Situated in a box canyon with steep cliffs and and forested mountains surrounding it, the mountain town in Colorado that is the location of Bridal Veil Falls is one very scenic and rugged place. It makes sense that the new 3-row SUV being engineered by Kia will be named after Telluride, a town where high altitude activities and snow-capped beauty are enjoyed daily. Motoring.com.au reported this week that a production version of the Telluride concept is going to become a reality, after a conversation with design chief Peter Schreyer during the 2018 Detroit Auto Show.
It's no secret that large-sized SUVs are very popular right now, and this fact is solidifying Kia's decision to explore further and act on this Rocky-Mountain inspired idea. The actual product could be quite a bit different than the concept, but should still remain pretty close to the original physical footprint. The concept exists on a stretched Sorento platform – it's 4.4 inches taller, 4.7 inches wider, and 9.5 inches longer than Kia's currently longest in the lineup. Debuting at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show, the Telluride has a traditionally large SUV shape, packed unique quad-lamp headlights, and suicide doors.
As far as needed power, something the size of the Telluride would potentially need quite a bit of juice to keep a plausible momentum. In the form of the concept, it was sporting a plug-in hybrid powertrain, good for 400 horsepower, doled out to every single wheel. Kia has a high level of experience with PHEV tech, so a setup that is similar could very well make it past the upper-rung drawing boards. As cars begin to provide more features that delve deeper and deeper into the well-being and comfort of passengers, the first two rows in the Telluride will have sensors that will provide vital information about your health.
Therapeutic light is going to be on board to reduce the drowsiness factor, and there are supposed to be controls for the stereo for passengers in the second row, via two silver arcs mounted in the console. It is true that many are in love with the playful and inept vibe of some of the vehicles like the Soul, an award-winning compact crossover that allows you to navigate very urban areas with ease.
Making the effort to add a big-and-bad SUV could really never be thought of as a mistake these days: even as the Eco-conscious are paving the way to more innovative and shrunk-wrapped ways to travel, it's true that sometimes big is better, or even best. Recognizing that the holiday trip across a large fraction of the continent or constant shuttling to sports games sometimes needs a bit of extra in the cubic feet department, the innovation and usefulness of vehicles like the Telluride will always be timely and well-received.
