Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade
Test Drive

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

Hyundai's largest crossover has finally reached Russia. It has an unusual design, spacious interior, good equipment and reasonable prices. But is this enough for unconditional success?

The expectation of Hyundai Palisade on the Russian market not only stretched out for two whole years, but also turned out to be rather weary. After all, the crossovers were delayed not because of the difficulties of certification or, say, the indecision of the Russian representative office - they were simply not enough for us!

On the home market, "Palisade" instantly became a super hit: production had to be increased as much as four times, up to 100 thousand cars a year. Then there was a no less successful debut in the United States (there is its own, local assembly), and only now the plant in the Korean Ulsan found the opportunity to send cars to Russian dealers. Is the flagship crossover really that good?

 

Here a lot depends on what the word "flagship" means to you. The term can be easily misled, and the sophisticated chrome-rich design only reinforces the high expectations. But it is important to understand that the Palisade is exactly a big Hyundai, and not "almost Genesis". In fact, we are dealing with the direct successor of the Grand Santa Fe model, only now the enlarged and seven-seater version of the “Santa”, built on the same platform, has its own name and image.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

Whether you like this image or not, it doesn't matter, start getting used to it, because the new generation folk Creta will be solved in exactly the same style with two-story optics, a huge radiator grill and crescent lights. In any case, this person will pursue you, even if the Palisades themselves do not fill the streets of Russian cities. And there are not many chances for this: queues have already lined up for the cars, some customers have been trying to get a "live" copy since December, but the modest deliveries clearly do not meet the demand. Where does this excitement come from?

It's hard to answer this question right away. Yes, outside the Palisade is massive, solid and weighty. But I sit inside - and I don’t even feel the surprise that I experienced a year ago when I got to know the new “Sonata”. Okay, there's a push-button transmission control here too, a beautifully sloping console hovering above a spacious niche for little things - but there's nothing to showcase flagship status.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

There is too much standard Korean plastic and unpretentious "silver" in the decoration. She seemed to survive only on the outdated Tucson, and then suddenly returned, covering even the multimedia keys and making them almost unreadable in the daytime. The top-of-the-line Cosmos sports nappa leather on the seats - you can even order red - but even here there will be no interior ambient lighting, no digital instrument cluster. Unlike the Sonata, which is asked for almost half the price. To hell with them, whistles and blinkers - why is the windshield heating not provided?

Although the rest of the bells and whistles are in order. Rich configurations have a full range of electronic assistants such as adaptive cruise control, lane keeping systems, emergency braking and more. There is a large panoramic roof, a lot of options to charge gadgets - even wirelessly, though via USB or a regular 12-volt port, or even by plunging a household plug into a household 220-volt outlet. Passengers in the second row have their own climatic zone by default, and there are ventilation deflectors even on the ceiling - in the manner of aircraft - and the seats in expensive versions are not only heated, but also cooled.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

Even in the same top version, a "captain's" second row with separate seats is available, and this is not only a matter of prestige, but also of convenience: the Palisade has no central tunnel, so you can enter the third row right in the middle, like in some minivan. Formally, "Kamchatka" is considered three-seater, but trying to tamp three adults there is a stupid and inhumane idea. But you can sit together: there is more than enough headroom and headroom, although the flat, hard pillow is so low that the knees are lifted up to heaven.

In a word, the seven- and even eight-seater "Palisade", like all similar crossovers, is not a direct guide to action, but a backup plan in case of unexpected fellow travelers. The salon is easily transformed, literally in a couple of movements, and it is better to leave it in a two-row configuration. Then you will get a large comfortable trunk and unrealistic space in the second row: even on a one-piece sofa, at least in separate armchairs, you sit like in a limousine, with your legs crossed. Eh, there would also be folding tables - and there would be an excellent mobile office!

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

It is not easy to isolate oneself from the outside world and immerse oneself in one's own affairs: on our roads, the Palisade drives harder than we would like. The suspension was not adapted for Russian conditions, the settings are exactly the same as in Korea - and in practice this means that the crossover collects a bit too much road trifles and trembles on transverse waves, and when the road becomes completely bad, it practically loses its face. The travels of the suspensions are small, the energy consumption is modest, so traveling on broken dirt roads turns into a test for both the car and the passengers.

The case is especially bad on the 20-inch wheels, which are the two richest versions. Plump "eighties", on which the junior configurations stand, noticeably correct the situation - although a dense and not too strong suspension is in any case not what a large family car needs. But the sound insulation is not bad: Palisade does not create the feeling of a bunker, but it diligently filters out external sounds and does not force you to switch to higher tones even after 150-170 km / h.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

Such speeds are achieved, by the way, without any problems. Hyundai Palisade is supplied to Russia with two engines: a two-liter 200 hp turbodiesel. and petrol V6 3.5, developing textbook 249 forces. The transmission is in any case an eight-speed “automatic”, the drive is all-wheel drive, based on a conventional interaxle clutch.

So, even a junior diesel engine has enough strength to carry a two-ton crossover. According to the passport, there are modest 10,5 seconds to a hundred, but in life you note a thick, convincing traction, soft and logical gearbox switching, as well as confident behavior on suburban roads. You can go out on overtaking boldly, although not mindlessly: the stock is exactly what is adequate and sufficient.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

The gasoline version is, as expected, more dynamic: up to a hundred here it is already 8,1 seconds, and you can sweep past the ride with almost a dashing "eggey". But the tandem of the engine and transmission is no longer so silky - the transition to kick-down is accompanied by a slight jerk, there is no feeling of seamlessness of all processes. In other words, it is more pleasant to drive around the city on a velvet diesel engine, and for the utmost possibilities it is worth turning to powerful gasoline.

The main thing is not to overdo it. Palisade holds the high-speed straight line confidently, but in turns it acts exactly as you would expect from a modern large crossover: tangible rolls, “synthetic” steering wheel and early drift, which clearly says: “Don't drive!”. And the brakes are only just: a long-stroke and not very informative pedal upsets a heavy car adequately, but without a margin.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

True, all this is relevant for those modes in which the real owner of the Palisade is unlikely to ride. In ordinary life, only a compressed suspension will attract attention, but otherwise a large Hyundai is a completely normal, balanced car. Even too normal.

It doesn’t make such a weighty and solid impression as the new Kia Mohave, which immediately entered Prado territory. At the same time, there is no overt simplification here, as in the Volkswagen Teramont with its hard American plastic. There are no special effects to which Hyundai has already begun to accustom us to the daring "Sonata" and the absolutely incredible upcoming Tucson of the new generation. Palisade is just a re-Santa Fe.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

Although this statement is not eternal. Very soon, the updated "Santa" will reach Russia - not only with a noticeably changed design, but also with major changes in technology. Despite the restyling status, we are talking about a practically new car on a new platform - the same as that of the Kia Sorento. It turns out that the long-awaited Palisade is about to become outdated, not having time to debut normally?

It seems that for real buyers all these calculations do not matter. They see a big, smart Hyundai that sits a notch above the Santa Fe, rather than a variation of it as it used to be. With a comfortable and spacious interior, good equipment and attractive price tags. With a base price of $ 42, the Palisade is cheaper than most competitors, and the maximum 286 is the point from which, for example, the Toyota Highlander is just starting.

Test drive the new Hyundai Palisade

And yet the frenzied success of Palisade is an anomaly for which even the Koreans themselves were not ready. You can't just take and underestimate demand fourfold, you know? But it happened. And in the foreseeable future, it looks like a big Hyundai will remain in big deficit in Russia, so if you are attracted by the idea of ​​buying it, stop reading articles on the Internet and proceed to a decisive attack on dealers.

 

 

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