Hyundai’s PALISADE XRT PRO Lets You Rough It in Comfort Off-Road

By Man of Many - Sponsored

Updated: 16 September, 2026

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Table of contents

Table of contents

• Design
• Functionality
• Performance
• Price and Availability

Readtime: 8 min

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• Hyundai PALISADE XRT PRO bridges everyday family practicality with weekend adventure.
• Suspension tuning provides 212mm of ground clearance and improved off-road geometry.
• Exterior upgrades feature red recovery hooks and 18-inch all-terrain Continental tyres.
• Braked towing capacity receives a boost to handle up to 2,200kg.
• Local pricing starts from AUD$79,900 before on-road costs ahead of September deliveries.

There we are, sitting in a Surry Hills cafe, nursing an eight-dollar flat white, watching the daily parade of SAVs (suburban activity vehicles) make their way down to the local private school drop-off. While many of them boast impressive off-road engineering, modern automotive design has largely become an arms race of shiny chrome, low-profile tyres and complex touchscreens. Most of these family SUVs look terrified at the mere thought of encountering dirt.

It’s a constant push-and-pull for car brands, as large SUV buyers have typically been forced to choose between these premium comfort cruisers and rugged off-road vehicles.

That’s where the new Hyundai PALISADE XRT PRO comes into the fold, representing a new era for a brand not historically known for dedicated four-wheel drives. Hyundai took its flagship eight-seater, lifted the suspension, bolted on proper Continental all-terrain rubber and handed the chassis to local engineers for a proper off-road tune. The result is a vehicle that delivers the best of both worlds. It offers the versatility modern families ask for, the ones who need everyday practicality during the week and genuine off-road capability on the weekend.

Hyundai threw us the keys to the PALISADE and told us to take a hike. We spent the weekend behind the wheel of the XRT PRO, and the biggest takeaway was the reassurance that it gives you as someone who likes to explore the outdoors on a whim. You do not need to sacrifice space, premium feel, or on-road comfort to confidently explore the scenic Wollombi Road or the depths of Yengo National Park as we found out.

Design

Visually, the XRT PRO trades the soft aesthetic of the standard PALISADE for proper off-road hardware. The factory chrome trim gives way to a dark metallic front grille, blacked-out door handles, and thick black roof rails.

Exposed red recovery hooks sit directly on the outboard frame at the front and rear bumpers. We like these additions because they serve a legitimate mechanical purpose, providing secure, factory-rated recovery points if you push the vehicle a little too far. Coated in a layer of fine dust along the trail, the XRT PRO looks like a vehicle designed for exploring the beauty of the country’s lesser-explored areas, rather than for a spotless suburban driveway.

Probably our favourite element of the exterior design is the wheels. Gone are the 20-inch or 21-inch rims found across the rest of the range, replaced by 18-inch black machined-finish alloy wheels wrapped in dedicated Continental all-terrain tyres. The taller sidewall absorbs the harshness of corrugated dirt roads while providing enough flex to crawl over rocks. Quite frankly, we just love the way they look, even in urban environments, where it gives this model a tougher edge.

Complementing these additions are several paint colours, including an exclusive Titan Charcoal exterior paint for the XRT PRO, alongside Shimmering Silver, Ecotronic Grey, Classy Blue, Creamy White, Abyss Black, and Cast Iron Brown.

Functionality

Inside, the cabin retains an eight-seat configuration across three rows. Instead of the delicate Nappa leather found in the flagship Calligraphy, Hyundai opted for hard-wearing black synthetic leather with XRT emblems on the headrests and a mountain-patterned embossment in the upholstery.

The front row remains heated and ventilated, ensuring long highway transits are managed in total comfort, while the 14-speaker BOSE audio system is great for those longer road trips.

Once you leave the tarmac, the digital instrument cluster shifts to an XRT-specific layout showing critical vehicle metrics. The main 12.3-inch infotainment screen unlocks a dedicated off-road menu that graphically displays pitch and roll angles, live power distribution and rear differential activity.

This telemetry became an invaluable tool as we picked our way through the eroded clay tracks of the Big Yango Loop Trail. We made constant use of the ground-view monitor, which projects the front-wheel trajectory directly onto the screen. It allows the driver to carefully place the front tyres around sharp sandstone ledges without needing a passenger to jump out and spot.

Towing capability receives a notable mechanical upgrade over the hybrid models. Equipped with the factory towbar and genuine accessory kit, the XRT PRO hauls up to 2,200kg braked with a maximum towball downweight of 160kg. We didn’t have a chance to hook up a trailer during our time with the car, but it’s worth noting that the XRT PRO utilises self-levelling rear dampers, meaning the rear end will not sag when you load up a heavy camper trailer.

Performance

Under the bonnet, power comes exclusively from a 2.5-litre T-GDi Theta III turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine. The powertrain produces 207kW of power and 422Nm of torque, paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission and an active all-wheel-drive system.

The engine characteristics are perfectly suited to trail driving, and if we hadn’t read the spec sheet, we would’ve mistaken it for a diesel. Peak torque arrives at just 1,700 rpm and holds flat through to 4,000 rpm. When hauling our loaded vehicle up steep, gravelly inclines in the national park, this low-end grunt meant the engine pulled cleanly without needing to rev aggressively or hunt for gears. Managing this weight on steep descents falls to upgraded brakes, featuring 345mm ventilated rotors up front and 325mm rotors at the rear.

The hero hardware on the XRT PRO is the rear electronic limited-slip differential. When a wheel loses contact over loose ground, the e-LSD instantly directs drive to the wheel with grip. We felt the system constantly working as we drove through deep washboard ruts along the trail, keeping the rear end planted and moving forward without wheel spin. The driver can also cycle through Terrain modes via a dashboard control. Selecting Mud automatically activates the downhill brake control system, while the Sand setting specifically deactivates it to prevent the brakes from bogging the vehicle down in soft dunes.

Underneath, ground clearance increases by 25mm to a total of 212mm. The setup is brought together by a bespoke local suspension tune, calibrated by Sydney-based Hyundai engineers using revised springs and high-performance dampers.

Out on the tracks, that extra height puts the XRT PRO much closer to ladder-frame four-wheel drives, without sacrificing any on-road refinement. The approach, departure and ramp-over angles improve to 20.5, 22.4 and 18.3 degrees, respectively, giving you enough clearance to negotiate washed-out gutters without scraping the sills. Most of the time, you’ll be driving on the tarmac, but even here the revised suspension ensures the cabin stays planted and quiet, completely avoiding the floating sensation and droning tyre roar common on lifted off-roaders.

Price and Availability

Starting from AUD$79,900 before on-road costs, the Hyundai PALISADE XRT PRO sits comfortably between the entry Elite Hybrid (from AUD$76,500) and the top-spec Calligraphy Hybrid (from AUD$89,828).

Local showroom deliveries start in September 2026, while servicing is covered under the myHyundaiCare capped-price program over seven years or 70,000 kilometres, with 12-month or 10,000-kilometre intervals. Maintenance costs start at AUD$408 for the first service, then AUD$510 at 24 months, AUD$512 at 36 months, AUD$528 at 48 months, AUD$408 at 60 months, AUD$632 at 72 months, and AUD$754 at 84 months.

Hyundai backs the vehicle with a standard five-year warranty, which expands to seven years with unlimited kilometres when all scheduled maintenance is completed within the official dealer network.

*Maximum warranty is 7 years from date of first registration, on the condition that all scheduled services are completed within the specified service intervals at an authorised Hyundai dealer. Excludes Hybrid & EV drive batteries, which are warranted for 8 years / 160,000kms (whichever occurs first) from the date of first registration, and vehicles used for “commercial application”, as detailed in Hyundai’s warranty policy. Terms, conditions and exclusions apply.

To see how this purpose-built SUV balances everyday family practicality with genuine off-road capability, explore the PALISADE XRT PRO at Hyundai.