Compare the2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee LVS 2024 Kia Telluride

For enhanced safety, the front and middle seat shoulder belts of the Jeep Grand Cherokee L 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 Kia Telluride doesn’t offer height-adjustable middle seat belts.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee L 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 Grand Cherokee L has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints 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 Grand Cherokee L Overland/Summit 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 Grand Cherokee L 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, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive, around view monitors and driver alert monitors.

The Grand Cherokee L’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 Grand Cherokee L for 3 years and unlimited miles. Jeep will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance (up to 3 visits). 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 Grand Cherokee L’s warranty.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Grand Cherokee L has a standard 850-amp battery. The Telluride only offers a 800-amp battery.

The battery on the Grand Cherokee L is under the seat, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the Grand Cherokee L’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Telluride’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

The Grand Cherokee L’s optional 5.7 V8 produces 66 more horsepower (357 vs. 291) and 128 lbs.-ft. more torque (390 vs. 262) than the Telluride’s 3.8 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Jeep Grand Cherokee L V8 is faster than the Kia Telluride:

On the EPA test cycle the Grand Cherokee L 3.6 DOHC V6 4x4 gets better fuel mileage than the Telluride 4x4 (18 city/25 hwy vs. 18 city/24 hwy).

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

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Grand Cherokee L V6’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 Grand Cherokee L has 4.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the Telluride (23 vs. 18.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Grand Cherokee L 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 Grand Cherokee L’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Telluride:

The Grand Cherokee L’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 Grand Cherokee L stops shorter than the Telluride:

For better traction, the Grand Cherokee L has larger standard tires than the Telluride (265/60R18 vs. 245/60R18). The Grand Cherokee L Summit’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Telluride (275/45R21 vs. 245/60R18).

The Grand Cherokee L Summit’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 Grand Cherokee L Summit offers optional 21-inch wheels. The Telluride’s largest wheels are only 20-inches.

The Grand Cherokee L 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 Grand Cherokee L offers an optional 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 Grand Cherokee L offers an available 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 Grand Cherokee L’s wheelbase is 7.5 inches longer than on the Telluride (121.7 inches vs. 114.2 inches).

The Grand Cherokee L’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (50% to 50%) than the Telluride’s (55% to 45%). This gives the Grand Cherokee L more stable handling and braking.

The Grand Cherokee L Overland 4x4 handles at .82 G’s, while the Telluride SX 4x4 pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Grand Cherokee L Overland 4x4 executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.4 seconds quicker than the Telluride SX 4x4 (27.3 seconds @ .61 average G’s vs. 28.7 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Grand Cherokee L Laredo/Limited has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Telluride (8.5 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Grand Cherokee L to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Grand Cherokee L Overland/Summit’s minimum ground clearance is 2.5 inches higher than on the Telluride X-Line (10.9 vs. 8.4 inches).

To almost totally eliminate engine vibration in the passenger area, the Grand Cherokee L has an electronically controlled liquid-filled main engine mount. A computer-controlled electric current in the liquid changes its viscosity, allowing the mount to dampen the engine completely at all RPMs. The Telluride uses conventional solid rubber engine mounts.

The front grille of the Grand Cherokee L 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 Grand Cherokee L 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 Grand Cherokee L has 4.1 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Telluride (159.1 vs. 155).

The Grand Cherokee L’s cargo area provides more volume than the Telluride.

Both the Grand Cherokee L and the Telluride offer second row automatic folding seats. The Grand Cherokee L Overland/Summit’s third row seats also fold up or down at the press of a button. The Telluride doesn’t offer automatic folding third row seats.

Maximum trailer towing in the Kia Telluride is limited to 5000 pounds. The Grand Cherokee L 4x4 offers up to a 7200 lbs. towing capacity.

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

The engine in the Grand Cherokee L 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 Grand Cherokee L Limited/Overland/Summit offers an optional passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position (with optional power wheel adjuster), outside mirror angle and radio stations and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The Grand Cherokee L’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.

On a hot day the Grand Cherokee L’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.

The Grand Cherokee L’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.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the Grand Cherokee L has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Telluride doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Grand Cherokee L Limited/Overland/Summit’s standard 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.

The Grand Cherokee L Overland Lux Tech/Summit 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 Grand Cherokee L Summit’s Parallel and Perpendicular Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Telluride doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee outsold the Kia Telluride by over two to one during 2022.