2025 Buick Enclave

The Enclave is Buick's flagship — the brand's largest and most luxurious SUV. For its third generation, that statement is more accurate than ever thanks to the addition of General Motors' Super Cruise hands-free driver assistance system, a major in-car tech upgrade and generally fancier accommodations.

Buick says the new Enclave is larger than its predecessor, and the SUV wears updated styling that better brings it in line with the automaker's other SUVs. Influence from the 2022 Wildcat concept is evident up front, and Buick's done a good job of differentiating the Enclave from its corporate cousins, the Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia.

What's under the Enclave's hood?

All 2025 model-year Enclaves get a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 328 horsepower and 326 lb-ft of torque. An eight-speed automatic transmission is standard, and all-wheel drive is optional on every trim level. Compared to the outgoing Enclave with its 3.6-liter naturally aspirated V6, the new turbo-four has an additional 18 hp and 60 lb-ft of torque. Buick says this new powertrain is more efficient, so expect small gains over the previous front-wheel-drive Enclave's EPA estimates of 21 mpg combined (18 city/26 highway).

Buyers can also spec a tow package that upgrades engine cooling, raising the SUV's max trailering rating to 5,000 pounds. The standard tow rating is only 1,500 pounds, so for anyone doing regular hauling, the tow package is a must-have.

How does the Enclave drive?

After driving the new Chevy Traverse a few months ago, we noted that the four-cylinder underhood was a little intrusive for our liking, and we were hoping that Buick remedied that issue in the Enclave. While the Buick's cabin is generally quieter than the Traverse's, its engine is just as noisy.

There's plenty of power from the four-cylinder, but the harder you accelerate the noisier it becomes. We were more willing to forgive this in the less expensive Chevy, but for an SUV like the Enclave trying to position itself as luxurious, the engine is anything but. After hours on the road, we came away thinking that it would benefit greatly from a quieter, and therefore more Buick-like, powertrain.

Engine manners aside, we found a lot to like about the Enclave on the road. The suspension is well damped and very comfortable. Interestingly, we found the ride quality of the less expensive ST trim level even better than that of the top-trim Avenir, which has a fancy adaptive suspension. The steering is light and easy to operate, just like a luxury product should be. With a more sophisticated powertrain, the Enclave would be a total home run. Come to think of it, Buick's ideal customer for the Enclave would probably love a hybrid powertrain option. Not only would it solve some of the noise issues but it'd return better fuel economy as well.

How's the Enclave's interior?

More than ever before, the Enclave has a level of fit and finish that better compares with its luxury-brand rivals. We especially love the two-tone blue-and-cream cabin offered on the Enclave Avenir, which gives it a distinct personality all its own. The seats could use a bit more side bolstering to hold you in place when you drive around corners, but apart from that, this is a very comfortable, well-designed interior.

The Enclave has seating for up to seven passengers, and plush second-row captain's chairs are available. Buick doesn't offer ventilated second-row seats or a heated third row, which are starting to become more common in the luxury world. Space in the back two rows feels above average for the segment — an average-size adult could fit in any of the seats and be just fine. A large cargo area is accessed via a hands-free liftgate (no kick necessary; just approach with the key in your pocket and it opens), and the rear seats can be folded electronically. There is nearly 23 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row, and that number swells to 97 cubes with both rows folded. That's one of the biggest cargo areas you'll find in a midsize three-row SUV.

How's the Enclave's tech?

The Enclave gets a swanky new 30-inch curved display, housing both a digital gauge cluster and a touchscreen infotainment system. It looks great, and thankfully, unlike some other new GM vehicles, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration are still included — with wireless connectivity, to boot.

After using the system on the road for a few hours, we did notice that the screen's severe curvature means that the CarPlay projection is quite small, at least by modern standards. The same is true of the camera display, which shows up on a small section of the huge screen. That said, the native Google-based maps system is the best way to do it. Not only does it take up the whole screen, but it works just as seamlessly as using your phone.

The biggest upgrade for the 2025 Enclave is GM's Super Cruise hands-free driving tech. It's available as an option on all Enclave trim levels and offers genuine hands-free driving capabilities on hundreds of thousands of miles of premapped roads in the United States and Canada. GM says that, by the end of 2025, Super Cruise will work on more than 750,000 miles of roadways across North America.

This SUV is at its best coasting along the highway, preferably with Super Cruise activated. We've found Super Cruise is the most helpful hands-free system on sale today, and like so many other GM vehicles we've tested with the system, the Enclave was outstanding.

What are the Enclave's trim levels?

The 2025 Buick Enclave is available in three trim levels: Preferred, ST and Avenir. A 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder (328 horsepower, 326 lb-ft of torque) is the sole engine offering, paired with an eight-speed transmission and front-wheel drive. All-wheel drive is optional on every trim.

Preferred

Comes standard with:

• 20-inch wheels
• Power tailgate with hands-free operation
• 12-speaker Bose audio system
• Heated front seats and steering wheel
• 30-inch integrated instrument panel and infotainment display
• Google integration with Maps and Assistant
• Wireless connectivity for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay

All Enclaves also have:

• Adaptive cruise control (maintains a driver-set distance between the Enclave and the car in front)
• Forward collision warning with automatic braking (warns you of an impending collision and applies the brakes in certain scenarios)
• Intersection collision mitigation (warns you of an impending collision during a left turn and applies the brakes in certain scenarios)
• 360-degree camera system (gives you a top-down view of the Enclave and its surroundings in tight parking situations)
• Lane keeping assistance (steers the Enclave back into its lane if it begins to drift over the lane marker)
• Blind-spot warning with rear cross-traffic warning (alerts you if a vehicle is in your blind spot during a lane change or while in reverse)

Sport Touring

The Sport Touring keeps the Preferred's standard equipment and adds some visual changes such as:

• Black grille surround and inserts
• Black-painted wheels
• Flat-bottom steering wheel
• ST-specific interior trim pieces

Avenir

Tops off the Enclave lineup with:

• Adaptive suspension
• 22-inch wheels
• Panoramic sunroof
• Premium leather upholstery
• Ventilated and massaging front seats
• Heated second-row seats
• Power-folding operation for the third-row seats
• 16-speaker Bose audio system
• Head-up display (displays important information in your sight line on the windshield

Super Cruise, the hands-free driving assist sytem, is optional on all Enclave trim levels.

Competitors to consider

Within the General Motors family, the Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia are closely related to the Buick Enclave. The Traverse offers the lowest starting price of the trio, while the GMC takes a more off-road-ready approach. Buick hopes to capture the luxury-minded audience with the Enclave. Another three-row with a big emphasis on luxury is the Lincoln Aviator. Finally, the Lexus TX has similar space and comes with an available hybrid powertrain.

The Enclave does enough to separate itself from the rest of its GM platform-sharing cousins, the Traverse and Acadia. It could do with a more luxurious powertrain (and a hybrid option), but the rest of the SUV is a win for the brand.

The Buick Enclave is a three-row crossover and the largest vehicle in Buick's lineup. The current Enclave has been on sale since 2018, so we expect Buick to fully redesign the model for 2025. The Enclave is a close relative of the Chevrolet Traverse, another three-row crossover that benefited from a full redesign itself for the 2024 model year. As such, look for features from the Traverse like updated tech, enhanced driver aids and better appointments in the interior. We also expect the Enclave to drop its V6 in favor of a more efficient turbocharged four-cylinder engine.

Edmunds spotlight: All-new for 2025

The Enclave and Traverse have been tied together since the first generation debuted for the 2008 model year. Given the Traverse's redesign for 2024, we expect the Enclave to follow suit for 2025. In addition to fresh styling both inside and out, the Enclave should benefit from upgrades found in the Traverse like a 17.7-inch infotainment system and the availability of GM's Super Cruise hands-free highway driving. We expect the Enclave to use the new Traverse's 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-four (315 horsepower, 317 lb-ft of torque) in place of a V6. While we haven't seen the new Enclave, we also suspect the interior will get more premium materials in an effort to separate it from the more mainstream Chevy.

Competitors to consider

The Chevrolet Traverse is the most direct competitor as it's essentially the same vehicle underneath the sheetmetal. The Enclave and Traverse are among the most spacious SUVs on the market and are good options if you need to carry lots of people or cargo. Still, we think three-rows like the Kia Telluride, Hyundai Palisade, Toyota Grand Highlander and Mazda CX-90 all offer comfortable, practical and well-appointed packaging at a price that we expect to significantly undercut the Buick.