Buick’s latest ad campaigns, have been successful by poking fun at Buick’s longtime association with the senior set, and have shattered the “false familiarity” many U.S. consumers have with the brand. Despite having been around since 2007 and lacking some equipment it’s competitors offer, the 2016 Buick Encore AWD we had for a week, is actually pretty good. First off it doesn’t actually look very big but look over your shoulder from the drivers seat and the seats go on forever. Of the 3 iterations of this platform, which include the  Chevy Traverse and GMC Acadia, we think the Buick looks the best. Ours came with a new color for 2016, White Frost Tricoat and a leather interior named Choccachino. That’s a shade of light brown for the uninitiated. Apart from the paint new for 2016  is Onstar 4G LTE connectivity with W-Fi hotspot and standard 19 inch wheels (our tester had the optional 20 inchers).

 

Photography by Mai Krakauer

What makes it go?

Now with direct injection the 3.6L 24-valve V-6 makes a healthy 288 hp @ 6,300 rpm and 270 lb-ft @ 3,400 rpm, which is enough to propel the Enclave to 60 mph in 8.1 seconds. It’s certainly not quick and most of it’s rivals are quicker including the 2017 Audi Q7 which we hustled to 60 in 5.98 seconds. Other competitors in this segment include the Volvo XC90, the Lexus RX 350 and the Lincoln MKT. Unless you need to carve up the canyons the Buick works pretty well and we were particularly impressed with its smooth and quiet ride. Most of the time you can’t hear the engine working and unless you really cane it, it’s as quiet as a mouse. Even in the upper rev range it remains composed with no sign of strain. We spent most of our time cruising around, never exceeding 80 mph, which is usually hard for our lead feet, and enjoying the peace and quiet.

On road handling is super comfortable and the Buick wafts along as if you are driving on pillows. In the corners it hold on pretty well but lacks punch during passing maneuvers. The transmission wants to waft along too, so when you ask for more it’s a little slow to down-change if you need some urgent acceleration. Better to enjoy it at a slower pace. The steering is fairly precise and gives enough feedback to know what the front wheels are doing. Its overall dynamics feel secure and confident. It is a large and heavy vehicle and backing out of parking spaces can be a challenge, however the standard backup camera helps in most cases.

Interior

At the top end of the Enclave spectrum is the Premium (53,585), which comes with excellent ventilated front seats. We had no problem finding a perfect driving position in these chairs. The interior volume is quite impressive, our car had the captains seats in the second row making getting in and out of the 3rd row much easier. The third row fits most adults in reasonable comfort and there is more cargo room behind them than a the GMC Yukon offers. We were able to fit 5 adults and 2 dogs for one particular trip.

Some of the instruments are looking a bit dated but everything works and is where it should be. We did have trouble finding the rear hatch control but that was user error. As well as the aformentioned seats, the Buick had a very good Bose sound system, navigation system, a power tilt steering wheel, dynamic headlights, blue LED ambient lighting, IntelliLink multimedia interface with a color touchscreen, power liftgate, heated front seats, heated wood-trimmed steering wheel (we thought the wheel was too thin), HID headlights, and three-zone climate control. Add to that the ability to tow up to 4,500 lbs.

What We Think

Surprise comes to mind after using the Enclave for a week as my daily driver. Even though the 2016 Buick Enclave is showing its age, specifically with the slightly dated instrument clusters and gauges, we never felt like it couldn’t handle anything we threw at it. It was a very enjoyable way to get to the office every day. If you don’t drive fast, have a gaggle of kids and want a trusty 7/8 seater SUV, sprinkled with luxury, then you can’t go wrong with the Enclave.

2016 Buick Enclave AWD Stats

BASE PRICE: $49,515
PRICE AS TESTED: $53,585
VEHICLE LAYOUT: Front-engine, AWD, 7-pass, 5 door SUV
ENGINE: 3.6L DOHC VVT direct injection 24-valve V-6
POWER: 288 hp @ 6,300 rpm
TORQUE: 270 lb-ft @ 3,400 rpm
TRANSMISSION: Hydra-Matic 6T75 six-speed automatic
CURB WEIGHT: 4,922 lbs
0-60 MPH: 8.1 Secs
QUARTER MILE: 16.5ec
EPA CITY/HWY: 16/22 mpg
OBSERVED FUEL ECONOMY: 14.5 mpg