Many cars were launched in the past with one simple task, which was to dethrone the Toyota Fortuner from the D2 SUV segment. And as history states, each and every car which came in, 90% of those went empty handed. It is nearly impossible now for any brand to get something worthy enough, strong enough and promising enough to take on the mighty Toyota Fortuner. Though it is not as difficult as it sounds because the Toyota Fortuner packs a lot of flaws with it and if the brands work smart enough, they could get the Fortuner out of the league like the Ford Endeavour almost did! And we think Hyundai is actually up to this task!

Hyundai recently launched the 2023 avatar of the Palisade with minimal facelift. Though it has received some minor changes, still these changes are enough to bring down the Fortuner from where it stands today. Let’s talk about the 2023 Hyundai Palisade.

About

2023 Hyundai Palisade sits in the D2 SUV segment. To be more precise, If the palisade were on sale in India today, It would have placed above the Hyundai Tucson. Therefore, it would have competed with the likes of the Toyota Fortuner and the MG Gloster.

Exterior Design

The Front

The Front of the Palisade includes boxy dechromed elements like in the Hyundai Tucson. These elements run throughout the front grille till the start of the hood connecting themselves to the LED DRLs. A big Hyundai logo has been stocked in the front grille. The LED DRL has a curved - long - broken strip which includes itself in the side cladding from the Front bottom.

The Side

The side of the Palisade is long and has an attractive design which suits the overall appeal of the car. The wheel cladding is small though the muscular design of the metal sheet above the plastic cladding makes the vehicle to have a big cladding. The Alloy wheel design comes with few iterations to suit the SUV quotient of the car. The Upper half of the side profile looks heavily inspired by a few American Full - Size SUVs like the Cadillac Escalade, especially, the C-pillar format makes it gain inspiration from the American SUVs.

The Rear

The rear of the car looks stylish with an inclusion of smart design elements. It looks short-heighted just like the Fortuner though boxy. The Rear-view window is small which provides more body space for the rest of the rear, ultimately, It gets the typical SUV stance from the rear fascia as well. The tail lights are small and are designed in a split format unlike the current trend going on in various SUVs. Though the design element placed beside the tail light adds a smart look overall at the rear.

Interior

The Interior vibe is bright and lively. The use of white color can be seen throughout the interior. It enhances the airiness of the cabin and gives a sense of space to us.

The Dashboard has a simple and luxurious look to it. The use of material is top-notch. The Screens on use both in the Infotainment system and Driver’s display are big enough and feature loaded. The Driver’s display is the same available in the Hyundai Alcazar and Hyundai Tucson. They are sleek to use as well. The roof has been wrapped with rich Alcantara material, which is mostly used in luxurious vehicles.

The car comes in a 7 - seater format with Captain seats in the middle row and a bench seat to accommodate 3 people in the third row - in a combination of 2 mid-sized adults and a child.

Hyundai went in a different direction in terms of the Sunroof affair. Instead of offering a Panoramic Sunroof, Hyundai rather offered 2 individual sunroofs - One for the Front row and other one for the Third row.

Features

Being a Hyundai after all, we cannot doubt the advanced technological features on offer. Hyundai yet again has overloaded one of their cars with tons of features. The Palisade comes with a lot of advanced utility features like -

• ADAS - Mostly it would get the Level 3 system

• 360 degree camera 

• Ventilated seats - Heated and Cooled both

• Automatic Climate Control system - 4 - zone climate control system

• LED lightings - Headlights and Tail lights both

The car is also connected with Hyundai’s Blue Link features.

Powertrain

The Palisade is offered with 3 engine options →

• 3.8 L V6 GDi Petrol → 295 PS & 355 Nm of torque, it is mated with 8-speed AT.

• 3.5 L V6 MPi Petrol → 277 PS & 335 Nm of torque, it is mated with 8-speed AT.

• 2.2 L Diesel engine → 200 PS & 440 Nm of torque, it is mated with 8-speed AT.