The Palisade Hybrid Is the Only Three-Row SUV on Wards’ 10 Best Engines List
Wards judges rewarded the 329-hp turbo hybrid for keeping a mechanical all-wheel-drive system in a large SUV. Kia sells the same powertrain in the Telluride for $2,830 more.
The 2026 Hyundai Palisade Hybrid's 2.5-liter turbocharged hybrid powertrain has made the 2026 Wards 10 Best Engines & Propulsion Systems list, Hyundai said on Thursday. It is the only three-row SUV among this year's ten winners, and the judges singled out one thing in particular: it kept a mechanical all-wheel-drive system while cutting fuel use in a big family SUV.
The award goes to the same 329-hp, 339-lb-ft hybrid that Kia uses in the Telluride Hybrid, so the trophy sits with Hyundai's engineering arm as much as with the Palisade itself. Our three-row hybrid comparison runs through how the two corporate cousins differ on price, towing, and seating.
What Wards actually rewarded
Many hybrid SUVs get their all-wheel drive from a separate electric motor on the rear axle, with no driveshaft between the two ends. The Palisade Hybrid instead keeps Hyundai's HTRAC system, which is a conventional mechanical link to the rear wheels, and bolts the hybrid hardware onto a six-speed automatic rather than a CVT. Robin Warner, who runs the Wards program, said the result gives drivers the same traction on slippery roads as a gas Palisade while sending them to the pump less often.
By Hyundai's numbers, the hybrid tows up to 4,000 pounds, 1,000 fewer than the 3.5-liter V6 model, and the company estimates up to 619 miles on a tank for the Blue SEL Premium trim. Hyundai's original pricing announcement targeted up to 34 mpg combined; this week's release only says "30-plus" on the highway, and Hyundai still describes its range figure as an internal estimate. Hyundai has not published trim-by-trim EPA ratings in either release.
The hybrid also brings a Stay Mode function that keeps the climate control and infotainment running off the battery while parked, the sort of feature buyers usually associate with EVs.
Where it lands against the Telluride
The Palisade Hybrid starts at $43,660 for the front-drive Blue SEL and $45,660 with all-wheel drive, before Hyundai's $1,495 freight charge. Kia's 2027 Telluride Hybrid pricing opens at $46,490 for the EX FWD and $48,490 with AWD, plus $1,545 destination, so the Hyundai undercuts its cousin by $2,830 at the entry point. The Kia answers with a 4,500-pound tow rating, 500 pounds more than the Palisade, and an EPA figure of 35 mpg combined for the base EX FWD.
The Wards nod is the latest in a run that has included the North American Utility Vehicle of the Year title, a Car and Driver 10Best award, and Edmunds' Top Rated honor, all claimed in Hyundai's own announcements since December. Hyundai counts this as its 18th product win in the program's 32 years and only the second for one of its three-row SUVs.
The commercial context helps, too. Palisade sales jumped 52 percent in September to 10,327 units, and hybrids made up 28 percent of Hyundai's volume that month, as Hyundai's record third quarter showed. The Palisade is one of four hybrid winners on a list that, for the first time, contains no gas-only engines; the Nissan Rogue Hybrid, Porsche 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid, and Corvette ZR1X are the others.
Wards judges tested 26 nominated powertrains on real roads and scored them on horsepower, torque, refinement, observed efficiency, and innovation. The full winners list is on WardsAuto. Hyundai has not said whether the award will show up in Palisade advertising, and a date for the awards ceremony has not been announced.
