Buick Has Something Cute and Luxe to Show You: Meet the Buick Envista Compact SUV
Luxury, comfort and tech, and the new look of Buick play out in the Buick Envista compact SUV, a well-priced coupe-style, premium SUV hitting the market this summer.
This car is all about you. Don’t you love that?
Here’s what we have always loved about Buick: it’s all about what you want and need for all those hours you spend in the car. And that’s the idea behind the Buick Envista compact SUV, which will be priced from $23K-$29K and will go on sale later this summer.
It starts with luxury features, like leather (or leatherette) because, well, this isn’t a negotiable; a wireless phone charger and elegant soft-touch surfaces; beautiful colors, from cream upholstery to lovely exterior tones of platinum and pearl white; a quiet ride and thoughtful touches, like a sunroof and Apple CarPlay.
And, the higher ground clearance, flexible interior space and comfortable seating that we love SUVs for, though it’s worth noting that the Envista is not available in all wheel drive; it is front wheel drive only.
For 2024, Buick is also giving its customers a fresh new modern look with a new logo, new headlights and tail lights, and overall, a more refined look. The Envista is the first Buick to carry all the new design details, as well as more luxury, more technology and more features as it leads Buick into the future.
The Sexiest Buick … Ever?
It might just be. Look at the silhouette of the Envista: It’s pert. It’s muscular. It’s cute. And, its coupe-like shape is compact, but not so compact that nothing will fit. It has a sizable cargo area with 20 cubic feet of space, and a roomy rear seat — seriously roomy for a compact SUV, I thought when I sat in the seat. That’s because while Envista is built on the same platform at the Encore GX, it’s 11” longer, providing more cargo and passenger space. And despite the sloping coupe-like roofline, headroom seemed fine in the rear seat too (for me, at least, and I’m 5’8”).
The Envista is powered by a 3 cylinder turbo engine that generates 136 HP and 162 torque. That’s enough power for its size and should be fully confident merging onto the highway and handling daily driving. And, the smaller engine size means it should be pretty fuel efficient; it’s estimated to get about 30 MPG city/highway combined.
There are three Envista trims that range from sporty to luxury: Preferred, ST and Avenir, which is the name for Buick’s top luxury trim. It features a premium leather interior usually only found in more expensive cars.
Capping the new look is the new Buick logo: It’s fresh, light and elegant, and it crowns the front hood, the rear tailgate and the center of the steering wheel.
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A New Face for Buick
Look at the front face of the Envista—as well as the new Encore GX—and you’ll see where Buick is headed with its future design: simple and elegant. The new logo interprets the traditional Buick tri-shield as a triumvirate of shield silhouettes, each with an interior shadow of red, white or blue. The new logo plays out across the front hood above the grille and is framed by new headlights that are glowing angles of light.
The look continues on the rear with similarly glowing angled taillights, the Buick name spelled out across the lift gate under the logo, the model name neatly tucked to the left and the trim name to the right.
We spent time in both the ST and the Avenir model—avenir is French for ‘future’ (and coincidentally happens to be my favorite typeface for its elegant simplicity)—to get a feel for what each trim holds for customers. While I knew to expect lovely details in the Avenir model, the ST was surprisingly lovely too— especially priced at $25,195.
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Elegant, Future-Forward Tech
Slide into the front seat and you’re immediately greeted by the new single pane multimedia system. This 19” screen is elegant and feels luxe, and, it’s standard, even in the entry level Preferred model. This is where you’ll find an 11” multimedia screen with controls for music, vehicle settings, phone and other functions. And when you connect your phone, you’ll get Apple CarPlay or Android Auto – which you’ll need for navigation.
On the left side of the panel is the driver information screen featuring the speed limit, the fuel gauge and the driver assist and safety systems in use.
The leather wrapped steering wheel features driver assist controls on the left, radio controls on the right and on the back of the steering wheel are volume and station navigation buttons (I love these).
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Smaller Price, More Space Than Its Encore GX Sibling
Comparing the 2024 Encore GX to the Envista, you’ll see a lot of similarities: the front end shows the sibling relationship, and the layout in the front seat, including the flat panel screen, is similar. Being built on the same platform, this is a natural. However, the Envista is longer and has the sloped roof coupe-like shape, while the Encore GX has a square, more SUV like rear lift gate and cargo space.
The Envista is front wheel drive only, while the Encore GX has the AWD option. And, Encore GX has a panoramic sunroof in the Avenir edition. Those are the two major considerations between the two. So for many buyers it will come down to preference and price: Coupe-style SUV with a lower price tag, or classic SUV style, all wheel drive and panoramic sunroof for a bit more money (about $3K at the top end).
Related: My Love Affair With Cars Started With an Old Buick
Safety is Standard
The Envista comes with driver assist and safety features standard, including lane keep assist, lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking, front pedestrian braking, forward collision alert, follow distance indicator and automatic high beam headlights.
Buyers can add adaptive cruise control, rear park assist, rear cross traffic alert, blind spot monitoring and automatic rain sensing windshield wipers.
And of course, being Buick, OnStar and a wifi hotspot are included.
New Design Inspired by the Wildcat Concept Car
If you attended the Chicago Auto Show you may have seen the Buick Wildcat concept, a futuristic electric car. Take a closer look and you’ll also see a number of details in the Envista, including the new logo, the headlight inspiration, the sweeping roof line, sculptural proportions and subtle reflection in the side panels. SuperCar Blondie got an up-close look with Buick executive director of global design, Sharon Gauci.
While the Wildcat gives us something to dream about, the Envista lets us take the wheel on some of those details now. Its adorable shape, realistic size, space and price is a great option for first time car buyers, buyers downsizing from a larger SUV or those who just want a sexy, sporty SUV in their driveway. Expect to see its modern coupe-esque silhouette on the road soon.
Disclosure: I was Buick’s guest for this introduction event; travel and accommodations were provided but all opinions are my own.
Categorized:Car Reviews