The “World Car of the Year” award is a highly esteemed and huge honor that recognizes the most significant new vehicle on the scene as determined by an international jury of automotive journalist judges. The Telluride that we are so excited about here at Jim Butler Kia of St Louis added to its long list of honors by beating out the Mazda CX-30 and the Mazda3, which were previously announced finalists for the WCOTY award! In another win for Kia, the Soul EV was named World Urban Car of the Year, beating out the Mini Cooper SE and Volkswagen T-Cross.
Last year's honors were taken by the Jaguar I-Pace, and other previous honorees consist of the Volvo XC60, the Jaguar F-Pace, and the Mazda MX-5. The team that makes the decision consists of 86 jurors from 24 countries and runs as an independent organization not tied to any specific publication. This is the 16th year for the awards to take place, and the amazing interior is just one of the fine qualities that boosted the Telluride to this soaring victory. This super cool video shows the details and a bit about what it feels like to sit in the range-topping SX trim level.
For starters, the host claims that immediately when you sit down, this feels more like an upper-end luxury vehicle than anything from the Honda or Toyota brands. He enjoyed the various accents of leather within the interior, and the large grab handles in the middle that are a bit reminiscent of what the Porsche line has to offer. The storage area by the cup holders is ideal for smartphones, and that's where you also find the wireless charging. There are also two USB ports in the back of the seat, and the 10.25” touchscreen looks fantastic perched on the dash.
Every Telluride does now come standard with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and satellite radio. On this top-of-the-line SX, there is a “driver talk” option that allows you to use a Bluetooth microphone to project your voice to the passengers in the rear. The host illustrates how comfortable the second-row captain's chairs are, and the rarity of heated and ventilated seats in the second row as well. He also happens to be 6 ft 3 and does a good job of depicting the available space and headroom in the way rear of the Telluride.
While sitting in the third row, the size of the windows also doesn’t make one feel quite as claustrophobic as in some 3-row models, a big plus when embarking on long journeys. We couldn’t be prouder of one of our favorite vehicles for yet another award-winning achievement, and hope that we can assist you to pick out this or any other Kia model to complement your growing family or business this spring! We appreciate the loyalty of our St Louis-area customers during good times as well as those that are more difficult and look forward to finding the perfect vehicle for you.
