2026 Hyundai Palisade Hybrid Calligraphy AWD - Review by David Colman +VIDEO

Luxurious Family SUV With Premium Comfort

David Colman

Photos and Story by David Colman
Special Correspondent
THE AUTO CHANNEL

The 2026 Palisade may look identical to the model Hyundai sold from 2020- 2025, but a significant revamp this year distinguishes this popular full-size SUV from its predecessors. Topping the list of improvements is availability of a Hybrid model. This advance makes the Hybrid the most fuel-efficient Palisade you can buy, with an overall EPA rating of 29 MPG. We tested the top echelon Calligraphy Hybrid. The price ladder for Hybrids starts with the Blue SEL ($45,760), followed by the Blue SEL Premium ($49,120). Next comes the SEL premium ($51,120). Topping the model line are the Limited ($53,590) and the ultra-luxe Calligraphy ($58,780). Our test vehicle's $60,625 sticker included a set of mats ($245) and an Inland Freight and Handling charge of $1,600. That may seem like a lot to those of you who remember Hyundai's cheapie Excel back in the day. But in today's bloated SUV market, the Palisade's actual cash value seems like a comparative bargain.

Today's mid-range ($40-60,000) SUV buyer has become conditioned to accept chain motel interiors framed by acres of shiny black plastic. Those hoping for more inventiveness, more panache, more beauty, will find this Hyundai to be the answer to their prayers. The Palisade's interior is nothing short of sensational, with an endless expanse of Titan/Charcoal Nappa Leather seating on offer. While you can specify a second row bench seat, I would recommend the four primo lounge seats (Hyundai calls them "Restoration Seats") that graced our test rig. These are all adjustable 12 ways from Sunday, heated, ventilated and ultra comfortable thanks to their customization protocol. For the kiddies there's a way-in-the-back triple rear bench. But even steerage class gets heated outboard cushions in row three.

A 24.6-inch-long band of combined digital instrumentation/navigation-radio is fully inset beneath the brow of the dashboard. You'll find no tacky looking afterthought I Pad screens projecting above the dash and blocking your view of the road. Generation 2's instrument panel has been orchestrated from the outset as a single, coherent unit. So exquisitely detailed is the Calligraphy model that Hyundai decided to design, print and supply an informative brochure detailing the special features of this top tier model. I don't recall any other manufacturer going to this length to highlight the benefits of a specific model. During a recent test drive in a competitor's premium SUV, I was miffed to discover NO Owner's Manual at all, let alone a special model-specific pamphlet like Hyundai's.

Aside from sheer opulence - tempered by good taste - the Hybrid version offers enough performance and economy incentives to make it the obvious choice if you're buying a new Palisade. To save money on your initial outlay, you could opt for the newly repowered base model ($48,000), which boasts a 3.5 liter V-6 making 287hp. Unfortunately, that engine fails to compensate for the 411lb. weight gain of this longer and wider second generation Palisade. With a power-to-weight ratio of 17.10lb/hp, the V-6 takes seemingly forever (8.8 seconds) to get to 60mph, and trundles through the standing start quarter mile in 16.3 seconds at 86mph. That kind of performance hardly cuts the Grey Poupon, so you really need to upgrade to the 329hp Hybrid we tested, which drops the 0-60 run to 6.6 seconds and the quarter mile sprint to 15 seconds flat at 95mph. Although the Hybrid makes 339lb.-ft. of torque compared to the V-6's 260lb.-ft., the Hybrid's EV augmentation and all wheel drive limits tow capacity to 4,000lbs. compared to 5,000lbs. for the V-6. Where the Hybrid really shines is the mileage department, returning 30MPG on the highway, and 29MPG around town. Fill the 18.2 gallon fuel tank and you're cruising range is 528 miles.

You will not, however, buy this rig for its handling prowess. At two and a half tons, it's simply too big and too heavy to encourage vigorous driving on back roads. In fact, the Palisade has a way of making you think most roads around town have somehow shrunk in size - when in fact they were never designed for Palisade class vehicles to begin with. The sizeable 265/45R21 Pirelli Scorpion MS radials are mounted on giant 21 x 9J rims which boast a dazzling machine cut spoke pattern. The Scorpions get the job done with brio.

When you climb aboard the "Ergo Motion" driver's seat and fire up the turbocharged inline-4, the first thing you'll do is initiate a search for the starter button. For 2026, Hyundai has inexplicably located this critical item to the stem of the flip/flop shift lever. Maybe you'll get used to its strange position, though I never did. I quickly grew to enjoy the exceptional lateral support of the driver's seat, as well as the simplistic adjustment controls for the external mirrors. The interior rear view mirror also offers a digital format, and either choice works quite well. The icon for the XMSatellite is so small you can't make out who or what's currently playing. Both second and third row seats are controlled with innumerable electric adjustments, including buttons near the rear tailgate to convert the interior into a huge flat storage area. No other company makes this transformation easier than Hyundai. Drop rows 2 and 3 and you've got 87 cubic feet!

2026 HYUNDAI PALISADE HYBRID CALLIGRAPHY AWD

• ENGINE/MOTOR: 2.5 liter turbocharged and intercooled inline-4 + 2 AC Motors
• HORSEPOWER: 329HP
• TORQUE: 339lb.-ft.
• FUEL CONSUMPTION: 29MPG City/30MPG Highway/29MPG Combined
• PRICE AS TESTED: $60,625

HYPES: Perfect Living Room to Tour the USA

GRIPES: A Beast to Park in Town

STAR RATING: 9.5 Stars out of 10

©2026 David E Colman