Monday, March 1, 2010

Oh the Space, Power and Luxury: Buick Enclave



If you are in the market for an SUV, you might be wanting roominess.
Or you might only be seeking a powerful engine.
Or, luxury might be your thing.
But if you want all of those, the 2010 Buick Enclave should command your attention.
The Enclave has an abbundance of space, seating eight passengers and providing a huge 115 cubic feet of cargo space.
The second of the Enclave's three rows of seats can collapse and slide, making it simple to access the third row or to haul large items in the vehicle's mid section, if you choose.
And if you have average size or slightly larger people who want to sit in the third row, no problem; unlike so many other vehicles offering three rows, this one is actually somewhat comfortable.
The Enclave is powered by a 3.6-liter V-6 engine that is strong enough to drag 4,500 pounds around if you need it to.
And even with that, fuel economy is reasonable for a vehicle this size, at 16 mpg city, 22 highway.
That engine is linked to a six-speed automatic transmission.
The Enclave is available with two-wheel or all-wheel drive.
If you're all about the niceties, the Enclave gives you an interior that is adorned with enhanced wood and leather, heated front seats, DVD entertainment system and front and rear sunroof, at its highest trim level (CXL2).
Crank it down a notch to the CXL1 and you still get many of those features, including the rearview camera that comes on the CXL2.
If you go with the base CX model, you'll have cloth seats, but also a three-zone climate control system.
Other features add nicely to the value of the Enclave, including the standard XM Satellite Radio that comes with a three-month free subscription as well as the OnStar turn-by-turn navigation and safety system that is the easiest to use in the auto industry.
The optional Bose stereo system that comes with 10 speakers is also available for you to rock and roll all the way down the highway.Some of the smaller things that you might notice that will help you fall in love with the Enclave are the standard power liftgate (comes in handy when loading or unloading groceries) and the quiet tuning system.
It's really quiet.
So quiet that sitting in the library will sound like you're at a rocket launch compared with riding in this vehicle.
A nice collection of safety features makes you feel good about hauling the family around in the Enclave, including head airbags for all three rows, antilock brakes and traction and stability control systems.The Enclave has earned five-star ratings for front and side crash testing from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The Enclave is competitively priced compared with other vehicles in its class, starting at around $35,500.
The test-drive model was a top of the line CXL-2 that carried a sticker price of $49,355.

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