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Kia Telluride Concept Looks Ready to Ride

With the North American International Auto Show or NAIAS well on the way, vehicle makers all over the globe are rolling out their latest and greatest, both for future models as well as ideas for the future.

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In short, much can be expected of the Kia Telluride, which will doubtlessly wow SUV lovers everywhere.

The Telluride features three-row seven-passenger seating, and is built on a modified Sorento chassis with a wheelbase stretched by 11.9 inches (302 mm) to a total of 121.3 inches (3,081 mm).

Kia has revealed the inside of its new Telluride SUV concept ahead of its public launch tonight at the 2016 Detroit motor show, hinting at a new large SUV that puts a priority on “health and wellness technology”. It’s also 177mm wider, and looks it. Accessing the rear seats is made easier through rear-hinged back doors that can swing open 90 degrees. Inside, the Telluride has four captain’s chairs and a third-row bench seat. The second-row seats fold back nearly flat, and have fold-away footrests. The Telluride, a striking three-row, seven-passenger, luxury SUV concept features a modern and upright shape, muscular stance, and state-of-the-art technology to care for its occupants.

The cabin of the Kia Telluride features vastly simplified controls and instrument panel, appearing to feature photosensitive heating/cooling controls and two large LCD screens covering instrumentation and infotainment respectively. This health information is then displayed on the individual door panels… okay.

The LER is a wing-shaped LED panel that sits below a panoramic sunroof to deliver therapeutic light created to combat jetlag and improve energy levels. At the rear, slim, vertical tail lights are featured, leading down towards the dual exhaust tips surrounded by a chrome-finished protective plate. Speaking of media, the Telluride also equips a seven-speaker Harmon Kardon stereo, which comes with wireless headphones that automatically charge when stowed. A finger-print activated push-button start unleashes Telluride’s tremendously potent yet extremely efficient PHEV powertrain. The transverse-mounted system makes a combined 400 horsepower – 270 from the V-6, 130 more from the electric motor – distributed to all four wheels.

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Despite Kia suggesting that the Telluride “is anything but a Utopian fantasy”, Kia Australia has told Wheels that the Telluride is not yet confirmed for production, and even if it does arrive in USA showrooms, it’s still not part of its Australian strategy. KMA offers a complete line of vehicles, including the rear-drive K900 flagship sedan, Cadenza premium sedan, Sorento CUV, Soul urban passenger vehicle, Soul Electric Vehicle, Sportage compact CUV, Optima midsize sedan, Optima Hybrid, the Forte compact sedan, Forte5 and Forte Koup, Rio and Rio 5-door subcompacts and the Sedona midsize multi-purpose vehicle, through a network of more than 765 dealers across the United States.

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