2024 Buick Encore GX makes big statement in small package
The new 2024 Buick Encore GX may be petite. But it has presence.
Parked in the middle of downtown Charlevoix, Michigan, the premium brand’s entry-level compact SUV turned heads. “Never seen that before. What is it?” said one passerby. “That’s a Buick?” said another, echoing the brand’s catchy ad campaign.
Buick has come back from the dead thanks to an SUV model-line makeover — and the entry-level Encore and three-row Enclave in particular. The 2024 models continue the momentum with all-new designs inspired by the Wildcat electric coupe concept. I left Oakland County with a full tank of gas and 370 miles of range, enough to get me nonstop to Charlevoix with fuel to spare.
Like the Wildcat (and recently redesigned Enclave), GX sports thin cat’s-eyes running lights at the top of the front fascia and a low grille across the chin. Headlights are almost unnoticeable — the small mid-mounted beams are like dimples on either side of the wide-mouth grille. In keeping with this spare new design, the Encore GX is badged with the new, simplified threeshield Buick logo that was first seen on the Wildcat. The cabin’s lines are also easy on the eyes with a sculpted 19-inch display engorged with an 8-inch gauge cluster and 11-inch infotainment touchscreen display.
GX purred along I-75 headed north with a quiet cabin insulated from the 1.3-liter three-banger up front. When needed to merge into traffic or make a quick passing maneuver, the turbocharged mill provided a healthy
174 torque managed by a liquid-smooth nine-speed automatic transmission.
Underneath its new wardrobe the standard GX is basically a lastgen Chevy Trax. Same 102-inch wheelbase, same 1.2-liter or 1.3-liter 3-banger, same frontwheel-drive-based platform, same cramped rear seats. For the same price, you could get the new, handsome Chevy Trax Activ — on an updated chassis — that adds four more inches of wheelbase and two more inches of rear legroom. Which is why you should start your Encore GX shopping with the all-wheel-drive version — a $1,500 option (available on all three trims: Preferred, Sport, Avenir) that’s unavailable on Trax.
Despite giving up legroom and cargo space to the remade Trax, the
Encore GX has a neat trick that Trax lacks: A forward-folding front seat. In downtown Charlevoix, my wife spied a big, wide rug she wanted to take home. No problem. I flattened the front passenger seat, flattened the secondrow, 60-40 split seat, then opened the hatch and shoved the rug all the way through the cabin to the front dash.
Such attention to cabin detail is typical of GM products, and the Buick shares the intuitive steering wheel controls found in other vehicles from the automaker. Those ergonomics extend to the back side of the wheel, where you can adjust radio volume with your right hand — and scroll stations with your left.
Alas, that ergonomic attention is missing when it comes to rear visibility, and the Encore has one of the worst C-pillar blindspots of any compact vehicle I’ve driven. A standard 360-degree view would be a nice solution to this problem. Alas, GM (and Buick) are stingy when it comes to tech. The 360-degree camera will set you back an additional $1,095 as part of an advanced technology package that also includes adaptive cruise control.
If it’s an entry-level premium compact you’re looking for with AWD below $40K, then Buick is a compelling choice.