Overview Small crossover aimed at empty nesters or new families emphasizing fuel economy over performance and interior quality over size
Pros Interior decor, fuel economy, surprising cargo capacity
Cons Noisy engine, lethargic acceleration, dated digital gauges
Value for money Quite good, especially considering the interior
What would I change? I’d rework the engine for less noise, vibration and harshness and then add an eight- or nine-speed automatic transmission
How I would spec it? The Premium AWD model has pretty much everything you need
To understand the Buick Encore, you first have to understand luxury intenders in China. In the world’s most populous country, Buick, a marque that in Canada elicits snickers of geriatric-based derision, is a huge success. In China, Buick is a premium brand that speaks to the success, not the dementia, of its owner. Unaware of the “old man’s car” stigma that pervades the North American car buying psyche, the Chinese bought some 919,582 Buicks in 2014, an incredible four times the number the marque sold in its birthplace. What this means is that China calls the shots on Buick product development and since its demographic needs a premium subcompact-sized crossover, Buick is also now hawking a CUV here in Canada that can only be described as teensy.
2015 Buick Encore
David Booth, Driving
Built on General Motors’ Gamma platform and more than a foot shorter than the company’s already pint-sized Verano sedan, the Encore is just about the smallest thing that can aspire to SUV authenticity. Indeed, although it has a decent 18.8 cubic feet of rear cargo space (48.4 cu. ft. if you fold the rear seats down), this is really a 2 + 2 CUV, the rear seats a little claustrophobic for basketballers or runway models alike. Oh, there’s plenty of room up front for adults. And a family of four with offspring still in the tweens might still find it plenty accommodating. But anyone shopping Encore (or its cost-conscious cousin, the Chevrolet Trax) looking for low-cost, full-sized space will be sorely disappointed.
What won’t disappoint, though, is the Encore’s interior decor. Decry all you want its $35,000 price tag — either a bargain for something so luxurious or usurious for something so small — but the Encore’s decor is a step above the norm in this price segment. My tester’s chocolate/tan brown leather looked almost Teutonic in its purposefulness, the hides of decent quality and the design/build quality of all the interior surfaces also exemplary. The let downs were a few plastic bits not quite in tune with the modern “soft-touch” motif and an instrument cluster digital display with ‘80s Pac-Man game style hieroglyphics. Even the main LCD screen, as well laid out as its display is, is too small — seven inches — and too far away for those lacking pinpoint 20/20 vision.
Oh, and since I’m whinging, while most of the Encore’s front seat adjustments are electrified, the most important one — the recline function — is not. The little latch that does manage reclining is not only awkwardly placed, but its adjustment range is so coarse — there’s a big jump between detents — that it can be difficult to find precisely the seating position you want. Overall, Buick is on to something here, offering an interior decor beyond the Encore’s size and price range. It’s just a shame that it scrimped on a few of the details.
That said, the Encore does have a nifty trick up its sleeve: The front passenger seat can be folded for a virtually flat cargo floor all the way from the front glove compartment to rear cargo hatch. That means a full-sized ladder can be tucked into the pint-sized CUV, an incredible feat considering that it measures just 4,277 millimetres from stem to stern.
2015 Buick Encore
Handout, Buick
Some will also complain about the Buick’s austerity in the engine department. Essentially, this is the same 1.4-litre turbocharged four that powers Chevrolet’s Cruze sedan. The Encore is, of course, a CUV and mini as it may be, it still weighs 1,523 kilos. That means, when pushed, the engine is not particularly piquant — accelerating to 100 kilometres an hour takes more than 10 seconds — and it can also be noisy when pushed, despite the addition of a Bose Active Noise Cancellation system.
That said, in everyday driving, it feels fairly torquey, its turbocharged low-end grunt belying the fact there is really only 148 pound-feet to be had. Indeed, before I’d go replacing the trusty little four, I’d rework some of its NVH issues and graft in an eight-speed automatic, the first to lessen the deleterious effects of spinning the little engine so hard and the second to make the most of what urge it does have. It’s worth remembering that, with the Encore’s middling power, comes excellent fuel economy, NRCan rating the Encore (with AWD) at 10.2 L/100 km in the city and 8.0 on the highway. I averaged 10.4 L/100 km, very good fuel economy considering I was not shy with my right foot and that the Encore was tested in the middle of Ontario’s worst cold snap/snow storm this year.
2015 Buick Encore
David Booth, Driving
All-wheel-drive, despite being of the part-time slip-and-grip variety, really added to the Encore’s allure, especially in this, Eastern Canada’s worst winter in almost 20 years. Don’t be fooled by the Encore’s pixie-ish good looks and teeny, tiny dimensions; AWD (and, of course, some knobbily-treaded snow tires) lend it serious winter ability with more than sufficient traction and a little more snowbank-busting ground clearance than the typical sedan.
Ride and handling are limited by the basic suspension — MacPherson struts in front, a torsion beam in the rear — a high centre of gravity and the Encore’s short 2,555 millimetres wheelbase. Such tight dimensions make for quick handling and a tight turning circle, but light weight and a short wheelbase aren’t the foundation of Mercedes-like suspension compliance. You wouldn’t exactly call the Encore’s comportment choppy, but there is some hobby-horsing over this winter’s incredible frost heaves. Again, anyone looking for the squidgy ride of Buicks long past need to look elsewhere.
Indeed, anyone condemning the Encore (or, pretty much any new Buick, for that matter) to Buick stereotype is going to be surprised. It’s far from perfect, with improvement still needed in a few key areas. But neither is it a sign of incipient dotage. Indeed, it would seem consumers are finally starting to get the message; Encore is in short supply in the United States, dealers asking for more and Buick promising to ramp up production.
The Specs
Type of vehicle All-wheel-drive subcompact SUV
Engine Turbocharged 1.4L DOHC four-cylinder
Power 138 hp @ 4,900 rpm, 148 lb.-ft. of torque @ 1,850 rpm
Transmission Six-speed manumatic
Brakes Four-wheel disc with ABS
Tires P215/55R18
Price (base/as tested) $35,585/$38,130
Destination charge $1,650
Natural Resources Canada fuel economy (L/100 km) 10.2 city, 8.0 highway
Standard Features Dual-zone automatic climate control, StabiliTrak electronic stability control, rear-vision camera, QuietTuning with Bose Active Noise Cancellation technology, OnStar, electronic cruise control, heated outside rear-view mirrors, power-adjustable heated leather-covered front seats with driver memory package, heated front seats and steering wheel, power windows, seven-inch, high-resolution, full-colour display radio with Buick IntelliLink, six-speaker AM/FM/SiriusXM stereo with CD player, auxiliary input jack, six speakers, USB port and Bluetooth wireless connectivity, leather-wrapped, three-spoke steering wheel with infotainment and cruise controls, rear cargo cover, roof-mounted luggage rails, front fog lamps, theft-deterrent system, Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Side Blind Zone Alert, remote vehicle starter system, electro-chromic inside rear-view mirror
[Editor’s Note: Photos of a different vehicle were erroneously included in this post. The photos have been replaced.]
