The 2024 Hyundai Palisade Is Fun To Drive While Being Practical

With a demanding job and overtime hours, it's hard to make time for personal interests. The world of cars isn't too different either. When needs are low, you can focus on fun. But three-row crossovers have to satisfy giant obligations at a price that real people can afford. There's room for couches, not character, but a few models try to turn the tables, including the Hyundai Palisade. 

In fact, we think you could make the argument that this is the best all-around three-row crossover. It simultaneously pushes boundaries but also plays it safe in the right areas. There are endless features, yet there are physical controls. It has a luxurious and modern theme yet a traditional, naturally aspirated V6 and a torque converter automatic transmission. And my favorite part is that this doesn't drive big. The steering, the view outward, and its relatively trim weight keep this feeling tidy, an exceptional attribute when most of its competitors have the onroad skills of an inebriated deer. 

Exterior Of The 2024 Hyundai Palisade

Now, this is normally the part where we would say at a cost, but this is Hyundai that we're talking about. It starts out at a competitive upper 30s price tag, packing standard crispy LED headlights and proximity entry. A hands-free power tailgate will come on most, and just with the SEL Premium, you'll have a 360-view camera, something we would advise with a three-row crossover. But if you're looking for more of a party trick, Hyundai will let you move the Palisade with the key on the most exclusive specs. While we've mostly used it to make ourself feel important, it does have some practical usage, like if you're outside of the car and you realize you parked way too far back or forward, it's a nice touch. 

Something that's also limited to the Calligraphy models is this robust Emerald color, which looks gorgeous in any lighting. The Palisade itself uses a striking front-end design with enough grill to feed the family and a shape that blends into the crowd. It's a practical family vehicle with a hint of class. If you want something more rugged, you can get the XRT. However, just like a raccoon with a hat, that is purely an appearance package, though it will make some people happy. 

Modern Yet Functional Interior Design

On the inside, the Palisade nails each of the major parts that make a great crossover, but in typical Hyundai fashion, they got a little goofy. The design is modern yet functional, with a sweeping, techy dashboard and physical controls. Most of your buttons and high-traffic areas are matte-finished, so they won't garner as many fingerprints and scratches. 

In places that you actually interact with, like where your elbows and knees lie, you'll find soft-touch materials. While the plastic used won't have you confusing this for a luxury car, the stitching and perforation of these leather accents look upscale, as do the metal speaker grills. The seats may put a chiropractor or two out of business; they are so well shaped, they're plush everywhere, down to even the headrest. Even at 6'3, I have no problems with support. 

Filled With Features

If you go up to a Limited trim, you can actually get a power extendable thigh cushion for the driver, and the Calligraphy will have something called Ergo Motion, which can massage you or sporadically contort your back on the highway if you want it to. And Hyundai didn't skimp out on other features either. You have a 12-speaker Harman Kardon sound system that provides pretty crisp clarity at high volumes and a good base relative to the segment at SEL Premium, a trim that will cost you just 47 grand with all-wheel drive.

The rest of the features aren't impressive; they're absurd. So a lot of Palisades will not just have heated and ventilated front seats; they'll have that in the back too. In fact, you can get a heated third row with the Limited trim. A head-up display, a 150-watt wall outlet, Nappa leather, and a suede headliner are all on the options list too. Like some others in the class, a digital mirror is available, but you can actually get auto-dimming exterior mirrors as well, something that's usually reserved for luxury cars. It also wouldn't be a family ride if you didn't have a dad mirror or enough storage to transport kilos of goldfish and handbags.

Not Everything Is Perfect

So this is perfect? No, because this is Hyundai, they got to screw up a few of the more simple things, like the climate controls. We have the physical dials, and we're thankful. We have a couple buttons too, but they put the screen at a bad angle. A lot of times, the glare makes it hard to see what's being displayed, and that's also where you change the direction of the air flow. 

And because this now uses Hyundai's larger infotainment system as standard, it doesn't have wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, despite also having a wireless charger that actually works. The resolution of this system is good. We find the digital gauge cluster to be easy to use, but the touchscreen response time is unimpressive. To be fair, these are the lowest points of the interior, yet we would hardly label them a nuisance.

Comfort and Practicality In The Rear Seats

One of my favorite parts about the Palisade is actually the back seat, because not only does it retain the nice materials and look, you also keep your great thigh support. and with your adjustable armrest and the winged headrests of the Calligraphy, you can really relax. Plus, a panoramic sunroof only adds to the ambiance. All in a car that doesn't get anywhere close to 60 grand. And if you're wondering, you can get a bench seat, but only on the lower trims. Rear HVAC controls, an abundance of vents, and USB ports are standard, the latter of which can be expanded to the third row.

Now the real question is: can I fit behind myself? So I'll adjust my seat a little bit, use the electronic releases that are available, and jump on back. You know there are worse cars in the segment, but there's still not a whole lot of dignity in this. Nonetheless, it's more than enough for kids, and so long as the front two rows are willing to compromise a little bit, you can fit adults that are over 6 feet in each row and still retain decent comfort. 

The seats in the rear offer relatively good support and enough headroom with the ability to recline. So even somebody my size would be okay back here, and while there are some other nice amenities that you can get, everything is cheap plastic, like you would expect.

Trunk Space

The trunk of the Hyundai Palisade is on par with the class. It's long, it's got decent width and height, and it has good underfloor storage with a spare tire underneath. and we like that the power rear gate opens and shuts with haste.

Offers A Smooth Ride And Handles Surprisingly Well

A naturally aspirated V6 and a traditional 8-speed automatic transmission are key to the Palisades refined driving demeanor. With 3.8L, it turns out 291 horsepower and makes the Palisade spry. The transmission doesn't exactly like to be hustled, but it did 0–60 mph in 6.9 seconds with no wheel spin. While it needs to be in the mid- to upper RPM range to be potent, the transmission has zero qualms with downshifting, and at any legal speed, the passing power is more than sufficient. 

The seamless takeoffs, shifts, and quick reaction time without any gear hunting are equally, if not more, important, and this powertrain provides all of that. Now, its first priority is not gas mileage. I've averaged about 20 miles per gallon. The EPA says on the highway you'll get about 25, and that's a little bit behind some competitors.

When it comes to the all-wheel-drive system, it's also pretty straightforward. You have Hyundai's H track system, which does allow you to lock the center differential, which basically means it's going to force the rear axle to actually put in effort. It can send about 50% of torque to the rear. It can break vectors to send torque to either side and should be fine for snowy occasions, but in that field, something like the Honda Pilot or Subaru Ascent will have an advantage.

Over a sickening Indiana back road, the Hyundai Palisade doesn't exactly sail over everything, but the ride remains smooth over repeated bumps. Over the worst stuff, we would still consider it forgiving, just maybe not the most well-insulated in the class. However, it does have rear leveling shocks, which is an interesting addition. It's not any form of air ride; it doesn't require any compressors. Instead, they're just big shocks designed to level the vehicle out when you're hauling a lot of people or stuff. 

Now, having a smooth ride is important, but what makes this stand out is, honestly, how it handles. Throwing it around any corners, whether they're smooth or not, feels planted. And on top of that, the steering is accurate and has a more natural feel than most of its competitors that we've driven. There's not going to be a lot of feedback pumped through the wheel, but it's more about how the weight builds up in corners, and it also feels fairly sharp on center; there's not a bunch of vagueness. It's by no means as athletic as a Mazda CX90 or as engaging to drive. 

There's also a pretty solid amount of body roll, but it's predictable and car-like in a way that we really would not expect for a vehicle of this size. The windshield is close to me, and the windows are large, so it's easy to see out of the side. Including all of its competitors, we think this is the easiest car to drive. and when you combine that with the extremely comfortable seats, this becomes an awesome family vehicle, not just for trips around town but even cross-country journeys. and it's also safe, according to the IIHS. 

Safety And Reliability

You're going to have excellent driving AIDS as standard, including adaptive cruise control on lane centering, with Hyundai's HDA 2 improving this even more on high trims. But one area that Hyundai hasn't performed consistently in is reliability. Thankfully, the Palisade has been all right. Owner reviews on cars.com are generally positive, and Consumer Reports actually puts this ahead of many of its competitors. 

However, over the course of this generation, people have run into things like easily cracking windshields, bearing failure within the steering column, those rear leveling shocks that were known to go bad prematurely, and windshield wiper issues of all things. Other small problems with the climate system and brakes have affected some, but recalls have solved most other things quickly. Some people have reported oil consumption, but thankfully in small numbers compared to what we've seen from the brand in the past. That all said, we wouldn't be afraid to recommend this to someone who values reliability but doesn't expect the full Toyota experience just yet.

Final Thoughts

In the world of consumer crossovers, Honda and especially Mazda reign supreme as the fun options. Many of their offerings are playful, or at least feel natural, and communicate some of the road back to you. The Hyundai Palisade has some of that spice. No, it's not all that entertaining to drive, but it feels like a car, and that helps me forget that I'm driving a vehicle for people with countless responsibilities. 

To the general public, crossovers, minivans, and the like are appliances. The most important question might be: can it do what you want it to do? Is it comfortable, affordable, easy to live with, and aesthetically pleasing to some degree? Everything else might be seen as tiebreaking attributes. When looking at a three-row crossover, this sensible machine approach is even more prominent. 

Many brands invest all of their efforts into the traditionally valuable traits of families and place less focus on the driving experience and character of the car. There are exceptions to this, like the Mazda CX90, but that makes a couple of other tradeoffs. The Hyundai Palisade is an upscale family vehicle with thoughtful versatility and endless features, yet it doesn't just cater to the needs of its passengers. While it might not be important to everyone in this kind of class, if you want to look forward to driving but are seeking maximum practicality, we can't think of a better option than the Hyundai Palisade. Unless the Honda Odyssey is on the table.