Introducing …the Hyundai Palisade

It was one of those sunny days that when you find yourself in a car park, you’re more occupied finding shade in your vehicle and its balmy air-condition breeze than the ice cream seller honking.

I had a lot on my mind. I didn’t see the car coming behind, so I reversed into it.

I came out to see it and immediately felt like attending nature’s call.  The beast is a sparkling new Hyundai Palisade. A glossy metallic beast on high heels. It’s still in the honeymoon stage with its owner.

December 2018 must be a cursed year, I muttered to myself.

Now men come in two kinds—those who drive a car (from destination A to B) and those drive automobiles. I was driving a car, and the Palisade is an automobile. I was in trouble.

The owner, a bespectacled swanky grey-haired man in a white polo shirt and a white short stepped out in a black Jimmy Choo shoe, wearing a smirk.

He didn’t look at me. His gaze went straight to the dent on his door.

“Young man, make good use of the mirrors when you’re reversing. Now you have two headaches.”

My feet went from sturdy to wobbly.

“My apologies sir,” was all I could say.

He beckoned, and we moved under a shade closer to my car.

“You work with Graphic?” He asked, noticing the hanged ID in a pendulum swing.

At this point, he smiled, asked of my name, I gave it faster than my eyes blinked.

He gave me his card and asked that I call him. That was the beginning of a friendship that only ended when he died early this year.

Memories of that encounter came back in a flood when I received an invitation from Hyundai Motors and Investment Ghana for the launch of the Palisade in Accra.

Speaking at its launch, the Fields Sales Manager of Hyundai, Abdul Razak Mohammed, described the car as a luxury on wheels.

“It comes with various eye-catching elements to the interior and exterior designs. The palisade has a high-tech convenience, safety features that offer an enjoyable, luxurious and a relaxed lifestyle for the driver. It is also a big performer in the mid-size segment,” he said.

The Korean automaker went to the auto theatre for a metallic surgery that replaced the Grand Santa Fe with the sleek but robust seven-seater Palisade—a midsize SUV with a completely new concept, which is Hyundai’s biggest SUV and a newcomer in the Hyundai SUV line up.

Razor-sharp styling inside and out, hi-tech, classic premium features, safety-oriented and sporty feel summarises the prowess of the Palisade.

Engine

Choice is one of the most understood words in Hyundai’s lexicon and that is visible in the engine types available.

The palisade is powered by a 3.8 litre six (6) cylinder GDi engine producing 295 horsepower (Hp) @6000rpm. There are also a 3.5 litre (MPi) engine and a 2.2-litre diesel engines which produce 277hp@6300rpm and 200hp@3800 respectively.

The engine is married to an eight (8) speed shift by wire (SBW) automatic transmission.

Its makers say both the gasoline and diesel engines are highly efficient and eco-friendly.

Interior

A peep insider the car reveals a vast improvement over its predecessor. The cabin feels far more sophisticated with its interior design. The seat arrangement is comfortable and passengers and driver alike benefit from well-contoured leather seats and enough head and legroom. Head restraints and seatbelts are easily adjustable.

It has seven-inch cluster and eight-inch or 10.25- inch infotainment screen with apple car play and android auto support. It is littered with multiple USB charging ports.

Head-up-display (HUD) helps to reduce distraction and allows the driver to keep his eyes on the road. It projects speed, current drive mode, navigation among others.

And it is a push start, keyless entry and no sticks to push and pull—it’s all buttons.

The buttons and the only knob are straightforward, simple and easy to use.

The Palisade is not without fun. It is littered with speakers which boom sounds from a six-speaker MP3 player with radio and USB/auxiliary input jacks, and a phone pairing Bluetooth device that works with both apple car play and android auto support.

The front of the palisade has a dual auto A/c and the second-row seat has an independent cooling and heating controls for the passengers to control their temperatures with bothering the driver.

Exterior

Outside, the Palisade is glossy but with a bold with a wide cascading black and silver paint radiator grille, projection / LED headlamps with separate LED DRL, LED turning signals.

It has a stretch character line and robust wheel arch design revealing a powerful hood design, bold “C” Pillar, 18/20-inch alloy rims, roof rails and a dual sunroof, vertical LED rear combination tail lamps with separate reverse lamps.

 

Convenience

Thanks to its innovative H-Trac and the Multi-Terrain Control system, its drive could switch and adapt to terrains, including mud, sand, smart, comfort and sports.

Safety

For safety, the lineup features include a Blind-Spot Collision Warning (BCW), Lane Keeping Assist (LKA), Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist (FCA), Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist a well as six airbags at vital positions.

That is not all.  Anti-lock braking system(ABS), Electronic Stability Control (ESC) come as standard, among other safety features.

Warranty

The Head of Sales and Marketing at Hyundai Motors Ghana, Ganesh Y. Phadale, said the company offers five years or 100,000 kilometres, whichever comes first as warranty.