Last week I brought a used 2020 (so used) Buick Enclave – Avenir trim line. It replaced my 2012 Buick Enclave (leather AWD). I was really impressed by my first Enclave. I wanted another minivan to replace my 2014 Honda Odyssey, but all of the nice ones were out of my price range. The Enclave had all sorts of bells and whistles and was well within my budget.

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Fast forward to 2026, my original Enclave is now 14.5 years old. It still runs, but needs some work on the exhaust, suspension and climate control. Most likely easy fixes for someone who has the time — but I have a busy summer full of road trips and I do not want to chance taking it hundreds of miles away from home in its current condition. So I upgraded to a 2020 Enclave.

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First Impressions

The MSRP on my new car was a crazy $60,040. I am the 3rd owner and snagged it for just under $25K. It isn’t a secret that Buicks, or GM cars in general, do not hold their value like Asian cars do. However this isn’t due to reliability and Buicks fare better than Nissans. Getting into the 2020 for the first time, I was surprised at how the cabin felt like you were sitting in a beefy car as opposed to a luxurious truck. This is surprising because from the outside, the dimensions seem similar. But let’s look at the specs:

In spite of the reduced vehicle height, the headroom in the front seats of the new Enclave beats the old one by an inch (41 inches vs. 40). To be honest I miss the retro front end of the old Enclave. But the back looked like a jellybean. The front of the new Enclave looks more subdued but it looks better from all angles in my humble opinion.

Driving the 2020 Enclave is nice and smooth but the suspension is stiffer than my old Enclave. That is a good thing though because my old Enclave felt very ‘floaty’ on the road. I love the updated electronics, adaptive cruise control, massaging seats and 360-degree camera. I don’t like the engine start/stop (that can’t be shut off), the reduced cargo capacity or dated looking built-in GPS (which is ok because I use Apple CarPlay anyway). I miss the top & bottom wood touches on the steering wheel and the little storage area that was on top of the dashboard. I was excited to get the 10-speaker Bose stereo system; only to be let down by the bare bones audio settings. But overall, the 2020 Buick Enclave is a nicely put together vehicle.

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The first road trip of the summer is already under my belt. I took the new Enclave to Detroit where my co-workers were marveling at all of the space inside. One of them admitted that she had no idea that Buick made an SUV so big (which is funny, because there are other GM SUVs that are much bigger).

There are quite a few reviews of the second-generation of Buick Enclaves out there — but I like this one which focuses on a used, high-mileage one:

Looking Forward

I am the type where I will stick to a particular type of car — then move on. For example I’ve had 3 Ford Probes (both 1st and 2nd generation); a Chrysler Sebring coupe and a Mitsubishi Eclipse (they are both built on the same platform). So I am in familiar territory here. However the latest generation of the Buick Enclave is not my style. It looks too bland and has a turbocharged inline-4 cylinder engine that just does not seem much like a Buick to me. Besides, my boys will most likely be too big at that point to make anything less than a full-sized SUV make sense (hopefully gas will be more affordable by then!)

But for now I am quite happy with my ‘new-to-me’ Enclave. Definitely recommended to those who need space, like comfort and are on a budget.