Buick is in a strange place. As Cadillac’s more flashy and sporty shadows are so widespread in the brand, Buick sticks to softness, especially with high-end Avenir trims, to provide a unique product enough to win its own badge. I chose that. The recently redesigned 2022 Enclave best shows how Buick is positioned in the United States. It’s pretty boring, but pretty comfortable and well-equipped.
The shape of the three-row family crossover is the least daring from the start. The 2022 Enclave look redesign looks fresher than it used to be, but it’s still not a lot of headaches. Replacing the integrated headlights with two-layer headlights makes the front very sharp, but removing the badge from the rear can easily be confused with Mazda and other mass market family machines. There is sex. The Avenir badge and the unique grille help make it stand out a bit, but it’s not really any other enclave.
The interior has some ups rather than downs. The Enclave Avenir dashboard is well designed and offers some interesting angles out of the way. The leather looks nice, but I wish Avenir’s matte wood trim was provided, as well as the door panels and center console. Instead, the dash picks up dirt and wears a piano black plastic strip that feels a little cheap. Half of the controls are parts bin GM bits. The ugly gear lever is gone and instead there is a better set of buttons that takes less time to get used to. The rear window does not have an auto-up function. This is Detroit’s signature cost savings that shouldn’t really happen with a $ 60,000 SUV.
2022 Buick Enclave Avenir Drive likes a large bowl of molasses
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But even with those warts, practicality and comfort ooze out everywhere. Enclave front seats packed with tester ventilation and massage are very comfortable. The center console is tall, but in addition to the large cubies under the armrests, there’s a hidden hole in the honkin under the gear levers, and a large door pocket allows you to pick up everything that’s left around. The second row captain’s chairs are as soft as the front seats, and even with the rails ratcheted as far forward as possible, a 6-foot beanpole like me has amazing space. If you move the captain’s chair even a little, the third row of power folding will be an impressive foot space, and the headroom is perfect for adults. Behind the third row is 23.6 cubic feet of cargo space, enough space to push out family-worthy groceries and a few weekender bags, and an impressive 57.7 cube storage for the return trip. The space expands.
The 2022 Buick Enclave Avenir’s on-road character is best described as perhaps slowly and stable, as all inputs are fed through a David Gilmour delay pedal, or a bowl of molasses. .. When you turn to a corner, your body takes a second to react to the roll. When leaning on the accelerator pedal, the 3.6-liter V6 takes 1 second to convert the throttle position to motive power, but when the 9-speed transmission finally settles in gear, it gives the engine 310 horsepower and 266 pound-foot torque. increase. Enough for most drivers. Step on the brake pedal and expect a little squish before it starts to slow down.
The Buick V6 is pretty energetic, but electrification is still in progress.
My tester is packing Buick’s $ 1,595 Avenir technology package. This feels like a mandatory addition. In addition to the more sophisticated headlights, the upgrade includes adaptive suspension that actually enhances the element of comfort. The annoying parts of the pavement have disappeared at your feet, leaving only a soft ride with a properly luxurious feel. There’s a sport mode that hardens things, but … well, it’s Buick, no one brings this to the switchback unless it’s on the way to the golf course.
The Buick Enclave can be used with either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, but the AWD does not actually affect fuel economy. The FWD model is rated in 18mpg cities and 26mpg highways, with AWD variations 1mpg lower in each scenario. The average 20mpg total isn’t necessarily commendable in 2022, but it’s about the same as competitors like Acura MDX (21 mpg total) and Lincoln Aviator (20). Maintaining a light right foot on the highway helped me see 30 mpg for a few minutes at a time. This is great, but even mild electrification would be fine.
Buick’s infotainment system is great, but it feels a bit lacking as industry-wide dashboards contain larger and larger screens.
On the technical side, the 2022 Enclave has almost everything you need, even if no one really gets the attention. The standard 8-inch infotainment display performs a new iteration of the Buick interface. It has all the latest flippers such as 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot, wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, etc., but the screen is a bit smaller. The latest standard (and based on the size of the dash that surrounds it). All three rows have a pair of USB ports, but only the front row has USB-C. Avenir includes a nice, bright heads-up display in addition to a gauge cluster display that shows all the usual information about the vehicle and infotainment system.
On the safety side, Enclave Avenir has everything that Buick can hit with an SUV, including automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, blind spot monitoring, lane keeping assistance, adaptive cruise control, parking sensors, haptic seat feedback, and surround. Comes with-view camera system. Do you know what it can be used for? Supercruise. Unfortunately, none of Buick offers GM’s limited hands-free technology. That’s because the entire lineup exists before the electrical and data processing upgrades needed to process it.
Buick’s ADAS is easy to use and it’s a shame that GM couldn’t find a way to make Supercruise work on this generation of vehicles.
For brands that aren’t even at the top of the conglomerate food chain, the 2022 Buick Enclave Avenir can be an expensive offer. The only upgrade for my AWD tester is the $ 1,595 package, which goes from $ 58,295 to $ 59,890 in base price and includes the required destination fee of $ 1,195. Fully loading this bad boy can send you a price close to the $ 65,000 territory. It equates it to a well-equipped Acura MDX Advance or Lincoln Aviator Reserve, both feel much more modern, and the latter packs a plug-in hybrid powertrain for some additional scratches. You can even do that. If you want to save some Simoleon, the full-featured Mazda CX-9 offers three rows of nappa leather seats for about $ 50,000, its engine is more powerful, but uses Mazda’s mid-ring infotainment. is needed. Hell, if you don’t need the third row, you’re sitting on a Mercedes-Benz GLE-class territory at this price point. that Being on top is a difficult act.
The 2022 Buick Enclave Avenir is sandwiched between rocks and hard ground. By focusing on efforts that are rewarded for smoothness and calm on the road above all else, he has done a good job of opening up a unique niche for the GM hierarchy, but stands out as it brings new customers through the dealer’s doors. There are no elements. That might be enough for legacy buyers, but not enough for the waves of larger SUVs that are more impressive than ever.