Compare the2023 Jeep WagoneerVS 2023 Kia Telluride

The Jeep Wagoneer has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Telluride doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Wagoneer has standard Active Headrests, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Headrests system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Telluride doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Wagoneer Grand helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The Telluride doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the Wagoneer and the Telluride 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive, lane departure warning systems, around view monitors and driver alert monitors.

The Jeep Wagoneer weighs 1370 to 2359 pounds more than the Kia Telluride. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

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

Jeep pays for scheduled maintenance on the Wagoneer for 5 years and unlimited miles. Jeep will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Telluride.

There are over 3 times as many Jeep dealers as there are Kia dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Wagoneer’s warranty.

The Wagoneer’s standard 5.7 V8 hybrid produces 101 more horsepower (392 vs. 291) and 142 lbs.-ft. more torque (404 vs. 262) than the Telluride’s 3.8 DOHC V6. The Wagoneer’s optional 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder produces 129 more horsepower (420 vs. 291) and 206 lbs.-ft. more torque (468 vs. 262) than the Telluride’s 3.8 DOHC V6. The Grand Wagoneer’s standard 6.4 V8 produces 180 more horsepower (471 vs. 291) and 193 lbs.-ft. more torque (455 vs. 262) than the Telluride’s 3.8 DOHC V6. The Grand Wagoneer’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder produces 219 more horsepower (510 vs. 291) and 238 lbs.-ft. more torque (500 vs. 262) than the Telluride’s 3.8 DOHC V6.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Jeep Wagoneer V8 hybrid gas is faster than the Kia Telluride:

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Wagoneer V8’s fuel efficiency. The Telluride doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

Regenerative brakes improve the Wagoneer 5.7 Hemi’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Telluride doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Wagoneer’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Telluride doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The Wagoneer has 7.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the Telluride (26.5 vs. 18.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Wagoneer has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Telluride doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

For better stopping power the Wagoneer’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Telluride:

The Wagoneer’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.

For better traction, the Wagoneer has larger standard tires than the Telluride (275/55R20 vs. 245/60R18). The Wagoneer’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Telluride (285/45R22 vs. 245/60R18).

The Wagoneer’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Telluride S/EX/SX’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Wagoneer offers optional 22-inch wheels. The Telluride’s largest wheels are only 20-inches.

The Jeep Wagoneer’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Kia Telluride only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Wagoneer has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Telluride doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Wagoneer has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Telluride; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

The Wagoneer offers an optional driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Telluride’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Wagoneer’s wheelbase is 8.8 inches longer than on the Telluride (123 inches vs. 114.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Wagoneer is 1.3 inches wider in the front and .7 inches wider in the rear than on the Telluride.

The Wagoneer’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (50% to 50%) than the Telluride’s (55.7% to 44.3%). This gives the Wagoneer more stable handling and braking.

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

For greater off-road capability the Wagoneer has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Telluride (8.3 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Wagoneer to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Wagoneer Air Suspension’s minimum ground clearance is 1.6 inches higher than on the Telluride X-Line/X-Pro (10 vs. 8.4 inches).

The front grille of the Wagoneer uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Telluride doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Wagoneer uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Telluride doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

As tested by Car and Driver while under full throttle, the interior of the Grand Wagoneer Series II is quieter than the Telluride SX 4x4 (74 vs. 75 dB).

The Wagoneer has 24.2 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Telluride (179.2 vs. 155).

The Wagoneer has .4 inches more front headroom, 4.5 inches more front hip room, 4.5 inches more front shoulder room, .3 inches more rear legroom, 5 inches more rear hip room, 4 inches more rear shoulder room, .9 inches more third row headroom, 5.2 inches more third row legroom, 7.9 inches more third row hip room and 9.1 inches more third row shoulder room than the Telluride.

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

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

Both the Wagoneer and the Telluride offer second row automatic folding seats. The Wagoneer’s optional third row seats also fold up or down at the press of a button. The Telluride doesn’t offer automatic folding third row seats.

The Wagoneer’s minimum standard towing capacity is much higher than the Telluride’s (7180 vs. 5000 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Kia Telluride is only 5000 pounds. The Wagoneer offers up to a 10,000 lbs. towing capacity.

The Wagoneer 4WD with optional equipment can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Wagoneer can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Telluride can’t be towed flat on the ground.

The engine in the Wagoneer 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.

Unlike the driver-only memory seat and mirrors in the Telluride SX, the Wagoneer Grand offers an optional passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position, foot pedal distance, outside mirror angle and radio stations and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The Wagoneer’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Telluride does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The Wagoneer’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Telluride’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Wagoneer’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 avoid possible obstacles, the Wagoneer offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Telluride doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Wagoneer’s standard rear view mirror and optional 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.

The Wagoneer has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the Telluride.

The Wagoneer Grand has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Telluride.

The Wagoneer’s optional ParkSense Automated Parking can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling the transmission and speed with the brake pedal. With its available fully controlled system, the driver just activates it and it parks autonomously, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Telluride doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Wagoneer first among large suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Telluride was rated second in its category.