10 Biggest News Stories of the Year: Hyundai Palisade, Toyota Grand Highlander Soar in 2024
Back in the mid-1980s when Hyundai first started selling cars in the U.S., deserved or not, the brand was looked upon as a bargain-basement appliance for people who simply needed to get to and from work every day, just like they needed their toaster to simply make toast. Flash forward to nearly 40 years later and you’ll find that Hyundai is now the toast of the town in some contexts: Its cars have vastly improved in style and quality; it launched a genuinely competitive luxury brand in Genesis nearly a decade ago; and the days of eliciting a patronizing response about having made a pragmatic choice when telling someone you drive a Hyundai are long past. The South Korean automaker’s full emergence from the chrysalis of its humble early reputation is perhaps nowhere as vivid as it is in the Hyundai Palisade, a true monarch among mainstream three-row SUVs.
Related: 2024 3-Row SUV Challenge: Repeat Champ Hyundai Palisade Proves Hard to Beat
And if you’re a regular consumer of Cars.com news and reviews, you know our affinity for the Palisade over the years since its debut. Our experts named it the Best of 2020, and the accolades haven’t stopped there, with the updated-for-2024 Palisade earning our honor of best three-row SUV of 2024, along with a glowing review from Cars.com reviewer Aaron Bragman in his comprehensive critique of the family hauler. To triumph as the best three-row SUV, the Palisade had to beat out some stiff competition — including 2024 versions of the Volkswagen Atlas, Toyota Grand Highlander Hybrid, Kia Telluride, Honda Pilot, Nissan Pathfinder and Subaru Ascent — proving itself as the best all-around value with a premium look and feel, and impressive all-around scores across judged categories.
“We’ve made no secret about how much we like the Hyundai Palisade,” Bragman stated in his review. “It won our Best of 2020 award, and it’s consistently been one of our highest-ranked family vehicles ever since. Every time we get into one, we’re amazed at just how far Hyundai has come as a company, with products that lead the industry in so many ways.”
For the full details on how the 2024 Hyundai Palisade won our three-row SUV title, as well as high praise from our expert reviewers, follow the links below to the No. 3 and No. 4 articles on our countdown of the most read stories from all of last year.
The Palisade isn’t the only mid-size SUV that rose to the top of the heap in 2024. Further south on the annual countdown, you’ll find our rapid-fire roundup of the pros and cons of the all-new-for-2024 Toyota Grand Highlander — a more spacious and cargo-accommodating version of the regular Highlander SUV. The Grand Highlander earned high marks from our editors for its best-in-class-rivaling 14.5 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row, expanding to 26 cubic feet with the wayback seat folded; a third row offering comfort for adult passengers that bests the smaller Highlander and gives rivals a run for their money; a powerful top-tier powertrain boasting a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine paired with two electric motors, a six-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive; an EPA-estimated 27 mpg combined fuel-economy figure that undercuts opponents; and thoughtful available convenience features like ceiling-mounted climate-control vents, an underfloor ground-view display for easier parking, and 1,500-watt power outlets for plugging in tools and appliances. Low points for the Grand Highlander include a ride on the rough, unrefined side; a cluttered and dubiously configurable digital instrument display; and the less-than-confidence-inspiring Proactive Driving Assist system designed to slow and stop the vehicle when an obstacle is detected in its path.
For the full list of our gripes and gratitude for the 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander, follow the link below to the No. 9 news story of the year.
Beyond all that, we’ve got headlines on cheap new cars, cheap new SUVs, cheap electric vehicles and much more — so don’t stop reading till the digits double. Here are the top 10 news stories Cars.com readers couldn’t get enough of in the past year:
1. Here Are the 10 Cheapest New Cars You Can Buy Right Now
2. Do You Really Need to Change the Transmission Fluid?
3. What’s the Best 3-Row SUV for 2024?
4. 2024 Hyundai Palisade Review: Still the Champ
5. Here Are the 10 Cheapest New SUVs You Can Buy Right Now
6. Here’s Which Hybrids Qualify for Federal Tax Rebates
7. Electrified Vehicles Sweep 2024 World Car Awards
8. Here Are the 11 Cheapest Electric Vehicles You Can Buy
9. Is the 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander a Good SUV? 5 Pros, 3 Cons
10. What Are the Best Used Cars for $15,000?
Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.
