BMW X5, GLE, Q7, Lexus RX, Acura MDX, Grand Highlander, Pilot, Telluride & Palisade — Which Is Right for You?

Mercedes-Benz Stadium parking means the Green, Blue and Red decks or the surrounding surface lots, all of which funnel into the same post-event crawl toward the Downtown Connector. Length is what you feel. Among the nine here, the Lexus RX at 192.5 inches is the shortest, followed by the BMW X5 and Mercedes-Benz GLE, both 194.3 inches. All three are two-row vehicles, which is the real reason they park easily. If you need three rows, the spread is narrow and the shortest is the Acura MDX at 198.4 inches, then the Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade at 199.2 inches, the Audi Q7 at about 199.3, the Honda Pilot at 200.1 and the Toyota Grand Highlander at 201.4 — the longest vehicle on this page. Audi publishes no length for the Q7, so that one is a third-party figure. A 360-degree camera helps more than three inches of length does; it is standard on the MDX and available on the rest.

The Battery Atlanta garages have standard stall widths and tight helix turns, and the exit dumps you straight into the I-75/I-285 interchange. The Lexus RX at 192.5 inches is the easiest of these nine, with the BMW X5 and GLE at 194.3 just behind. For a season-ticket holder making 40 or more trips a year, the difference between a 192-inch two-row and a 200-inch three-row is real — you feel it backing into end-of-row spots on the upper decks. Among three-row options the Acura MDX (198.4 in) is the shortest and the Grand Highlander (201.4 in) is the longest of all nine. One local note: Nalley Toyota Marietta sits on Cobb Parkway, which is the road most north-side fans already take to the ballpark, so you can test a Grand Highlander on your actual game-day route.

The Fox sits on Peachtree Street surrounded by mid-century decks with narrow ramps and clearances that were set long before SUVs looked like this. Height matters as much as length here, and it is the one dimension we would tell you to check against the posted sign at the deck entrance rather than against a spec sheet, because the older structures vary and none of them publish a figure you can look up in advance. Practically, a two-row is the easy answer: the Lexus RX, BMW X5 or GLE. If you are in a three-row and valet is available, take it. Worth knowing that the X5 xDrive50e and GLE 450e both run in electric mode at low speed, which is a quieter, cleaner way to sit in a queue on Peachtree than a V6 at idle.

An airport run is two problems: luggage and stop-and-go. Behind a raised third row, the Kia Telluride leads at 22.3 cu ft and the Honda Pilot is effectively level with it at 21.8 to 22.4 depending on trim — Honda also publishes an 18.6 cu ft figure measured to a lower load line, which is why the Pilot reads worse than it packs when the two get quoted side by side. The Hyundai Palisade holds 19.1 cu ft and the Acura MDX is tightest at 16.3. Two-row shoppers get far more: the BMW X5 has 33.9 cu ft and the GLE 33.3 behind the second row. For the Connector itself, the electrified models are the ones that actually save money in stop-and-go, because that is where a hybrid recaptures energy instead of burning fuel idling. The Grand Highlander Hybrid and Lexus RX 350h are the efficiency picks. Toyota has not published a city/highway split for the Grand Highlander Hybrid, only an "up to 36 mpg combined" manufacturer estimate for the front-drive XLE — all-wheel drive is 34 and the Hybrid MAX 27 — so treat that as provisional.

I-285 is relentless stop-and-go, which is exactly the duty cycle a hybrid is built for. On verified figures the Lexus RX 350h at 36 mpg combined and the front-drive XLE Grand Highlander Hybrid at up to 36 mpg lead this group — though both numbers carry a caveat. The RX figure is Lexus's 2025 number; Lexus published no EPA data at all in its 2026 RX release, and its own 2026 spec sheet is not publicly retrievable. Toyota's is a manufacturer estimate rather than a final EPA rating, and it belongs to one trim: the all-wheel-drive hybrid is 34 mpg and the Hybrid MAX 27. At 15,000 miles a year and $4.04 a gallon for regular — metro Atlanta's average per AAA in September 2026 — 36 mpg runs about $1,683 a year against roughly $2,755 for a 22 mpg V6. That gap of about $1,070 a year is the honest version of the case for a hybrid on this road. Note that several vehicles on this page specify premium fuel, which the estimate does not account for; check the window sticker.

GA-400 into Buckhead is a mixed commute — open highway at the north end, heavy congestion south of the river. Hybrids win the congested half. The Lexus RX 350h and Grand Highlander Hybrid are the efficiency leaders, and the Palisade Hybrid and Telluride Hybrid bring three rows to the same argument. One correction worth stating plainly, because this page previously got it wrong: a plug-in hybrid buys you no lane advantage on GA-400. The federal exemption that let alternative-fuel vehicles use Georgia HOV lanes with a single occupant expired on September 30, 2025. GA-400 has no HOV lanes in the first place — Georgia's HOV network is on I-20, I-75 and I-85. The GA-400 Express Lanes began construction in April 2026 and are not expected to reach substantial completion until 2031. Buy a PHEV for the fuel and the quiet, not for a lane.

Long highway miles at speed, which flatters a hybrid less than I-285 does but still rewards it. The Lexus RX 350h is the efficiency pick among two-rows; the Grand Highlander Hybrid among three-rows. If your I-75 commute is mostly open highway rather than crawling, the calculus shifts and a torquey gas engine is less of a penalty than it looks. The BMW X5 xDrive40i posts 23 city / 27 highway — BMW does not publish a combined figure — and the Mercedes GLE 350 4MATIC posts 19/26, or 21/28 in rear-drive form.

I-20 East through Decatur and Lithonia and I-85 South through College Park are both heavy merge-and-brake corridors where adaptive cruise and lane centering earn their keep. Every vehicle on this page has automatic emergency braking and full-speed adaptive cruise as standard equipment. On safety credentials specifically, and this is where we have corrected the record: four of these nine hold a 2026 IIHS award. The BMW X5 is a Top Safety Pick+, the Hyundai Palisade is a Top Safety Pick+ but only on vehicles built after November 2025, the 2027 Kia Telluride is a Top Safety Pick+ on builds after June 2026, and the Audi Q7 is a Top Safety Pick — not a Pick+ — in the large-SUV class. The RX, MDX, Grand Highlander, Pilot and GLE hold no 2026 award, though the MDX and Pilot were 2025 Top Safety Picks and the GLE a 2025 Pick+.

Surface-street rush hour is the single best case for an electrified drivetrain, because a hybrid or PHEV spends much of it on the motor rather than the engine. The RX 350h, Grand Highlander Hybrid, Palisade Hybrid and Telluride Hybrid all shine here. The three plug-ins go further: the GLE 450e covers 49 EPA-estimated electric miles, and the X5 xDrive50e and Lexus RX 450h+ each cover 38. For a Cobb Parkway commute inside those ranges you may use no gasoline on a normal day, provided you can charge at home.

On verified manufacturer ratings, two vehicles tie at the top: the Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 4MATIC at 7,700 lb and the Audi Q7 55 TFSI at 7,700 lb. The BMW X5 comes next at 7,200 lb. Every one of those figures requires the factory hitch — BMW states this explicitly, Audi requires its towing package and a 7-pin adapter, and Mercedes does not state a hitch requirement on its own page, which is worth confirming with your Nalley associate before you buy for towing. Below the German three, the Q7 45 TFSI drops to 4,400 lb — a big gap inside one nameplate, so check which engine you are looking at. Among three-rows, the Acura MDX SH-AWD, Honda Pilot AWD, Kia Telluride, Hyundai Palisade and Grand Highlander all rate 5,000 lb. Three caveats attach to that: the Palisade needs trailer brakes to reach it and drops to 1,650 lb without them, the Palisade Hybrid maxes out at 4,000 lb, and the Grand Highlander reaches 5,000 lb with either the 2.4-litre turbo gas engine or the Hybrid MAX while its standard hybrid tows 3,500. The Lexus RX is the weakest here at 3,500 lb. One stale number we removed: the 2025 Telluride X-Pro was rated 5,500 lb, and that rating did not carry over to the all-new 2027. Both the 2027 Telluride and its X-Pro trim rate 5,000 lb, and the new Telluride Hybrid rates 4,500.

Mountain roads reward torque and all-wheel drive. The BMW X5 M60i at 523 hp and 553 lb-ft is the performance answer, and the MDX Type S at 355 hp with SH-AWD is the value-per-horsepower answer. Both are premium-fuel vehicles on long grades. For a family that wants three rows and does not need to break traction records, the Telluride Hybrid at 329 hp and Palisade Hybrid at 329 hp are well matched, and the Grand Highlander Hybrid MAX at 362 hp tows 5,000 lb where the standard Grand Highlander Hybrid manages only 3,500 — an inversion buyers routinely get backwards.

Atlanta to Savannah is about 250 miles of open I-16, which is a cargo-and-comfort question more than an efficiency one. For maximum luggage with the family aboard, the Kia Telluride's 22.3 cu ft behind the third row leads the three-rows, and the Honda Pilot's 48.5 cu ft behind the second row leads once you fold row three. Two-row travellers do better still: the BMW X5 offers 33.9 cu ft behind the second row and the GLE 33.3. The Lexus RX has 29.6. Audi publishes no cargo figures at all for the 2026 Q7 — the 68.1 cu ft seats-folded number in circulation is third-party — so we cannot place it in this ranking honestly.

Yes, with one distinction worth stating. Eight of the nine nameplates here are Nalley new-car franchises — Lexus, Acura, Toyota, Honda, Kia, Hyundai, BMW and Audi — and any of them can be bought start to finish through Clicklane: browse real inventory, take an instant trade-in offer, choose financing from multiple lenders, and sign digitally, with no dealership visit required at any point. Nalley holds no Mercedes-Benz franchise, so a GLE reaches us as a pre-owned unit rather than a new car. It is still buyable online; it is simply not a new-car purchase here. Then choose home delivery or pickup at any of Nalley's 15 Atlanta-area locations. Every eligible Clicklane purchase carries a 7-day / 1,000-mile return period with no restocking fee — whichever of the two comes first. The fine print worth knowing up front: you cover the cost of getting the vehicle back to us, refunds take up to seven business days to process, and if your trade-in has already been sold or gone into reconditioning we pay you its allowance rather than returning the car. After the sale you have 15 local service centers and 5 I-CAR Gold collision centers behind you. Nalley has served Georgia drivers since 1918.

A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle has a battery large enough to drive on electricity alone for a meaningful distance, then runs as a conventional hybrid once the charge is used. You can charge it at home overnight; you never have to. Three appear on this page. The Mercedes-Benz GLE 450e 4MATIC has the longest electric range at 49 EPA-estimated miles, makes 381 hp combined, and is the only one here that accepts DC fast charging — 10 to 80 percent in about 20 minutes at 60 kW. The BMW X5 xDrive50e covers 38 electric miles with 483 hp and a full AC charge in about two hours. The Lexus RX 450h+ also covers 38 electric miles and carries the longest hybrid-battery warranty of the three at 10 years / 150,000 miles. The RX 450h+ and the X5 xDrive50e are Nalley franchises; the GLE is not, so a 450e comes to us pre-owned. Three honest caveats. Lexus does not publish a combined horsepower figure for the 450h+ in its US materials, so we leave it blank rather than repeat the 366 hp number that actually belongs to the RX 500h. Mercedes drops the 450e for 2027, replacing it with the 429 hp GLE 500e and the 577 hp AMG GLE 53e, so a 450e is now a used-market proposition either way. And there is no federal clean vehicle tax credit available on any of these — the credit terminated for vehicles acquired after September 30, 2025.

No, and any page still telling you otherwise is out of date — including an earlier version of this one. The federal provision that allowed alternative-fuel vehicles to use Georgia HOV lanes with a single occupant expired on September 30, 2025. Since then, an alternative-fuel vehicle must carry two or more occupants to use an HOV lane anywhere in Georgia, exactly like any other vehicle. Three related corrections. Georgia's program is the Alternative Fuel Vehicle (AFV) license plate — there is no "Clean Energy Vehicle" or "CEV" plate. The annual AFV fee is $238.59 for a non-commercial vehicle as of July 1, 2026, and the plate runs about $293.59 a year all in once the $20 registration and $35 special-tag fees are added, plus a one-time $25 manufacturing fee and your ad valorem — so applying for it buys a cost rather than a benefit if a lane was your reason. And GA-400 has no HOV lanes at all; Georgia's HOV network runs on I-20, I-75 and I-85. Express lanes are a separate system: the tolled lanes on I-85 in Gwinnett, the I-75 Northwest Corridor and I-75 South Metro are open to any vehicle that pays, with no plate or occupancy requirement. The GA-400 Express Lanes broke ground in April 2026 with substantial completion expected in 2031. Buy a plug-in for the fuel savings, the quiet, and the home-charging convenience. Those are real. The lane is not.

No. Kia skipped the 2026 model year for the Telluride entirely. The sequence runs from the 2025 model to an all-new 2027 that went on sale in the first quarter of 2026. Our own Telluride inventory reflects that gap: new 2027s alongside pre-owned 2024s and earlier, with nothing badged 2026 because nothing was built that way. If you see a "2026 Telluride" advertised anywhere, it is a mislabeled 2025 or 2027. The generation change matters beyond the badge. The 2027 moves from a 291 hp V6 to a 274 hp 2.5-litre turbo four, adds a 329 hp Hybrid for the first time, grows to 199.2 inches, and gains cargo space behind the third row (22.3 cu ft, up from 21.0). It also loses towing capacity on the X-Pro, from 5,500 lb to 5,000.

Four of the nine. The BMW X5 is a Top Safety Pick+. The Hyundai Palisade is a Top Safety Pick+, but the award applies only to vehicles built after November 2025 — check the door-jamb sticker, because an early-build 2026 Palisade is not covered. The 2027 Kia Telluride is a Top Safety Pick+ on vehicles built after June 2026, and the build date matters there too: its headlights rate Good on those later builds and Marginal on anything built before July 2026. The Audi Q7 is a Top Safety Pick, not a Pick+, and it is rated in the large-SUV class. The Lexus RX, Acura MDX, Toyota Grand Highlander, Honda Pilot and Mercedes-Benz GLE hold no 2026 award. Three of them did win the year before: the MDX and Pilot were 2025 Top Safety Picks, and the GLE a 2025 Top Safety Pick+ when fitted with the optional pedestrian front crash prevention system. Two things worth saying clearly. "No 2026 award" does not mean a vehicle is unsafe; IIHS raises its criteria most years, and a vehicle can lose an award it held the year before without anything about the car changing. And do not confuse siblings: the Lexus NX, BMW X3, Audi Q5, Mercedes GLC and Honda Passport all won 2026 awards while the RX, GLE and Pilot did not.

Eight of the nine carry an NHTSA overall rating, and the spec table above labels each one with the model year that was actually tested, because NHTSA does not re-test every nameplate every year. Seven are 5 stars overall: the Lexus RX 350, Toyota Grand Highlander, Hyundai Palisade and Audi Q7 on 2026 testing, and the Honda Pilot, Kia Telluride and front-drive Acura MDX on 2025 testing. The BMW X5 is 4 stars overall on 2025 testing of the all-wheel-drive version; the rear-drive X5 has no overall rating. Three gaps are worth naming rather than papering over. The all-wheel-drive MDX has no overall rating, so the 5-star figure belongs to the front-drive car only. The Mercedes-Benz GLE has no overall rating at all — it scored 5 stars in the side test and 4 in rollover, but the frontal test has not been run, and NHTSA will not compute an overall figure without it. And the Telluride's most recent entry is the 2025 model, with nothing yet for the all-new 2027. A missing rating is missing data, not a poor result, which is why we print the gap rather than borrowing a number from a different model year. You can look up any of it yourself at nhtsa.gov/ratings.