2026 Hyundai Palisade XRT PRO AWD - Review by David Colman

Great enough to score a 9 of 10, but there’s a couple of quirks.

David Colman

Story and Photos by David Colman
Special Correspondent
THE AUTO CHANNEL

After only a brief tenure seated in the XRT PRO AWD version of Hyundai's 2026 Palisade, I managed to commit two successive ownership misdemeanors. Looking to stow my sunglasses in the generally accepted overhead compartment, I pushed what appeared to be a release button. Suddenly, the instrument panel beamed with red emergency messaging and a voice of doom intoned through all 10 Bose Premium Audio speakers: "Please State Your Emergency!" Oops ... I guess that wasn't the eyeglass storage bin after all. Only then did I note a tiny red "SOS" notation inscribed on the underside of the panel.

After a couple of embarrassing moments, the alert thankfully subsided. That gave me enough time to examine a fascinating booklet entitled "Hyundai's Matte Paint Care Guide." My test SUV was finished in an impressively handsome shade of flat paint called "Earthy Brass Matte." This color mandated a separate booklet dedicated to the proper care and feeding of flat paint finishes. A hard card entitled "Matte Finish Paint Customer Acknowledgment" read: "This document must be reviewed and signed by the customer at purchase. This insert must be signed at the time of vehicle sale. A signed copy must be kept in the sales jacket, attached to the sales contract."

Of course, this being a press review Hyundai, nothing had been signed. So my test XRT was in essence a rogue vehicle, with its Earthy Brass Matte paint free to oxidize and discolor without official supervision. Ten minutes in the driver's seat and I was not only guilty of instigating a false SOS signal, but also ready to be cuffed and taken away for failure to sign the Palisade's binding paint pledge.

Thankfully, the rest of the week with this honkin' big brute of an SUV went off without incident. A couple of weeks back we tested the Palisade Calligraphy, a super luxurious version of the same basic package. That model made no claims to off-road capability, but instead concentrated on providing supreme paved road comfort. The XRT PRO AWD, on the other hand, reshuffles the Palisade's deck to prioritize trail capability over paved road usage. To that end, Hyundai engineers increased the ground clearance of the XRT to 8.4 inches - a full inch higher than the standard Palisade. Front and rear bumpers of the XRT have been redesigned to afford more obstacle clearance in off-road situations. This revision increases approach angle to 20.5 degrees, departure angle to 22.4 degrees, and breakover to 18.3 degrees.

An important component of the XRT's traction portfolio is a new electronically controlled limited-slip differential which simulates the operation of a mechanical LSD in low-traction settings. But unlike a mechanical unit, the XRT's e-diff requires no periodic check or servicing. To take full advantage of this SUV's grunt in the outback, Hyundai has equipped it with 8.J x 18-inch alloy rims shod with 255/60 R18 Continental Cross Contact ATR radials. The understated wheels are specific to this model, with subtle "XRT" inscriptions in the center caps. A quartet of bright orange tow hooks are mounted at each corner of the SUV to facilitate rescue operations in the outback. With its foreboding matte brass finish and understated flat black trim details, the XRT certainly looks the part of a stealthy badland cruiser.

While the matte paint, dark exterior badging and predominantly black rims are appropriate public dress for the XRT, the same funereal treatment doesn't work quite so well inside this truck's spacious cabin. Everything from the 12.3-inch instrument panel, to the 12.3-inch infotainment panel is black, as are the door panels, the leather seats, the carpeting and the headliner. Unless you're a black fanatic, you will find the XRT's chosen interior treatment to be both boring and enervating. Hyundai's interior design team would do well to take a close look at the interior of the competition. The interior of the similarly sized and priced Honda Passport Trailsport I recently drove was full of intriguing color detail that is sadly absent from the XRT Palisade.

However, this is not to say that the interior of the XRT is unlivable. Far from it. Both front row chairs are fitted with every power adjustment imaginable, including lumbar support. These front seats, as well as the separate pair of chairs in row two, replicate the level of seating you experience in airline business class. There's a coach class bench seat for the kids in Row 3, but when not in use, you can collapse it to create 46 cubic feet of interior storage space behind rows one and two. Our only complaint about instrumentation involves the haptic actuation of the climate control system. This control panel offers only the tiniest unlit icons to differentiate selections. You must hunt for them while diverting your eyes from the road.

2026 Hyundai Palisade XRT PRO AWD

• ENGINE: 3.5 liter V6, DOHC 24-valve, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection
• HORSEPOWER: 287hp@6400rpm
• TORQUE: 260lb.-ft.@5000rpm
• FUEL CONSUMPTION: 16MPG City, 22MPG Highway/19MPG Combined
• PRICE AS TESTED: $51,110

HYPES: Capable in the Outback, but also Pavement Perfect

GRIPES: Real Buttons for HVAC Needed

STAR RATING: 9 Stars out of 10

©2026 David E Colman