Overview & Reviews

Buick has been on the upswing the past few years, introducing new models that are much more desirable than its mediocre past products. The Buick Enclave was one of the first vehicles to point Buick in the right direction.

The Enclave shares a platform with GM's latest group of large crossovers and features an upscale interior, a powerful 3.6-liter V6 and plenty of room for both passengers and cargo. If you're looking for a new or used large luxury crossover SUV with a number of family-friendly features -- such as a roomy cabin with easily accessed and adult-friendly third-row seats -- the Enclave is one of the better choices available.

Current Buick Enclave
The Buick Enclave is a full-size crossover SUV powered by a 3.6-liter V6 rated at 288 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque. A six-speed automatic and front-wheel drive are standard. All-wheel drive is optional.

There are three trim levels: Convenience, Leather and Premium, all with standard seven-passenger seating. An available second-row bench seat increases capacity to eight.

The Enclave with Convenience Group comes with 18-inch wheels, xenon headlights, a power liftgate, tri-zone automatic climate control, a rearview camera, Bluetooth connectivity, smartphone app integration and OnStar. The Leather Group adds 19-inch wheels, a blind-spot warning system, rear cross-traffic alert, leather upholstery, heated front seats, a power passenger seat and driver memory settings. The Premium trim level features lane-departure and forward collision warning systems, active headlights, a power tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, ventilated front seats and a 10-speaker Bose audio system. Option highlights include 20-inch wheels, a navigation system, a rear-seat DVD entertainment system and a dual-panel sunroof.

In reviews, we've praised the Enclave's spacious and pleasant interior, with its gently curving dash, rich-looking wood-grain inlays and soft, double-stitched leather. Adding interest are a Tiffany-style analog clock and aqua blue instrumentation. Access to the third row is excellent, with second-row seats that tilt and slide out of the way, and there are a useful 23 cubic feet of space behind the upright third-row seat. Folding down both rows yields a class-leading 115 cubic feet of cargo space. If you need more space for people or cargo, you won't find it in another crossover.

The Buick Enclave's V6 provides quick acceleration, along with a mildly sporty exhaust note. The six-speed automatic transmission shifts smoothly. On the highway, the Enclave is quiet and smooth-riding, though some buyers may find that the optional 20-inch wheels degrade the ride noticeably. Overall handling is competent and predictable, though not necessarily the equal of its more driver-oriented (or smaller) rivals.

Used Buick Enclave Models
The Buick Enclave debuted for the 2008 model year and overall, any used Enclave will be a solid choice for an upscale, family-friendly crossover SUV.

In its first year, the V6 had a lower output of 275 hp and 251 lb-ft of torque. The following year welcomed the direct-injection 3.6-liter V6 (power increased to 288 hp and 270 lb-ft of torque) as well as other upgrades that included Bluetooth connectivity and a traffic feature for the navigation system. Until 2010, there were just two trim levels – base CX and luxury CXL. Also, for the first two model years the transmission could be lazy to downshift due to its fuel-economy-biased programming. For 2010, the transmission was reprogrammed for quicker response. Additionally, Enclaves from 2008-'12 have slightly different exterior styling than the current model as well as some lower-quality switchgear.

The Enclave's current, more descriptive trim levels of base, Convenience, Leather and Premium arrived for 2012. Two years later saw the addition of the lane departure and forward collision warning systems.

User Reviews:

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  Night mare - 2009 Buick Enclave
  By JK Mir - December 21 - 11:27 am

  Bought it new 2009 1. All steering wheel hydraulic parts had to be replaced 2. Water pump went bad 3. Now transmission is gone.

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  Not my luck - 2008 Buick Enclave
  By Dorathy - November 9 - 9:51 pm

  I bought the Enclave in Apr 2008, I have only 44,500 miles always to it to the dealership for any maintenace to include oil changes. I have to tell you the car is a money pit. I have had 2 recalls on bought the extended warranty. In the last 12 months I have spent $2500. Last December I had it checked out and they flushed and replaced the brake fluid. Front end alignment. So now I took it in for a check for a road trip. Well I found out the master cylinder and booster on the brakes needed to be replaced. The rack and pinion steering had to be replaced, also the the timing chain cover was leaking oil into the engine and needs the gasket to be replaced, front struts need replacing and the navigation system isnt working and to fix I would have to replace the entire radio system. I needed a front end alignment after they replaced the rack and pinion, another $90. The buttons to turn the fan up or down turned green after the black peeled off. The car has never been in an accident and kept it serviced and at 44,500 it falls apart. I will never by a Buick again. The repairs costs as much as the resale value.

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  My wife loves it but it has issues - 2015 Buick Enclave
  By Tony M - September 15 - 1:02 pm

  This is our second Enclave. As with the first, a strut needed to be replaced before 20k miles (both needed front right strut?), and as with the first one continuous transmission slippage between 2nd and 3rd gears. My second one also has motor-mounts that need to be replaced (31k miles on it)! It is currently in the shop where they are replacing the motor-mounts and have replicated and are trouble shooting the transmission slippage. They are most likely design/quality issues. I work with an exceptional dealership (Carl Black in Atl), and they have been the difference between me walking away from Buick vs. "Sticking it out" as they work out the kinks.

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  Second Impressions - 2015 Buick Enclave
  By Paul Horvick - September 6 - 8:40 am

  I wrote the earlier review shortly after we took delivery of the vehicle. It was (and is) a solid vehicle. But...I am downgrading our 5 stars to 3. We apparently did not do a great job in test driving it. In addition to the less than smooth ride noted earlier, the middle row of seats are, for most adults, very cramped and uncomfortable. My wife, about 56", complains that the leg room is really tight when the front seats are all the way back. I tried it also (I am 510") and would never want to ride in the middle row. (Yes, we had the middle row moved back as far as we could). So, couple the relatively harsh ride, the inadequate middle row seating for adults, then this becomes just an average vehicle...one that had we done better due diligence, we would not have purchased. Yes, good looking, quiet, nice technology, ...a solid feeling car....but one that, in hindsight, we should not have purchased. Before buying, do a better job of test driving than we did!

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  Cylinders - 2009 Buick Enclave
  By sdj - August 26 - 2:25 pm

  Bought my car with 4000 miles in 2010. A year after I bought it it started kicking back when on cruise and going uphill. Took it in to dealership. They said they replaced this and that but every year after that I kept taking it back for the same problem of kicking back when going uphill. As soon as the warranty ran out I had to take it in again and this time ended up paying over $700 to fix two of the cylinders. Have tried cleaning out carbon. It is even worse now than it ever was. Cant drive it with cruise on because it has started kicking back even on straight flat roads. Check engine light constantly comes on and we have spent close to $1500 just trying to get things looked at to try and figure out the problem. Have called GM to try and have them reimburse my dollars and stand behind their product but they wont. For such a huge company, its too bad that they treat their customers this way. Im disgusted and now looking to get rid of it with 76K miles. I do not recommend purchasing this vehicle to anyone. I wont even try to sell it outright because I wouldnt feel right selling it to another innocent individual.

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  Make a mistake going from my Tahoe to this - 2011 Buick Enclave
  By Anna S - August 15 - 11:47 pm

  I gave up my Tahoe to go to this because my two older children had moved out of the house and I did not need such a large vehicle. I intended on keeping this car for many years and giving it my daughter when she started driving. It has been in the shop with so many issues we now intend on trading it in next year and going back to a Tahoe. We have had problems from the motor mount, the drive train, the axle bearings and several other things. Thank goodness we had bought an extended warranty so we have not had much out of pocket cost. The Buick dealership has been very nice and apologetic about all the problems. It is a comfortable car but it is not as comfortable as I feel it should be.

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  Beware! Unreliable! - 2009 Buick Enclave
  By hchambley - December 10 - 1:35 pm

  I purchased my used 2009 Enclave approx. 6 months ago. Carfax report looked good and a friend of mine had one and loved it. I have loved and sang praises of my new car! I traded my 2009 Yukon XL for this car to save on gas and loved the downsize and savings. Since I purchased my Yukon brand new and never had issues, I opted out of the extended warranty on this car thinking I wouldnt have issues either. Boy was I wrong! Within a month one of the coil packs went out but it was replaced at no charge under dealership 30 day warranty. About a month and a half ago I started having transmission problems and my transmission needed to be replaced. Within two weeks of it being replaced started

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  Do not buy a 2008-2009 Enclave - 2008 Buick Enclave
  By mgaston - September 24 - 12:43 pm

  Look at Consumer Reports for its ratings on quality as well but you will have nothing but expensive repairs for the early model years. GM knows this but fails to support their customer base. They wanted new customers and got them but we are now leavaing. In later model years it looks ike they have fixed some of the problems but I would not feel comfortable after this kind of hell. I have had (2) transmissions (I paid for one $3200), rack n pion steering ~$1600, power steering pump ~$1200, shocks and struts at 75K miles (too early)- ~$1K, several steering related componens~$500 all within six months ($7.5K). The vehicle is only worth $18K. Be very cautious.

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  Never Buy GM Again - 2008 Buick Enclave
  By mgarner1234 - September 5 - 3:12 pm

  I bought this 2008 Enclave less than a month ago. Brought it in for a slight humming noise at low speed. After "evaluation" they wanted over $2000.00 to "fix" everything. Owned a Toyota that had over 216000 miles and never had to put $2000 in to "fix" it. The Buick has less than 60000 miles. Called and spoke to the service manager at McKinney Buick as they wanted 50% more than a standard repair shop and they will not budge on their over priced repairs. Then they wanted us to pay for a loaner car for the week it took them to diagnose the problems. Any other shop could diagnose and fix in 1-2 days. I have always owned Toyotas and know I remember why. If you value $$$ stay away from GM/Buick.

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  No cell phones in Front Seat - 2012 Buick Enclave
  By mspeach789 - March 27 - 10:56 am

  The seat belt alarm keeps going off in my 2012 Enclave. The dealer gave me a service notice ID 3120743/ 08-09-41-0071. This states that any electronic device in the front seat or audio cords or large drinks will cause the seat belt alarm to ping. This is NOT TO BE REPAIRED. If you want a cell phone, iPad or audio cord in the front you have to click the seat belt. GM can not give me any assurance that with said interference the air bags will deploy. GM Customer Service stated "The Vehicle is designed to do that" REALLY? I dont think so. They inadequately shielded the module and now dont want to fix it.