There’s joy to be found in life’s little, unexpected delights, like store brand processed food tasting like the nice stuff, or finding out that parking near your destination is free. We’re not talking about game-changing stuff, but the sort of little thing that might perk your day up a little bit. In the same vein, the facelifted 2024 Buick Envision looks surprisingly nice, and we love to see it, because as huge fans of cars, there’s nothing better than signs of automakers really investing into product and giving a toss.
If you pulled me out of bed in the morning and asked me to identify the old Buick Envision from a lineup, I’d probably hit you with a pre-coffee thousand-yard stare due to that Buick’s nondescript down-the-road graphic, which would promptly morph into a Thousand Island stare because it’s time for breakfast. [Ed note: Is Thomas implying here that he eats salads for breakfast? Honestly, not that weird for Thomas. – MH]
Now though? With those little metallic teeth and safety squint daytime running lights copied over from the Envista subcompact crossover, this is undoubtedly, recognizably a Buick. Mission accomplished. Does it look like God’s gift to mankind? Absolutely not, but it appears that Buick is trying, and actually making a goddamn attempt counts for a whole lot from a brand that, for the longest time, fell off the radar of every North American younger than 75.
While a facelift can only go so far from an exterior perspective, seeing as lights are hideously expensive to develop, hard points are fixed, and new stamping dies are also monumentally pricey, Buick has made it count inside the Envision with a bigger screen than the one you hooked your N64 up to as a kid. We’re talking 30 diagonal inches of real estate encompassing both gauges and infotainment, and although it looks remarkably crisp, there’s no word on Apple CarPlay compatibility. On the plus side, the seamless look is cool, and the screen has forced some much-needed material upgrades by way of a revised dashboard.
Take a look at the extra stitched surfaces, from the black vinyl above the glovebox to the burgundy suede-like swath running across the dashboard on this ST trim Envision. More metallic accents add a pop of contrast, while a new steering wheel looks decidedly not rental-spec. Is this the nicest interior in the world? Hell no, but it looks to be made of leagues better stuff than in the outgoing model. Sure, the door cards still feature some typical GM plastic, but on the whole, the cabin of the 2024 model looks like a win.
It’s easy to get lost in how similar Buick’s model names are, but the marque has made the trim levels on the Envision pre-school easy to keep track of. There’s the base Preferred trim, the sporty ST ‘Sport Touring’ trim that I’m surprised Ford isn’t royally pissed at, and the leather-lined range-topping Avenir trim. That’s it. Oh, and pricing isn’t bad either. The base Envision Preferred starts at $37,295 including freight, the ST trim starts at $39,795, and the Avenir starts at $48,395. Sure, the 228-horsepower two-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine and nine-speed automatic transaxle under the hood won’t light anyone’s fire, but for the money, this seems like a completely cromulent premium crossover, especially when you consider the standard all-wheel-drive system.
The 2024 Buick Envision isn’t likely to win massive awards or be an overnight sales sensation, but it looks to be a remarkable improvement over the rather anonymous outgoing model. Expect it to hit showrooms this Summer, hopefully continuing the momentum its Envista little brother is building. In the new car world, there isn’t a single problem that can’t be solved, even in a roundabout way, with better product. This new Envision looks to be better product than the car it replaces, and that’s something worth doing a little celebration about.
(Photo credits: Buick)
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A friend of mine got a 2023 last summer. Top trim, nice interior and by all account very pleasant to spend a lot of time in. I was only a passenger for a short time, he’s done a fairly long road trip with his mother who loved it. I hope it holds up well.
I’m not thrilled about a “Made in China” vehicle but it looks nice and it does offer a lot of bang for the buck. Seems like Buick is becoming the brand to offer competitively priced cars in the NA market.
Looks nice. But why would I get this over an Outback with a 260hp engine for the same price as the base model?
And before someone chimes in about the CVT… Once you’ve hit 9 speeds in an automatic… is there really much of a difference?
Shoulda been a hybrid. GM knows how (Volt) but corporate culture drags it down.
Are these still built in China? I think these are still built in China.
I think they are going to quietly sell a shit-ton of these.
GM midbrands (OlldsmoBuick) used to have pretty good interiors and I think it’s been one of those missing puzzle pieces for far too long. Like 40 years too long. You cannot skimp on exterior design or interior quality and hope to win buyers. No matter how nicely you design an interior, if it is built with crap materials, it will fail.
People sense good or bad quality no matter how you try to fool them. The average buyer may not know fuck all about engineering, but they know how things feel because everyone is a a perfect unimpeachable expert on how things feel to them. And if those things feel like they are made of rock hard plastic and low rent fittings, people are going to know it. Many buyers may not care much, but it’s one of those things that can leave a subtle but lasting impression and can erode brand image over time. I really believe interior material quality is more important than the design (when it comes to more premium brands). I guess in some respect I’m saying it’s easier to fool the eyes than the fingers.
Appears to be an attractive vehicle both inside and out. BUT, Buick needs to up its game relative to engine output from that 2 litre turbo 4. Give it 300 HP along with the now standard AWD and I might be convinced to take a look. Also as MH implies regarding Thomas’ possible choice for a morning meal, salad does make a wonderful breakfast. Although I personally prefer Caesar dressing.
Umm… The colour is nice.
228 hp from a turbo 2 liter?!? GM must have done that on purpose so it doesn’t grenade itself on our crap 87 octane fuel. Or, “shudders”, 85 octane that folks in the high altitude West will inevitably run and forget about when they drop and then recover 4k feet in altitude on a road trip. The usual tuners should have tunes out that will wake this right up to 275 hp or so.
I live in Denver and get about 600 miles to a tank. Which means that if I’m planning to take a road trip to lower altitude, I need to plan like a week in advance to upgrade from the usual 85 octane slop to Grey Poupon-spec 87.
Most likely that’s the case. And chances are, most people buying this thing would rather have a bit less power than having to pay more for premium fuel.
I fully admit that I kept typing the wrong Buick crossover name while writing up the press release (I hated the last Envision with an all-consuming, highly irritated passion and they’re all different sizes of that “egg-shaped crossover” category), but I gotta respect the inclusion of INTERIOR COLORS!!!!! on this thing. They even touted a couple fun new paint colors in the press release. It’s not a Big Buick Egg for me (…none of them are), but I gotta respect the nudge towards bringing back real colors. Bring back colors! It shouldn’t just be us parsh dorks holding it down for neat hues inside and out.
Looks like every other soccer mom suv.
From a 100% design perspective I agree its a good looking crossover. But from a driveline perspective its beyond milk toast. You can’t make it any more bland. It really needs a Hybrid option and not offering one completely offsets any good a good physical interior and exterior design presents. If it had a more powerful ICE setup then it might make up for it as it could be a outlier tow rig (Durango option maybe) for someone who has a mid size canned ham or big tent camper or needs more power. Or something but in this day and age it has to be a Hybrid. Make it an option to have a PHEV then someone might look at it over something else.
it’s the exact same drivetrain it had in its last gen — they just made AWD standard
Milk toast? Is that like milk steak?
milquetoast, In the age of technology our voice recognition isn’t always the best. Welcome to AI
I’ll take mine boiled over hard, with a side of your finest jellybeans, raw.
Looking forward to seeing this in the next inane “that’s so you” ad. Seriously, between that and “That’s a Buick?!” Buick has some of the lamest advertising since Ford’s desperate “You’ve Got to Put Mercury on Your List” begging strategy
Correct! I had 2 rentals recently and they both supported Android Auto. Sure the interface was minutely different depending on the screen size but I have everything I’m used to readily available. The most annoying part (if you could even call it annoying since it’s one additional step) is the Corolla I’m currently renting doesn’t immediately open Android Auto.
I was thinking ‘looks familiar’, then your comment nailed it. I am not a new car person so $40k seems wild for this, especially without Android Auto. I wonder how long before they go back on this asinine choice of theirs.
I actually reached out and confirmed this with Buick when I wrote it up for Cars dot com—they still have wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on this as standard on this one.
I think Buick’s less likely to experiment with that because { waves hands Vanna White-style at grey-hairs who usually buy them }. They’re definitely courting younger folks with the more modern redesign, though, but. But. I think even GM knows not to rock the boat TOO much. Once tech support (read: The Kids) set up the easy interface or explain it all, you don’t want to take them away from eating as many deviled eggs as possible at Christmas dinner to figure it out all over again.
I really like my deviled eggs, man.
How to be a pretty decent looking car:
Step 1: Look like the best of a Mazda
Step 2: ruin with the worst of Lamborghini Urus
Step 3: not terrible, on average
It looks exceeding ok. Which is high praise coming from me for any crossover. I’m flipping through a scrapbook of CUVs in my head and I’m having trouble coming up with anything that looking significantly better. Mazda? That’s about it.
Approaching 40k, I’d probably prefer a hybrid in my boring transportation device. But I’d say this is a pretty good effort for what it is.
Yup that’s a not horrible looking car. Congrats I guess Buick?
Nah, actually fuck China and every automaker who outsources US market manufacturing there.
If you’re willing to pay $15,000 more for a Made in America 4-cylinder crossover – Mercedes-Benz has a nice GLC for you.
I’m not in the market for either, but 1) I wouldn’t compare a Buick to a Mercedes Benz, and 2) I don’t personally think we should be celebrating Chinese-built cars coming here.
Folks said the same things about German cars in the 50’s…
…Japanese cars in the 70’s…
…Korean cars in the 80s…
…and (to a lesser degree) Mexican cars in the 90’s.
I’ve given up worrying about where things are made anymore – especially since I can no longer afford the luxury of paying $30 for a single US made brief or $175+ for US made jeans.
All of those countries were and are our allies.
China is our chief geopolitical rival.
It would be like outsourcing our auto manufacturing to the USSR in 1960. Foolish and dangerous in the extreme.
The reverse is equally true, if not more so. This car is made by an American car company, manufactured in China, primarily for the Chinese market. The Chinese are letting us make money off them while saving GM from oblivion when they went under.
The handful of these Buicks coming here are just bonus for GM
The drive for profits makes strange bedfellows.
Speaking of, GAZ had planned on exporting Volgas here in the early 1960s, even developed an automatic transmission with the American market in mind, but the project was killed due to the Cuban Missle Crisis
Later, they did start selling MTZ farm tractors here under the Belarus brand in the 1970s, which were about the cheapest tractors available in the US at the time. The MTZ importer acquired the US rights for Lada and UAZ, put them through federal safety and environmental certification, signed up dealerships, and expected to start sales in 1979, then the Afghan invasion happened and that was cancelled.
We did get Skoda here officially for a few years in the early ’60s, and then Skoda and FSO unofficially through smaller private importers until 1967, when private imports of anything became almost impossible
I respect what you are saying and understand your anger at outsourced jobs. My family has been indirectly affected along with millions. I get it! But I don’t think it is apples to apples. While China is our geopolitical rival, they are not like the Soviet Union was. We are tense with them but not outright hostel, its also American companies that are building these cars not state owned companies.
And I don’t mean any disrespect, but you are fooling yourself if you don’t think a huge portion of the electronics in your new car isn’t full to the brim with Chinese electronics already. The global supply line is already fully integrated and even if your car is screwed together in Dearborn, the window switches, Infotainment screen and engine computer and much more likely were long ago outsourced.
I don’t know about you but there is already so much to be upset and angry about ranting about something I can’t change doesn’t do much good. The time for 100% US content in our durable goods is long past. I for one am just happy that there are still one or 2 US manufactures who are at least putting an effort.
The analogy is not perfect, but even if we don’t see it as another Cold War, China definitely does.
And again, if GM cars built in China get a pass to be sold here, it’s IMO a small jump to their state owned companies coming next. Hell, it sometimes seems that the editorial voice of the site and a significant portion of the commenters are actively rooting for Chinese EVs to be sold here.
And regardless of the damage already done, it is always right to do the best we can going forward.
If a state-owned company can build a great car and sell it here at a competitive price, then why not?
Because there are things in this world more important than a competitive price?
What’s the big deal about undercutting American manufacturers with CCP-subsidized vehicles? I mean, these are the same folks who probably wouldn’t bat an eye if the car came preloaded with Tenmu and Xi Jinping Thought that you have to recite every time you hop in. It’s not like it would be there for the social credit score boost… I mean, for the “achievements”!
I’m surprised that more people don’t share your opinion.
I do. I’m not a fan of Chinese built cars being sold in the U.S., and really don’t feel comfortable with it being normalized simply because of U.S. manufacturing job security, and, also other security related reasons.
Geely/Volvo is maybe the only company I feel conflicted about, because Geely saved Volvo, made them better, and has opened up their first plant in the U.S. and is currently making cars here near Charleston, SC.
Geopolitically, China keeps to itself. They aren’t an imperialist nation like the USSR was. It’s definitely the US driving the hostile rhetoric
Just as McCarthyism was dumb, I think the anti Chinese hysteria today is misplaced
Let me just bookmark this post for when the Taiwan invasion starts.
My guy already thinks it’s the US who is the aggressor.. there is no hope. The topic of Taiwan and the nine dash line are meaningless to this person. I bet he would also excuse Chinese genocide of the Uyghurs and spin it off as the fault of the US..
I would just like to point out that the Taiwan issue is a remnant of the Chinese civil war. The US is literally sticking its nose into the Chinese *civil war* and you are saying that China is the one not keeping to itself and that they are the aggressors….having ambitions to finish a civil war isn’t imperialist.
If China invaded Ukraine, then we would be talking
And that’s not to say I wouldn’t side with Taiwan, of course. I would absolutely do so.
I’m just pointing out that your best example isn’t imperialism and is, in fact, an ongoing cold civil war
Philippines would like to talk to you about an imaginary nine dash line.
China is not keeping to itself, it’s just much quieter about its global expansion than the USSR was/is. Arguably much more dangerous because people won’t realize how much of the world China is buying up until it’s too late.
Eh, the US and China need each other. I say let’s just be on good terms with China.
I don’t think that’s an option anymore.
I agree, the best thing we can do it help the people in make money. The more they open up their society the better for the world. Not to mention, I hear the EV’s they make are pretty good. Maybe we need some disruption in the market. In hindsight, do you think that Volkswagen, Audi, BMW, MB, Porsche, Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Hyundai were good of bad for the automobile when they came to America? I mean what would we still be driving in the United States if we would have locked the imports out starting in the 50’s and 60’s?
Because, look at what happened in the USSR, they had a domestic auto industry that they isolated from outside influence and pressure and they sure had some lovely and innovative cars. We would be driving garbage if the Europeans and Japanese hadn’t prodded our asses and made us do better.. and with the exception of a few areas like Trucks they usually are still doing it.
Yeah, that’s not exactly going in the “Pros:” column is it?
Good news, it’s a Buick so I’m going to have to assume nobody is going to buy it anyway.
It’s just sad that it’s become normalized to the point that it isn’t even mentioned in articles of this nature anymore.
Makes me worried about the reaction when the first Chinese companies actually sell things here under their own names, not hiding behind Volvo/Polestar and such.
I’m still skeptical that Chinese companies will be able to sell cars here. If consumers don’t shun them, Congress will put a bonkers tariff on them.
I could be wrong, but I think the most Chinese car we’re getting are these sort of Trojan Horse Buicks, Volvos, etc.
It wouldn’t take much to bribe a few select politicians for a few years until they get settled in, 50 million perhaps.
After that anyone that tries to ban them will face a uphill battle of “they are hurting hardworking Americans” in the service dept.
Basically ticktock playbook.
I do expect it to be a debate, but if there’s anything that the government is willing to protect, it’s our auto industry. Whether it’s justified or not.
When will the black rim fad die?
It’s way more than a fad at this point, seeing as how it’s more than a decade old. It’s going to go down in history as one of the defining aspects of car design in this era. Like tail fins or pop-up headlights.
And specifically, the totally black wheel fad.
I remember in the ’00s, you had to have a contrasting (usually chrome) ring on your black wheels, otherwise, they gave off base steelie vibes which nobody wanted.
All black is still better than painted black with machined off details, like the ugly AF stock BRZ wheels and stuff. Just looks like cheap american racing wheels from the 90s.
My mom’s ’10 Mustang has wheels like that, and they’re one of my least favorite parts of the car. They’re so jarring next to the retro body design cues.
The worst offender was when Aston Martin put it on their cheap coupe… but holy shit it looked bad.
When you parallel park it against curbs and get a nice textured metal finish around the edges.
Almost on purpose.
Nothing blows my mind like normies’ ability to curb wheels. I’m mortified if I so much as scratch one of mine, and as you might imagine after 2 years of hard living in DC my Kona N’s rims aren’t exactly showroom condition.
But dear god. Go take a look at all the rims of generic cars in a parking lot sometime. They’re all completely beat to shit. It’s wild to me. Non car people seemingly grind their wheels against curbs all the damn time and are just like “this is fine and normal”.
You’d be appalled at the cars in LA.
When I would see a late-model senior Mercedes-Benz or BMW on the streets – I’d immediately look at the wheels to tell me how well cared for it was.
The ones which have no curbing on the off-side are the ones which are always parked in lots – never on the street.
I genuinely think some folks just don’t notice, or care. And, one could argue, that’s one of the reasons people purchase SUVs. Provided you don’t get one with massive wheels and low profile tires, you can bump into (and drive over) curbs with no fear! That said my wheels aren’t perfect either, though I’ve had them for a long time (and on three different cars). I always end up parking just a few inches farther away from the curb than I intend, mostly for fear of curbing it, and the fact I only have to parallel park about five times a year.
The other end of the spectrum are those people who buy a car with steel wheels, then remove the plastic hubcaps for fear of damaging them, or…someone stealing them, I guess? You don’t see many cars sold with steelies these days but I used to see a lot of brand new cars driving around with all four removed.
I hate it and will not buy a car with black wheels.
The problem with the “one sausage, multiple lengths” strategy is I thought this was just an Envista from the lede and was wondering why we were getting more coverage of it.
Somehow GM has managed to make Johan’s alphanumeric soup names for Cadillac almost seem like a good idea. Volt/Bolt and Envision/Envista are not meaningfully better at differentiating models than XT4 and XT5.
Is it just me or does that screen shape give anyone else 1960’s vibes? To me it looks like a big sign outside of a motel or diner, or it resembles cat eye sunglasses.
I agree there’s something retro-modern about it that I like. Maybe because it’s clearly designed for the car instead of being a tablet jammed in there…
I’m just struck by how Jeep was seemingly ahead of its time with the Cherokee redesign, it perhaps just wasn’t angular enough to make it all work.
I think it looks great. I also think the Envista looks great. I’m seeing them in person pretty regularly now and they’re very nice looking cars for the price. There’s nothing particularly mind blowing about this but it more or less seems really solid across the board.
I’m excited to see that some big manufacturers are taking stabs at making premium but not quite luxury cars a thing. Obviously GM is working on bringing Buick back, but Mazda is inching upmarket as well, and Toyota is expanding the Crown lineup (please bring the Crown Sport to the states AKIO PLS WE NEEEEEED IT).
My wife and I are already talking about shopping in this segment moving forward. There’s something great about having a really nice car that doesn’t necessarily have a badge that people lose their minds over. It’s cool to have nice things that don’t draw a lot of attention, especially if you’re someone who doesn’t care a ton about brands or their image….or if you’re introverted like me.
Also that they’re small premium stuff. I really appreciate automakers are realizing that luxury doesn’t have to equate to large as well.
If they’d just once try to offer one of these guys with a manual, they might find their already-primed enthusiast draw increasing.
Or some sort of performance version. I’d love to see any of these brands that are going for luxury-ish offer some stuff that has a little extra spice. I don’t even mind if it’s a CUV.
But they aren’t small. A Honda Fit is small. These are big, if not even way too much bigger.
Of course you’re correct; I’ve just thrown in the towel on us ever getting back to even ’90s-era sizing as a general thing.
I’m Gen-X, so I grew up smack in the middle of the “small car” era. But I think of how a member of Gen-Z must view vehicle sizing, given when they grew up.
I get your response. If my Fit was totaled, I’d buy another.
I have a Focus, to which my parents refer as a “tiny car”. I’ve always thought of her as midsized!
Both this and the Envista are lookers. The Envista, especially, stands out in a crowd. But, both these cars, the Envista especially, are woefully underpowered.
The Mazda Cx-5/50 looks to be a much better value than this new Envision – it has the same horsepower in the turbocharged version and has what looks like a nicer interior – the only issue with the Mazda is that the radio controls are a bit of a mess, but if you use spotify, podcasts, etc. from your phone you will not notice – and the Carplay interface is good (with the exception of the mute icon on the phone – I can never tell if I am on mute or not!). I think you will likely pay a lot less for the equivalently optioned Mazda.
We’ll be looking at the CX50 (when is the damn hybrid coming?) and CX90 for my wife’s next car. You don’t have to tell me twice that Mazdas are worth my time.
Indeed when is the hybrid coming! Or for that matter the I6 in the Cx-5/50.