Compare the2023 Chevrolet TraverseVS 2023 Kia Telluride

For enhanced safety, the Chevrolet Traverse’s middle seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Kia Telluride doesn’t offer comfort guides on its middle seat belts.

The Traverse has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Telluride doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Both the Traverse and the Telluride have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, 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 all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

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

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 Chevrolet Traverse is safer than the Kia Telluride:

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

The Traverse’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Telluride’s (6/100,000 vs. 5/100,000).

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

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are better in initial quality than Kia vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet third in initial quality, above the industry average. With 9 more problems per 100 vehicles, Kia is ranked fourth.

The Traverse’s 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 19 more horsepower (310 vs. 291) and 4 lbs.-ft. more torque (266 vs. 262) than the Telluride’s 3.8 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Chevrolet Traverse is faster than the Kia Telluride:

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Traverse’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 Traverse AWD’s standard fuel tank has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Telluride (21.7 vs. 18.8 gallons).

The Traverse 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.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Chevrolet Traverse higher (6 out of 10) than the Kia Telluride (5). This means the Traverse produces up to 6.9 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Telluride every 15,000 miles.

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Chevrolet Traverse, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Telluride.

The Traverse stops much shorter than the Telluride:

For better traction, the Traverse has larger tires than the Telluride (255/65R18 vs. 245/60R18).

The Chevrolet Traverse’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 Traverse 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.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Traverse’s wheelbase is 6.7 inches longer than on the Telluride (120.9 inches vs. 114.2 inches).

The Traverse RS handles at .84 G’s, while the Telluride SX 4x4 pulls only .81 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Traverse RS AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.7 seconds quicker than the Telluride SX 4x4 (27 seconds @ .65 average G’s vs. 28.7 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

The front grille of the Traverse 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 Traverse 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.

The Traverse has 1.9 inches more front headroom, .3 inches more front shoulder room, 1 inch more rear shoulder room, .1 inches more third row headroom, 2.1 inches more third row legroom, 4.8 inches more third row hip room and 2.2 inches more third row shoulder room than the Telluride.

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

The Traverse 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 Traverse can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Telluride can’t be towed flat on the ground.

On a hot day the Traverse’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Telluride can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

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

The Traverse’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.

The Traverse’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.

Insurance will cost less for the Traverse owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Traverse will cost $475 less than the Telluride over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Traverse is less expensive to operate than the Telluride because it costs $36 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Traverse than the Telluride, including $189 less for a muffler, $19 less for a starter, $127 less for front struts and $652 less for a power steering pump.