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2020 Buick Encore GX pricing makes it a better bargain than the smaller Encore

In April, Buick revealed the Encore GX at Auto Shanghai. At the time, we thought there was a chance the slightly larger GX would supplant the Encore in the U.S. By August, we learned that wouldn't happen, the Encore GX slotting into the lineup between the Encore and the Envision. With nearly $8,000 between the starting prices of the Encore and the Envision, there'd be plenty of room for the GX to find a good home leaving plenty of MSRP daylight between the crossover bookends. That doesn't appear to be what's happened, though. CarsDirect got hold of an early order guide for the Encore GX, and writes that the Encore GX in Preferred trim will cost $24,100 before a $995 destination charge, totaling $25,095. That's $900 more than the entry-level Encore in 1SV trim, but $500 less than the Encore in comparable Preferred trim.    The Encore offers an intermediate Sport Touring trim between Preferred and top-level Essence trims. The Encore GX will come in an intermediate Select trim, which CarsDirect didn't mention a price for. Stepping up to the top Essence variant with front-wheel drive costs $29,495 for the Encore GX, $800 less than a similar Encore, which costs $30,295.   If these are the figures that show up on dealer lots, the Encore GX seems like a no-brainer. The Encore rides on an older GM platform called GEM, for Global Emerging Markets, the GX model is built on GM's new VSS-F architecture. Both are fine looking vehicles, but the GX is a little more handsome. The Encore offers one engine, a 1.4-liter four-cylinder with 138 horsepower and 148 pound-feet of torque, shifting through a six-speed transmission. The base engine on the Encore GX will be a 1.2-liter turbocharged three-cylinder with an estimated 137 hp and 166 lb-ft, shifting through a CVT. The second GX engine is a 1.3-liter turbocharged three-cylinder with an estimated 155 hp and 174 lb-ft, optional on the front-wheel drive Select and Essence trims, standard on every all-wheel-drive model. That more powerful motor shifts through a nine-speed automatic.  As if all that weren't enough, the GX's reason for being is that it offers more room. An additional three inches in length provides an extra 4.7 cubic feet of cargo room behind the second row. The GX wins on safety, too, coming standard with tech like forward collision alert, lane keep assist, lane departure warning, and automatic emergency braking.

Kia Telluride vs Buick Enclave Luggage Test | What actually fits behind that third row?

So, you want to buy a three-row crossover. Before plunking down $40,000 on a new sport utility vehicle, might we dissuade you with the prospect of minivan ownership? The Pacifica Hybrid, perhaps ... no? Fine. Good thing crossovers (especially the Telluride and comparable Palisade) are so nice to drive these days. We’ll assume you want the big three-row crossover, as you intend to seat folks in all three rows. Unfortunately, raising that third row reduces the luggage area from cavernous to crawl space. ItÂ’s rather devastating from a pure numbers perspective to the two models we have today. The 2019 Buick Enclave goes from a monstrous 58 cubic-feet with the second-row in place down to 23.6 cubic-feet (which along with the nearly identical 2020 Chevrolet Traverse is still best-in-class). Meanwhile, the 2020 Kia Telluride takes a similar hit, going from 46 cubic-feet down to 21 cubic-feet. Just looking at the numbers, it would seem that the EnclaveÂ’s big advantage all but disappears with the third row up, boasting just 2.6 cubic-feet of storage more than the Telluride. But as West Coast Editor James Riswick has discovered in the numerous luggage tests he's conducted, the numbers don't always tell the whole story. Let's see how the Enclave and Telluride compare when you actually put things inside.  Boom. The Enclave swallows all of the test luggage we have for it without any fuss. The distance between the back of the seats to the hatch opening is enough to fit our full-size suitcase horizontally, making it easy to stack every other bag around it. It even fits below the seatbacks, so the driver will have an uninhibited view out the rear of the vehicle.  At our Michigan HQ, our test luggage consists of the following pieces: 28-inch upright suitcase, 24-inch upright suitcase, 19-inch upright suitcase, two small tote bags and one backpack. ItÂ’s likely enough luggage for a quick weekend getaway with the family, given there are no strollers involved. As we attempted to pack it all into the Telluride, weÂ’re glad we didnÂ’t have anything else. The loss of 2.6 cubic-feet of space was indeed felt much harder than what it looks like on paper. We knew we were in trouble when the 28-inch suitcase didnÂ’t fit along the floor as it did so neatly in the Enclave. We were forced to stack it up next to the rear seats, which left it sitting rather tall back there. As a result, the other suitcases didnÂ’t have a neat or convenient place to go.

Biden's tariffs likely won't impact Americans already driving Chinese-built cars

A 2024 Buick Envision Sport TouringGM-DESIGN Chinese car brands are missing from the US market, but Chinese-made cars are still sold in the US.  Americans bought more than 104,000 Chinese-made cars in 2023 and nearly 28,000 in Q1 2024. Buick, Lincoln, Polestar, and Volvo all sell cars in the US that are made in China.  Of the more than 15 million cars sold in the US last year, none wore the badge of a Chinese car brand. Chinese EV heavy hitters like BYD and SAIC are conspicuously missing from US showrooms. With the government's existing 27.5% tariffs on Chinese-made cars and Tuesday's new 100% tariffs on Chinese-made EVs imported to the US, the situation isn't likely to change anytime soon. What some people might not realize, however, is that tens of thousands of cars manufactured in China are sold in the US every year. Volvo's S60L sedan was one of the first Chinese-made cars to be sold in the US starting in 2016, followed by Buick's Envision SUV and Cadillac's CT6 Hybrid. According to Automotive News data, US consumers purchased more than 104,000 Chinese-made vehicles in 2023, up 45% from 2022. Americans bought another 28,000 Chinese-made cars during the first quarter of 2024. Currently, Buick, Lincoln, Polestar, and Volvo sell Chinese-made vehicles in the US. Of those, the only Chinese-made EVs come from Polestar, a brand co-owned by Volvo and its parent company, Geely Automotive. The EV brand imported just 2,217 cars in the first three months of 2024. It is unclear how the new tariffs will affect Polestar's future production plans. The company eventually plans to move some of its car production to South Carolina in 2024. In a statement to Business Insider, a Polestar spokesperson said the company is evaluating the Biden Administration's announcement. Here's a closer look at the Chinese-made cars on sale in the US. Buick Envision A 2024 Buick Envision AvenirGM When it launched in 2016, the Buick Envision compact SUV was one of the first Chinese-made vehicles sold in the US. The second generation Envision, which arrived in 2021, continues to be made in China at one of the plants GM operates in a joint venture with SAIC. The Envision was Buick's second-best-selling model in 2023, with more than 44,000 vehicles sold. Last year, Buick sold 167,000 vehicles across its entire lineup in the US, an impressive 61% increase over the previous year. However, this number pales in comparison to Buick's sales in China, which totaled 517,000 units last year.