2017 Buick Enclave

2017 is the tenth and final model year of the first-generation, Lambda-platform Enclave and is mechanically a carry-over — the 3.6L direct-injected V6 is unchanged, and the new-for-2017 Sport Touring Edition is a black-grille-and-wheels appearance package only. 288 hp is respectable for a naturally aspirated three-row of this vintage but well short of the 310 hp the 2018 redesign brought.

Peak torque of the sole 3.6L V6, unchanged for 2017 and made high in the rev range, which is why a 4,700–4,900 lb three-row feels adequate rather than muscular and leans on downshifts for passing.

Slow for the class by 2017 — Edmunds called its 8.2-second AWD run 'slower than average for large crossovers' — with the FWD volume trim taken as roughly three tenths quicker than the tested AWD cars on its lower curb weight.

There is no turbo to lag and no hybrid handoff to smooth, and the Enclave's QuietTuning package (triple door seals, acoustic laminated glass, active noise cancellation) keeps the V6 remote in normal driving — reviewers consistently describe it as smooth and quiet. The mark against it is that delivery is merely adequate: full-throttle demands such as a two-lane pass expose an engine working near the top of its range.

The 6T70 six-speed automatic changes gear smoothly and never hunts, but by 2017 it was two generations behind the eight- and nine-speed units rivals were fitting, and it is reliably slow to find a lower gear when asked — the same box the 2018 redesign replaced with a nine-speed. There is no manual mode worth the name beyond a range-limit rocker.

Mid-pack for a unibody three-row: properly equipped the Enclave pulls 4,500 lbs — enough for a small travel trailer or a pair of jet skis — but the rating requires the optional Trailering Package, and it is 500 lbs short of what the 2018 redesign would be rated at.

Front-wheel drive is standard and AWD is a paid option restricted to the Leather and Premium groups — the entry Convenience Group cannot be had with it at all. The hardware itself is basic first-generation Lambda AWD: a single-speed on-demand system with no driver-selectable terrain modes, no low range and none of the twin-clutch torque vectoring the 2018 car introduced.

A road-going family crossover with no off-road pretensions: about 7.6 in of ground clearance, road-biased tyres on 19- or 20-inch wheels, no skid plates, no locking differential, no terrain-mode selector and no off-road trim anywhere in the range. Wet grass and a snowy driveway are the limit of its remit.

One engine, one transmission, no electrification of any kind: every 2017 Enclave from Convenience to Premium runs the same 3.6L V6 and six-speed automatic, and the only mechanical choice a buyer makes is FWD or AWD. Even the new Sport Touring Edition is purely cosmetic.

Near the bottom of the gas-SUV field: a 4,700 lb three-row carrying a naturally aspirated 3.6L V6 and only six ratios, with no stop/start and nothing electrified anywhere in the 2017 range. The 2018 redesign's nine-speed and slipperier body would lift the same nameplate to 21 MPG combined.

City economy is the Enclave's worst figure and the clearest cost of the first generation's age — mass, a large-displacement V6, a six-speed automatic and no engine-off capability at all, since auto stop/start did not reach the Enclave until the 2018 car.

The best of a weak set of numbers, and still poor for a large crossover — the tall, boxy first-generation body and a top gear two ratios short of what rivals offered leave it cruising at higher revs than the class norm.

A large 22-gallon tank rescues what the fuel economy gives away — just under 400 miles between fills for the volume FWD car, adequate for family road-trip duty even though it is bought with a big tank rather than efficiency.

Among the most expensive vehicles in the mid-size SUV set to keep fuelled, a direct consequence of 18 MPG combined; the only mitigation is that every gallon it drinks is 87-octane regular rather than premium.

The 3.6L V6 runs on regular 87-octane across the entire 2017 lineup — Convenience through Premium, FWD and AWD, Sport Touring package included — with no premium recommendation and no alternative-fuel complication. That narrows the per-mile gap to the premium-fuel European three-rows the Enclave was priced against, though it cannot offset a 18 MPG combined figure.

The 2017 Enclave earned NHTSA's top 5-star overall rating, with 5 stars for both frontal and side impact and 4 stars for rollover resistance.

Good in every IIHS test it was given — moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraints — but the small overlap front test was never run on this generation, and the Enclave carries no Top Safety Pick award.

The base Convenience trim's active safety content is a rearview camera and rear park assist — there is no automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise or lane keep assist anywhere in the 2017 lineup, and blind-spot/cross-traffic alert starts at Leather.

No automatic braking of any kind is available: the top-trim system is Forward Collision Alert, a warning-only feature, which is why IIHS rated the optional front crash prevention system only Basic.

Side Blind Zone Alert and Rear Cross Traffic Alert come standard on Leather and Premium — the volume trims — but are unavailable on the base Convenience, and both are alert-only with no braking or steering intervention.

Only Lane Departure Warning is offered, and only on the Premium trim (optional on Leather); there is no lane keep assist and no lane centering on the 2017 Enclave.

Conventional fixed-speed cruise control only — no adaptive cruise was offered on any 2017 Enclave trim, and there is no highway assist function.

No hands-free highway driving system is available; GM's Super Cruise launched on the 2018 Cadillac CT6 and was never offered on the first-generation Enclave.

IIHS never rated the Enclave's headlights, and while the Premium trim gets articulating HID units that swivel with the steering, the volume Leather and base Convenience trims run fixed projector beams with no adaptive function or automatic high beam.

A tall command seating position and large side glass give good forward and lateral sightlines, but the Enclave is a very wide, long crossover with thick rear pillars and a high beltline, and camera compensation stops at a standard rearview camera plus rear park sensors — there is no surround-view system on this generation.

IIHS rates LATCH ease of use Acceptable: the wide-opening rear doors and available second-row captain's chairs make seats easy to load, but the two second-row lower-anchor positions are the only LATCH sets and the third row is tether-only, so a three-seat family is working around the hardware.

2017 is the final year of the 2008–2017 Lambda Enclave and every trim ships with second-row captain's chairs and a 60/40 third row for seven seats; a second-row bench takes it to eight, so the volume Leather Group is scored as a seven-seater.

Generous front headroom for a mid-size three-row, a function of the Enclave's tall 71.7-in roofline and upright greenhouse.

The Enclave's one packaging weak spot: 41.3 in of front legroom is near the bottom of the SUV band and short of the 44.5 in GM's later C1XX three-rows deliver, because the Lambda's long dash-to-axle is spent on the second and third rows rather than the front.

Near the top of the SUV band — the tall roof carries all the way back, which is why reviewers consistently describe the second row as airy.

Mid-pack on paper, but the sliding captain's chairs make it flexible in practice — the trade-off is that pushing them back for adult second-row comfort takes a real bite out of third-row legroom.

The best argument for buying a Lambda Enclave: 33.2 in of third-row legroom and 37.8 in of headroom genuinely seat teens and average-size adults, wide-opening rear doors and tip-and-slide captain's chairs make getting back there easy, and there is still 23.3 cu ft of cargo behind row three. It falls short of 80+ only because the third row lacks its own climate outlets beyond the tri-zone rear vents and adults still prefer rows one and two on a long trip.

Strong for the segment — the Enclave's 23.3 cu ft behind an erected third row is more than most three-row crossovers of its era offer, and folding row three opens 68.9 cu ft.

At the very top of the SUV band and above the ceiling — 115.2 cu ft is minivan territory and the single biggest number on the Enclave's spec sheet.

Competent rather than clever: a deep covered center console, a large underfloor bin behind the third row, generous door pockets and an available 110-volt household outlet cover the everyday cases, but there is no fold-flat front passenger seat, no configurable rail system and nothing resembling the giga-console or in-floor innovations of the segment's benchmarks.

Buick's core competency: broad, softly padded front chairs with eight-way power adjustment on both sides from Leather up, and captain's chairs behind them that reviewers rate for long hauls. The mark against is a repeated criticism that the second-row cushions sit low, leaving taller adults' thighs unsupported unless they slide the chairs fully rearward.

The Enclave's headline strength. The soft, long-travel Lambda suspension on 19-inch wheels absorbs broken pavement better than most three-rows of the period; the trade-off is float and noticeable nosedive under hard braking rather than any harshness.

QuietTuning is engineered rather than incidental — triple door seals, acoustic laminated windshield and front side glass, and active noise cancellation keep the naturally aspirated V6 remote at highway speed. Only full-throttle acceleration makes the engine audible in the cabin.

Tri-zone automatic climate control, remote start and a power liftgate are standard on every 2017 trim, and the volume Leather Group adds heated front seats and a heated steering wheel. Ventilated front seats are reserved for Premium and there are no heated rear seats anywhere in the range.

The 2017 Enclave opened at $39,065 plus a $925 destination charge for the front-drive Convenience trim, unchanged from 2016 in its final model year.

The Leather Group is the volume trim — it is the first rung that adds leather seating, heated front seats and the optional driver-assist packages, and it carried the bulk of Enclave sales.

Scheduled service on the 3.6L V6 is inexpensive and the first two years are covered by Buick, but the Lambda-platform Enclave has above-average repair frequency and severity, which loads the post-warranty years.

Enclave retention tracks the large-premium-SUV average, and the 2017 car's status as the run-out year of a ten-year-old generation — sold with heavy clearance cash — depressed its transaction price relative to sticker and its later resale relative to a fresh design.

Buick's near-luxury positioning bought a year and 14,000 miles more bumper-to-bumper coverage than the 3/36,000 standard on mainstream three-row rivals such as the Highlander, Pilot and Traverse.

Six years/70,000 miles beats the 5/60,000 mainstream norm but sits well short of the 10/100,000 offered by Hyundai and Kia, and the mileage cap is the binding limit for most three-row family buyers.

Buick bundled two years/24,000 miles of scheduled maintenance with no cap on the number of covered visits, plus six years/70,000 miles of roadside assistance and courtesy transportation matched to the powertrain term, and a five-year OnStar Basic Plan with a 4G LTE Wi-Fi trial — a genuinely multi-year package with real perks attached, though short of Cadillac's four-year XT5 program.

$44,690 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (41.5% retained, or about $18,546) leaves about $26,144 in depreciation. Add the projected $5,200 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $31,344 in total.

The two major predictors disagree, which is exactly the mixed-signal case the middle band describes. Consumer Reports calls the 2017 Enclave less reliable than the average 2017 vehicle and flags eight separate trouble spots; J.D. Power gives it an above-average 4-out-of-5 predicted reliability. RepairPal sits between them at 3.5/5 with annual costs about a quarter above the midsize-SUV average. Being the tenth and final year of the Lambda-platform generation helps — the design's failure modes are known and largely engineered out — but it does not make the ownership record good.

The most directly relevant dependability study is the one that surveyed this exact model year: J.D. Power's 2020 VDS polled three-year owners of 2017 vehicles and ranked Buick third of all brands at 103 PP100, a 15 PP100 improvement year over year. That is not an outlier — Buick stayed in the top five through this period and finished second in 2022 and fourth in 2023. The brand is genuinely top-tier here; the Enclave is the nameplate that drags on it rather than a representative of it.

Three NHTSA campaigns cover this model year and all three are safety-system recalls, one of them enormous: the ARC-supplied driver airbag inflator that can rupture and spray metal fragments, covering roughly 995,000 GM crossovers including the 2014–2017 Enclave. That is the 'major recall (safety systems)' case rather than routine campaign activity. The service-bulletin record is separately poor — GM bulletins for the 3.6L/6-speed cover the 35R wave plate (no reverse, 3-5 slipping, harsh shifting), torque-converter shudder and timing-chain wear — and CarComplaints logs 201 problems for the year with torque converter failure as the top entry.

Both halves of this powertrain are high-volume, long-running GM units with a decade of field data behind them by 2017 — a materially safer proposition than the brand-new 9T65 nine-speed that replaced the 6T75 for 2018. But 'proven' here means the failure modes are well documented rather than absent: the 3.6L direct-injected V6 family is known for stretched timing chains (interference engine, $2,700–$3,700 to repair) and water pump failure, and the 6T75 for torque-converter shudder and 35R wave-plate fracture that can destroy the transmission internally. The worst wave-plate builds were 2008–2010 and 2017 is the most sorted year of the generation, which is what keeps this mid-band rather than lower.

Reviewers were consistently positive about what the Enclave's cabin is made of — padded vinyl dash with contrast stitching, available leather, chrome and wood-finish accents that read upscale — and Edmunds explicitly calls the materials high quality. What holds it to the competitive band is age rather than cheapness: this is a 2008 interior in its final year, and the same reviews note it is not as plush as genuine luxury rivals and that the controls and switchgear are visibly dated, which matters for a vehicle sold in the premium price class.

Assembly is solid and the Enclave's quietness is the single thing owners and reviewers praise most — a QuietTuning cabin on a chassis GM had a decade to sort, from a brand ranked third in dependability for this model year. The scattered complaints that keep it out of the top band are real though: Consumer Reports lists noises/leaks (rattles and squeaks) among the 2017 trouble spots, which is the classic marker of an aging platform in its run-out year.

Buick sells through roughly 2,000 US dealerships, nearly all of them dual Buick-GMC stores sitting on GM's national parts and service infrastructure, so coverage is dense in a way no import premium brand matches. Service satisfaction is a genuine strength rather than merely adequate — Buick has ranked at or near the top of J.D. Power's Customer Service Index among mass-market brands for years — and a 2017 Enclave buyer carried complimentary scheduled maintenance plus six years of roadside assistance and courtesy transportation into that network.

Availability is about as good as it gets: the Lambda platform, 3.6L V6 and 6T75 transmission were shared across the Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook over a full decade, so components are commodity GM parts with deep dealer stock, a large aftermarket and abundant salvage supply on a nine-year-old vehicle. Cost is what pins it to the middle of the band — RepairPal puts annual repair and maintenance about a quarter above the midsize-SUV average at Buick's premium labour rates, and the two failures this generation is known for, the timing chain and the transmission, are both four-figure jobs.

The 2013–2017 Lambda Enclave used a 6.5-inch IntelliLink display in a large, mostly button-filled centre stack, below the smallest size in the SUV normalization band; the second-generation 2018 car moved to an 8-inch screen.

IntelliLink of this vintage is logically laid out and, unusually for 2017, backed by a full set of physical radio and climate controls plus a redundant knob-and-button stack, so basic tasks never require the screen. Against that it is a small, low-resolution display running software that was already two generations behind GM's own by 2017, with visible lag on menu transitions and map redraws.

Neither wireless nor wired phone projection is available: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto did not reach the Enclave until the second-generation 2018 car. A 2017 owner's only route to CarPlay is an aftermarket integration module.

Built-in navigation with SiriusXM NavTraffic is available (and standard on upper trims), and OnStar's live advisor can push a destination to the car — a genuinely useful backstop. But the voice system is command-word IntelliLink recognition rather than natural language, and with no CarPlay available the owner cannot simply bypass it with a phone.

A 10-speaker Bose system is available and well regarded in a cabin already engineered for quiet — QuietTuning does the premium audio a real favour. It scores mid-pack because Bose is bundled with the Premium Group rather than fitted to the volume Leather trim, and the base system is ordinary.

Analog gauges throughout: the Enclave's instrument binnacle is conventional dials flanking a small colour Driver Information Center. No full-digital or reconfigurable cluster was offered on any 2017 trim.

No over-the-air software capability of any kind. The 4G LTE hardware streams data to occupants but is not a software delivery channel — map and firmware updates on this generation are dealer or USB/disc affairs.

The myBuick / OnStar RemoteLink app covers the core set — remote start, lock/unlock, vehicle locate, fuel and diagnostics — and works reliably. It sits mid-band because the functions are OnStar-subscription-gated after the six-month trial and there is no digital key or app-based climate scheduling on this generation.

Three USB ports for charge and playback plus an available 110-volt household outlet is adequate coverage for a family of seven, but every port is legacy USB-A at low charge rates, there is no third-row outlet, and wireless phone charging was not offered until the 2018 redesign.

Strong for its era and priced right: keyless open with push-button start, remote start and a power liftgate are standard on every 2017 trim, including base Convenience. It stops short of the top band because there is no hands-free kick-motion liftgate and no phone-as-key.

A rearview camera and rear parking sensors are standard, which for a 201.9-inch, 86.7-inch-wide crossover is the bare minimum rather than a strength — there is no surround-view camera and no automated parking on any 2017 trim, and the camera is low-resolution by 2017 standards.

No head-up display was offered on any 2017 Enclave trim, option package or accessory.

Close to the segment benchmark for family logistics: wide-opening rear doors, standard captain's chairs that tip and slide for third-row access without removing a car seat from the opposite side, tri-zone climate for the back, and 23.3 cu ft behind row three for a stroller. It is held out of the top band by IIHS's Acceptable (not Good) LATCH rating and lower anchors at only the two second-row outboard positions.

The passive side is excellent — a 5-star NHTSA overall rating and Good in every IIHS test performed — but the active side is a generation behind what a 2017 family shopper could get elsewhere: no automatic emergency braking on any trim, no adaptive cruise, forward collision alert and lane departure warning only on Premium, and blind-spot alert unavailable on base Convenience.

This is what the Lambda Enclave was built for: a quiet, softly sprung cabin, a third row adults can actually occupy, tri-zone automatic climate with rear controls, an available rear-seat DVD entertainment system, OnStar 4G LTE Wi-Fi for the whole family, and — crucially — 23.3 cu ft of luggage space still available with all seven seats in use.

Low-effort in traffic — light steering, a smooth naturally aspirated V6 with no stop/start to shudder, a soft ride and a commanding seating position all reduce fatigue. It loses ground to the six-speed automatic's reluctance to kick down when a gap opens, and to the sheer size of the thing in a lane of city traffic.

Expensive to commute in: 15 MPG in the city from a 4,700–4,900 lb crossover with no hybrid assistance and no cylinder deactivation, working out to about $3,400 a year in fuel at EPA's 15,000-mile assumption. The one saving grace is that it drinks regular rather than premium.

One of the Enclave's weakest use cases: 201.9 in long and 86.7 in wide over mirrors with a 40.4 ft turning circle, and the camera help stops at a standard rearview camera plus rear sensors — no surround view, no front sensors, no parking automation. Urban garages and parallel spots are a genuine chore.

A unibody family crossover, not a work tool: 4,500 lb of tow capacity with the optional Trailering Package (2,000 lb without) is enough for a small trailer or a pair of jet skis, but there is no bed, no payload headroom worth quoting, and a 288 hp V6 paired to a six-speed that already feels stretched unladen.

The 3.6L LFX/LGX V6 and 6T70 six-speed had a decade of Lambda service behind them by 2017, and the last model years are widely considered the soundest of the generation — but this is a leather-and-carpet interior with no wear-friendly trim, no fleet presence, and a generation with a documented history of timing-chain, water-pump and transmission wave-plate repairs under hard use.

Essentially nothing for a jobsite: carpeted cargo floor, no washable surfaces, no bed access, no rack or upfit ecosystem beyond dealer roof crossbars and a hitch, and onboard power limited to a single available 110-volt outlet. Cargo tie-downs and roof rails are the extent of the work provisions.

A capable interstate cruiser — QuietTuning keeps the cabin hushed, the soft suspension smooths expansion joints, the seats hold up for hours, and a 22-gallon tank gives roughly 396 miles between stops. What keeps it out of the top band is the complete absence of fatigue-reducing driver assistance: fixed-speed cruise only, no adaptive cruise, no lane keeping.

Fine for a trailhead or a gravel forest road and nothing beyond: AWD is available (though only on Leather and Premium, never base Convenience), ground clearance is 7.6 in, standard roof rails take a box or bikes, and the Trailering Package pulls 4,500 lb of toys. There are no terrain modes, no skid plates, no all-terrain tyre option and no low range.

Exceptional for the class: 115.2 cu ft with both rear rows folded is minivan-grade, the 60/40 third row and sliding captain's chairs give several usable intermediate configurations, and there is a covered underfloor bin plus standard roof rails and an available hitch for what will not fit inside.

Secure and stable rather than agile: the Enclave tracks straight and stays composed on the highway, but 4,700–4,900 lb on soft springs means real body roll, understeer at the limit and pronounced nosedive under braking. Reviewers describe it as more car-like than truck-like for its size, which is faint praise for a vehicle this large.

Tuned for isolation, which is on-brand and low-effort in parking lots, but the electric assist is light and numb on centre with no meaningful feedback about what the front tyres are doing. Precision is adequate; communication is not.

Respectable stopping power for the mass — around 120 ft from 60 mph on the standard 19-inch wheels is a good result for a near-5,000 lb crossover, and the pedal is progressive. The deduction is for the soft suspension's pronounced dive under hard braking, which undermines confidence more than the distances suggest.

The naturally aspirated 3.6L V6 is inherently smooth, there is no turbo lag to calibrate around and no automatic stop/start to shudder at a light, so tip-in and part-throttle behaviour are clean. The failing is response rather than smoothness: the six-speed is slow to find a lower gear, so passing demands patience.

QuietTuning — triple door seals, acoustic laminated glass and active noise cancellation — keeps the V6 remote and free of vibration through the controls in normal driving. It becomes audible and slightly coarse only when held near its 6,300 rpm power peak, which the 288 hp engine's modest output makes a regular event on a highway merge.

Near the wide end of the SUV band — a consequence of the 118.9 in wheelbase and 201.9 in overall length, and the reason three-point turns and parking-garage ramps take real effort.

A high, commanding seating position with an eight-way power driver's seat and memory, plus a control layout that still uses real buttons and knobs for radio and climate rather than burying them in the small screen. Against it: thick rear pillars and a high beltline on a very wide body, with only a rearview camera and rear sensors to compensate.

Nobody takes the long way home in an Enclave, and it was never meant to be that vehicle: a 7.8–8.2 second 0–60, numb steering, soft body control and a cosmetic-only Sport Touring Edition that adds black trim and 20-inch wheels without touching the chassis. It is a pleasant appliance.

The $39,990 Convenience trim covered the basics well — tri-zone climate, rear camera, remote start, 6.5-inch IntelliLink touchscreen, OnStar 4G LTE with a Wi-Fi hotspot, dual USB and eight-passenger seating — but leather, blind-zone alert, forward-collision alert and lane-departure warning all required stepping up to Leather Group or above, which mainstream rivals were beginning to bundle lower in the range by 2017.

Near-luxury money bought a genuinely spacious, quiet and comfortable three-row cabin, but the underlying hardware was a 2008 Lambda platform with a 288-hp 3.6L V6 and a six-speed automatic and thirsty EPA numbers — content and refinement per dollar are fair rather than a bargain, and only the deep clearance discounting made the sticker look competitive.

Three well-spaced trims (Convenience, Leather, Premium) with a new-for-2017 Sport Touring appearance package and a choice of second-row bench or captain's chairs give reasonable spread, but there is one engine, one transmission, and all-wheel drive is barred from the base trim — a narrow configuration menu by three-row-SUV standards.

48,564 US sales in calendar 2017 kept the Enclave a solid mid-pack three-row seller and Buick's volume anchor, but that is a third year of decline from the 62,300-unit 2014 peak, with the trajectory pointing down as the generation ran out.

Buick in 2017 carried a genuinely strong dependability reputation and the Enclave was the nameplate that rebuilt the brand's credibility after 2008, but the badge remains a neutral one — it lacks the aspirational pull of Acura or Volvo at the same price and skews to an older buyer, which caps rather than lifts resale.

As the run-out year of a generation whose replacement was unveiled in April 2017, the 2017 Enclave was among the most heavily discounted vehicles in the class — stackable factory cash, subsidized financing and wide dealer negotiability on top of GM supplier pricing, which is an unambiguous win for a buyer willing to take the old body.

2017 is the tenth and final model year of the generation launched for 2008 on the GM Lambda platform, and the all-new C1XX-based 2018 Enclave with a 310-hp V6 and nine-speed automatic was unveiled in April 2017 — a buyer purchasing a 2017 was buying a car already publicly superseded.

Reviewers stayed warm on the Enclave to the end — U.S. News scored it 8.2/10 and ranked it 4th among 2017 affordable midsize SUVs on the strength of ride comfort, quietness and genuinely usable third-row and cargo space — but it collected no major awards in its final year and was routinely marked down for fuel economy, dated infotainment and an old powertrain, so it was well-reviewed rather than a comparison-test winner.