2023 Buick Enclave: A three row SUV that plays it safe, and mostly wins because of it, Every three row SUV segment has a car that nobody cross shops for thrills. In this class, that car is the Enclave. Shoppers walk into a Buick showroom already knowing they are not buying a Telluride or a Palisade for the way it corners. They are buying it for the way it rides.
That is the entire personality of the 2023 Buick Enclave summed up in one sentence, and it is worth sitting with for a moment before diving into specifics. Buick built this SUV around a single idea: keep the road out of the cabin. Everything else, the styling, the tech, even the badge on the hood, supports that mission.
The Enclave competes in a segment packed with strong options. The Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade dominate value conversations. The Ford Explorer and Honda Pilot fight for family practicality. The Acura MDX and Lincoln Aviator pull buyers who want a slightly more premium badge without going full luxury. The Enclave sits in an odd middle spot, priced like a near luxury SUV but wearing a mainstream badge.
For 2023, Buick made almost no changes. A new paint color, new wheels on one package, and that is essentially it. This is a car in its final form before an eventual redesign, and that shows in both good and frustrating ways throughout this review.
Our Opinion
The 2023 Enclave does one thing extremely well. It isolates you from a rough road better than almost anything else in this price range. The cabin stays quiet, the ride stays smooth, and long trips feel shorter than they should.
Where it falls apart is everywhere else that matters to a modern buyer. The infotainment screen looks like it was designed five years before this model year even started. Fuel economy sits below segment average. And for the price Buick is asking on the Avenir trim, several competitors deliver more genuine luxury for similar money. This is a good SUV wrapped around some frustrating compromises, not a great one.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Exceptionally quiet and smooth ride quality
- Spacious third row that adults can actually use
- Strong standard safety tech across every trim
- Comfortable front seats with available massage function
- Solid cargo capacity behind the third row
Cons
- Infotainment screen and graphics feel dated
- Below average fuel economy for the class
- Handling feels disconnected, not confidence inspiring
- Avenir trim pricing edges into luxury territory without luxury materials
- Only one engine option, no hybrid alternative
What’s New for 2023
Buick kept this year quiet on purpose. The Enclave added Moonstone Gray Metallic to the color sheet, and the Sport Touring Edition package, available on the Essence trim, picked up new 20 inch gloss black wheels. That is the entire changelog.
This matters because it tells you exactly where the Enclave sits in its life cycle. The bigger update came in 2022, when Buick refreshed the styling and added more standard safety and infotainment features along with the Sport Touring package itself. If you are cross shopping a 2022 versus a 2023 model, know that you are essentially choosing based on price alone, since the hardware and feature set carried over nearly unchanged.
Exterior Design
Buick gave the Enclave a face that leans into the brand’s newer design language rather than looking like a leftover from the previous decade. The winged grille and slim LED headlights give it a presence that reads more upscale than the Chevrolet Traverse it shares a platform with, even though the two SUVs are mechanically close cousins.
Side profile is where the Enclave shows its size. This is a big SUV, and Buick does not try to hide that with aggressive character lines or fake vents. It is a clean, conservative shape that will not turn heads at a stoplight the way a Telluride’s boxier stance does, but it also will not look dated in five years.
The rear end carries the same restraint. Wide taillights and a subtle spoiler on Essence trims give it a finished look without overdoing it. If you want an SUV that disappears into a parking lot rather than announces itself, the Enclave delivers that on purpose.
2023 Buick Enclave Driving Experience and Performance
This is where the Enclave earns most of its reputation, and where it also loses some credibility depending on what you expect from a driver’s seat.
Start with the ride. Buick’s QuietTuning approach to sound insulation genuinely works. Road noise, wind noise, and engine drone stay well outside the cabin at highway speeds. Big bumps and expansion joints get absorbed rather than transmitted, and on rougher pavement, this is where the Enclave feels like it costs more than it does.
Steering is where things get less flattering. It is light, numb, and gives almost no feedback about what the front tires are doing. This is fine in a parking lot and fine on a highway cruise, but push the Enclave into a set of curvy back roads and it starts to feel out of its depth. Body roll shows up earlier than in a Telluride or an Explorer, and the brake pedal, while adequate, does not inspire confidence during hard stops.
This is where the excitement ends, and that is by design. Buick built a highway cruiser, not a canyon carver, and anyone expecting otherwise should look elsewhere.
Performance and Acceleration
Every 2023 Enclave uses the same 3.6 liter V6, producing 310 horsepower and 266 lb-ft of torque, paired with a nine speed automatic. There is no engine choice here, no turbo four cylinder option, no hybrid variant. What you see is what every trim gets.
That single powertrain has a distinct character of its own. It is not fast, but it is smooth and confident at highway merges and passing maneuvers, largely because the nine speed transmission keeps the engine in a comfortable rev range rather than hunting for gears. Around town, throttle response feels relaxed rather than eager, which suits the Enclave’s overall personality of calm over urgency.
Buyers who want quicker acceleration in this segment should look at something like the Explorer ST or the MDX Type S. The Enclave was never built to compete on that front, and Buick does not pretend otherwise.
Every Enclave can tow up to 5,000 pounds with the Trailering Package equipped, which is about average for the class and enough for a small boat or a modest camper trailer.
Ride Comfort and Cabin Luxury
The seats deserve real credit here. Every seating position in the Enclave feels genuinely comfortable, with generous cushioning in the first two rows and enough room in the third row for actual adults, not just kids on a short trip. The front seats in higher trims add heating, ventilation, and a massage function that is a rare find at this price point.
That said, comfort does not always mean luxury. Some interior surfaces, particularly lower on the dash and door panels, use harder plastics that remind you this is still a mainstream brand underneath the Buick badge. It is a comfortable cabin, not a lavish one, and the difference becomes obvious the moment you sit in a true luxury competitor for comparison.
2023 Buick Enclave Interior and Comfort Features
Buick’s cabin design favors function over flash. The dashboard layout is straightforward, buttons are logically placed, and nothing about the interior feels like it requires a learning curve.
What it lacks is the sense of occasion that some competitors manage to create. Materials feel solid but not special. Stitching and trim details are neat but conservative. If you are coming from a true luxury brand, the Enclave’s interior will feel like a nice step down rather than a lateral move, and that is worth knowing before you commit to the higher trims where you are paying a premium price for a mainstream cabin.
Technology and Infotainment
Here is the honest truth. The Enclave’s 8 inch touchscreen, standard across the lineup, looks outdated next to rivals offering 10 inch or larger displays with sharper graphics. The Telluride’s standard 10.25 inch screen makes the Enclave’s unit feel like a generation behind, because it essentially is.
The upside is that wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come standard, along with Bluetooth, satellite radio, and wireless device charging. So once you connect your phone, you are mostly bypassing Buick’s native interface anyway. If you rely on CarPlay daily, this weakness matters less. If you want a genuinely modern factory system, the Enclave disappoints.
2023 Buick Enclave Fuel Economy and Real-World Efficiency
No sugarcoating here either. The 2023 Enclave returns an EPA estimated 18 mpg city and 26 mpg highway with front wheel drive, dropping to 17 city and 25 highway with all wheel drive. That is a little below average for a three row SUV in this class, and there is no hybrid or turbocharged alternative to close that gap.
If fuel costs are a real factor in your monthly budget, that few mpg difference against a Highlander Hybrid or even a standard Telluride adds up over a year of ownership. This is one area where Buick’s single engine strategy clearly costs buyers something tangible.
Practicality and Storage
This is genuinely one of the Enclave’s strongest arguments. Cargo space behind the third row beats several rivals, including the Telluride and Palisade, and the third row itself is usable by adults rather than a cramped afterthought reserved for children.
Fold the seats flat and the Enclave swallows a serious amount of gear, whether that is a grocery run, sports equipment for multiple kids, or luggage for a family road trip. For buyers whose priority is hauling people and things rather than carving corners, this is where the Enclave quietly wins the argument against flashier competitors.
2023 Buick Enclave Safety Features and Driver Assistance Systems
Every 2023 Enclave comes with a strong list of standard driver assistance features, including forward collision alert, Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, automatic high beams, and Rainsense wipers. Later trims add evasive steering assist, a system that actively helps steer the car back into its lane rather than just sounding a warning.
The identical 2022 Enclave earned four out of five stars overall from NHTSA and a Good rating across crashworthiness categories from IIHS. Neither agency has separately tested the unchanged 2023 model, but given how little changed, those results should carry over reliably. For families cross shopping this segment on safety alone, the Enclave holds its own against every major rival.
Worthy Competitors
The Kia Telluride undercuts the Enclave on price while offering a sharper interior and a more modern touchscreen, making it the tougher value argument. The Hyundai Palisade brings similar strengths with a slightly more premium feeling cabin at a comparable price point. The Ford Explorer trades some of the Enclave’s ride comfort for genuinely engaging handling if that matters to you. The Honda Pilot counters with a reputation for long term reliability that Buick has not quite matched. And the Chevrolet Traverse, built on the same platform, offers nearly identical space and comfort for meaningfully less money if the badge does not matter to you.
Key Strengths and Weaknesses
The Enclave’s single biggest strength is ride quality. Few SUVs at this price manage to isolate occupants from a bad road this effectively. Its single biggest weakness is value at the top of the range, where the Avenir trim asks luxury money without delivering a fully luxury experience inside or out.
Which Category Does Cardrav Recommend
Buyers who prioritize a smooth commute and long distance comfort over driving engagement should seriously consider the Enclave, particularly in the Essence trim where the price to feature ratio makes the most sense. Buyers chasing sharper handling, a more modern cabin, or better fuel economy should look elsewhere in this segment before settling on a Buick badge.
Conclusion: Is the 2023 Buick Enclave Worth Buying?
If you are the kind of driver who values a quiet cabin and a forgiving ride over sharp handling and cutting edge tech, the 2023 Buick Enclave earns a genuine recommendation, especially in the Essence trim where the price makes more sense relative to what you get. Stretch into the Avenir trim, though, and the value proposition gets shakier, since you start paying near luxury money for a cabin that still feels mainstream in places.
My honest advice: shop the Essence or Premium trim, skip the top end Avenir unless the massage seats are a dealbreaker for you, and drive a Telluride back to back before signing anything. The Enclave will not embarrass itself in that comparison, but it will not clearly win it either.
FAQ
Is the 2023 Buick Enclave a good SUV for families?
Yes. The 2023 Buick Enclave offers a genuinely usable third row, strong cargo space, and a full suite of standard safety features that make it a solid choice for family duty.
What engine does the 2023 Buick Enclave use?
Every 2023 Buick Enclave comes with a 3.6 liter V6 producing 310 horsepower and 266 lb-ft of torque, paired with a nine speed automatic transmission. There is no alternative engine or hybrid option.
How much can the 2023 Buick Enclave tow?
With the Trailering Package equipped, the Buick Enclave can tow up to 5,000 pounds, which is about average for a three row SUV in this class.
What is the fuel economy on the 2023 Buick Enclave?
The Enclave returns an EPA estimated 18 mpg city and 26 mpg highway with front wheel drive, or 17 city and 25 highway with all wheel drive, slightly below the class average.
Should I buy the 2023 Buick Enclave or wait for a redesign?
If you need a three row SUV now and prioritize ride comfort, the current Enclave is a safe buy since it carries a strong reliability reputation. If sharper technology and styling matter more to you, waiting for the next generation may be worth it.
