BRAINS AND BRAWN

VALUE

The Palisade is the biggest SUV in the Hyundai fleet and recently came in for an upgrade that sharpened the look and added more gear. It’s certainly a distinctive look, brimming with chrome and bulging muscles.

Pricing kicks off at about $72,000 driveaway for the Elite with a V6 petrol engine. By the time you get to the Highlander diesel allwheel drive we’ve tested here it’s more like $87,500. But it does come packed with equipment, including head-up display, heated and ventilated front seats, heated steering wheel, double sunroof and Nappa leather trim. There’s also a punchy 12-speaker sound system.

The centre screen has grown to 12.3 inches and it’s matched by a digital instrument cluster of the same size. There’s also a digital rear vision mirror and remote parking system, which allows the car to be driven forward and backward remotely via the keyfob.

COMFORT

There’s loads of space in the Palisade, especially in the first two rows. Ours was the seven-seat model (an eight-seater is a no-cost option) that has two captain’s chairs in the middle row, for more comfort. The third row is easy to get to and can accommodate adults; kids had no qualms with the space. There are roof-mounted vents to all three rows.

The finishes and materials rival some luxury models, with velvety suede headlining, metal speaker grilles and a wood-look strip flowing from the dash to the doors.

There’s also loads of storage space, including a generous centre binnacle and a shelf beneath the floating centre console.

Traditional buttons make selecting major functions easy and the layout is logical and user-friendly.

SAFETY

There’s airbag protection all around, including side curtains that cover all three rows. The recent update also brought a centre airbag to reduce the chances of front occupants clashing heads and “Safe Exit Assist”, which can temporarily stop the doors from being opened to save them getting collected by another vehicle. There’s also a range of driver assist functions, including autonomous emergency braking, rear auto braking, blind-spot warning and a 360-degree camera.

The new model has an emergency call function to notify emergency services after a crash. There’s one area where the tech has gone backwards. though: the speed warning. Inch the gauge 1km/h over the speed limit (the speedo is about 3km/h inaccurate) and four beeps alert you to the indiscretion. Drive into a school zone outside school times and those same four beeps go off again. You can turn it off with a few presses of the screen – in turn losing the information on what the current speed limit is – but then it defaults to on next time you start the car. After a few days we’d had enough.

Long term ownership would be a frustration.

DRIVING

If you want an all-wheel drive model then it comes with the 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel making 147kW and 440Nm.

It’s nicely suited to the sizeable 2070kg body, with ample low-rev grunt to shuffle things along. Freeway cruising is a snip, the eightspeed auto rarely having to drop down more than a ratio or two unless there’s a steep hill.

Twenty-inch tyres are wrapped in low profile rubber, something that makes sharp imperfections that little more noticeable. But the suspension is generally compliant and well controlled, delivering assured cornering for such a big vehicle with a high centre of gravity.

ALTERNATIVES TOYOTA KLUGER GRANDE HYBRID, FROM ABOUT $83,000 DRIVE-AWAY

Thrifty around-town running, although tech is lacking in some areas.

MAZDA CX-9 AZAMI, FROM ABOUT $78,000 DRIVE-AWAY

Hearty four-cylinder turbo works well, although it can be thirsty.

KIA SORENTO HYBRID AWD, FROM ABOUT $75,500 DRIVE-AWAY

Compact four-cylinder turbo engine teams with electricity to provide ample punch.

VERDICT

A serious contender with upmarket finishes, a long list of standard features and a hearty diesel engine.