Compare the2027 Kia TellurideVS 2026 Land Rover Discovery

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Kia Telluride are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Land Rover Discovery doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Telluride are reminded to check the back seat when a sensor determines the back seat is occupied. The Discovery doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Kia Telluride has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Discovery doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Telluride has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Discovery doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Telluride SX/Prestige has standard Parking Collision Avoidance-Reverse that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Discovery doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

Both the Telluride and the Discovery have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The Telluride comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Discovery’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Telluride 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than Land Rover covers the Discovery. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Discovery ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 4 times as many Kia dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Telluride’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in initial quality. With 27 more problems per 100 vehicles, Land Rover is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in long-term dependability. With 6 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Land Rover is rated below average.

The Telluride’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 16 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 295) than the Discovery’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Kia Telluride 4 cyl. hybrid gas is faster than the Discovery Gemini/Tempest 3.0 turbo/supercharged 6-cylinder hybrid:

On the EPA test cycle the Telluride gets better mileage than the Discovery:

Regenerative brakes improve the Telluride Hybrid’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Discovery doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Telluride uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Discovery requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Telluride stops shorter than the Discovery:

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Telluride’s wheelbase is 1.8 inches longer than on the Discovery (116.9 inches vs. 115.1 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Telluride is .9 inches wider in the front and 1.6 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Discovery.

The Telluride SX Prestige handles at .77 G’s, while the Discovery Dynamic SE pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Telluride SX Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Discovery Gemini (27.7 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .6 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Telluride’s turning circle is 1.5 feet tighter than the Discovery’s (39.2 feet vs. 40.7 feet).

The Kia Telluride may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 100 to 450 pounds less than the Land Rover Discovery.

The Telluride offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the Discovery can only carry 7.

The Telluride has .6 inches more front headroom, 2.3 inches more front legroom, 1.2 inches more front shoulder room, 1.4 inches more rear headroom, 5.6 inches more rear legroom, 1.7 inches more rear shoulder room and 8.2 inches more third row shoulder room than the Discovery.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Telluride’s middle and third row seats recline. The Discovery’s third row seats don’t recline.

The Telluride’s cargo area provides more volume than the Discovery.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Telluride has standard extendable sun visors. The Discovery doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Telluride to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Discovery doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Kia Telluride stands out above the Land Rover Discovery by offering not one, but two Qi-compatible phone chargers. This convenience helps travelers with multiple devices to keep powered up on-the-go. Wireless charging eliminates lost or cluttered charging cables and one of them provide more flexibility.

The Telluride Prestige/X-Pro SX has a 115-volt a/c outlet in the cargo area, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Discovery doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Telluride Prestige’s Remote Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Discovery’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park and it doesn’t offer remote control parking.

The Telluride is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Discovery doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

According to iSeeCars.com the 2027 Kia Telluride retains 51.21% of its original value after 5 years, significantly more than the 39.37% resale value of the 2026 Land Rover Discovery after five years, which can save the Kia’s owner up to $18747 in depreciation.

Motor Trend selected the Telluride as their 2020 Sport Utility of the Year. The Discovery has never been chosen.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Telluride as the 2020 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Discovery has never been chosen.

The Kia Telluride outsold the Land Rover Discovery by almost 34 to one during 2025.