ascent’s available exterior PIN entry system (not available on Ascent Base). The Telluride doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Ascent’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Telluride’s standard projector halogen headlights and light instantly. LED lights also last over twenty times longer than halogen.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Ascent has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Telluride doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Ascent’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Telluride offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Ascent owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Ascent will cost $370 to $2300 less than the Telluride over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Ascent is less expensive to operate than the Telluride because it costs $181 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Ascent than the Telluride, including $46 less for a water pump, $398 less for a muffler, $74 less for front brake pads, $166 less for fuel injection, $130 less for a fuel pump, $688 less for a timing belt/chain and $917 less for a power steering pump.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Subaru Ascent will be $2142 to $2570 less than for the Kia Telluride.