LIKES
- Right-sized for urban use
- A handsome hatchback…
- ...with a stylish interior
- Standard safety gear
- Good infotainment
DISLIKES
- Average warranty
- Narrow front seats
- Steering lacks feel
- Expensive, in Essence trim
BUYING TIP
The 2022 Buick Encore GX slips into a small premium crossover niche with turbo-3 power and good infotainment.
What kind of car is the 2022 Buick Encore GX? What does it compare to?
The Encore GX five-seat crossover blends hatchback utility, crossover-SUV traction, and a layer of premium trim that’s more than a thin veneer. It’s bigger and better than the Encore still sold in Buick showrooms, but trust us: The GX is the Encore you want to sit through. Rivals include the Audi Q3, Volvo XC40, and the Lexus UX.
Is the 2022 Buick Encore GX a good car?
Sold in Preferred, Select, and Essence editions, the 2022 Encore GX scores a TCC Rating of 6.0 out of 10.
What’s new for the 2022 Buick Encore GX?
Just some paint colors. Otherwise, the Encore GX still sits at the nexus between small crossover-SUV and hatchback, wearing a handsome body styled with better proportions and more slimming body trim than its outdated namesake. It’s attractive on the inside, too, with a wing-like dash and upholstered dash trim that surround an 8.0-inch touchscreen.
Rated a five-seater, we’d peg the Encore GX at four adults and their stuff. It’s good for more than 50 cubic feet of cargo with just two people on board, and can tote eight-foot-long objects (a ladder, a garden trellis, flat-pack bookcases) with a folded-down front passenger seat. It can stop short of an accident, too, thanks to standard automatic emergency braking—but if the worst should happen, the NHTSA says its crash protection earns five stars.
How much does the 2022 Buick Encore GX cost?
Pricing for 2022 isn’t out yet, but it won’t veer far from last year’s base of about $26,000. Spend a little more on the turbo-3 engine and the Select trim and you’ll get 18-inch wheels, a power driver seat, blind-spot monitors, and an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The top-end Essence rises to more than $37,000; that’s too much.
Where is the 2022 Buick Encore GX made?
In South Korea.
Styling
It’s an efficient hatchback, but the Encore GX has style.
Is the Buick Encore GX a good-looking car?
The Encore GX has an appealing shape, with the curves to correct the impression that it’s all about utility. It’s stylish enough to gain a point for its exterior, for a 6 here.
The appealing shape starts with slim LED headlights that frame a broad wing-like grille. They lead into body sides with a trio of deeply sculpted lines that shear some visual weight from the car, and tease its body upward to the rear end. It’s not strikingly different in concept from the older Encore, but it’s entirely more successful, especially in the way Buick doles out splines of metallic trim and blacks out the roof on some editions to make a leaner, more handsome shape.
Performance
The Encore GX charges 3-cylinders with its power needs.
With its turbo-3 engines, the Encore GX has amiably quick acceleration and responsive steering. It earns a 5 for performance.
Is the Buick Encore GX 4WD?
Those with the larger engine can be fitted with all-wheel drive; otherwise, the Encore GX is front-wheel drive.
How fast is the Buick Encore GX?
It’s not very quick, but it’s enough. Buick sells a base version with a 137-hp 1.2-liter turbo-3, but hasn’t offered one for a test drive. It’s sold only with front-wheel drive and a CVT—but it doesn’t weigh much less or have that much less power to make a big difference from its slightly more expensive sibling.
The optional 1.3-liter turbo-3 costs under $500 as an upgrade, and it’s an easy choice. With 155 hp and 174 lb-ft of torque, it’s also teamed with a CVT in front-wheel-drive versions; when it’s fitted with all-wheel drive, it gets a 9-speed automatic. We like it with the CVT, where it makes excellent use of its low-end torque for a 0-60 mph time of about eight seconds. The engine’s muted by plenty of sound deadening, and the CVT even allows the driver to flick through imaginary gears (since CVTs use pulleys and belts, they don’t have actual gears).
The Encore GX can tow up to 1,000 lb, and weighs from 3,025 to 3,273 lb.
Comfort & Quality
The Encore GX has narrow seats, but decent cargo room.
We give the Encore GX credit for its ample cargo space, but deduct that point for seats with narrow cushions, for a 5 here.
The Encore GX has a wheelbase of 102.2 inches and sits 171.4 inches long; it’s about the size of an old Honda Element. It’s bigger than the Encore Buick still sells, by a couple of inches in length.
We haven’t driven a base model, which has manually adjusted front seats. In the Essence, power seats with leather upholstery have good travel to accommodate small and tall drivers. The seats have narrow bottom cushions, though, and feel too slim and flat for bigger drivers.
In back, two adults will fit well thanks to big door openings, a high seat, and good knee room. There’s a place for a third passenger, but they should be on the small side, and should only get the invite for short trips. With good shaping to the seat itself, the Encore GX feels much more comfortable than the older carryover Encore.
The Encore GX sports 23.5 cubic feet of storage behind the rear seats, which expands to 50.2 cubic feet when the rear seatbacks fold down. That’s not much less than the larger, more expensive Buick Envision—and the GX’s front passenger seatback folds flat to carry objects up to about eight feet long.
With lots of plush materials and sound deadening, at least in the Essence trim, the Encore GX looks and sounds suitably upscale.
Safety
The IIHS has yet to rate the Encore GX.
How safe is the Buick Encore GX?
We give it a 7, with a point above the median for its NHTSA five-star rating and one for standard automatic emergency braking. The IIHS hasn’t tested one yet, though.
All Encore GXs also have LED headlights, automatic high beams, and active lane control.
Features
Buick’s infotainment picks up a point, as does its standard features list.
The Encore GX has a savvy infotainment system and lots of standard features, but its warranty and options list come off thin. We give it a 7 for features.
At about $26,000, the Encore GX Preferred with the smaller engine and front-wheel drive has 18-inch wheels, keyless start, cloth and synthetic leather seats, power features, and an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Which Buick Encore GX should I buy?
How much is a fully loaded Buick Encore GX?
The Encore GX Essence starts at about $32,500. It has a power front passenger seat and leather upholstery. It can be fitted with a panoramic sunroof, Bose premium audio, a hands-free power tailgate, a surround-view camera system, and wireless smartphone charging; with a head-up display and adaptive cruise control, it can cost more than $37,000.
Buick’s average warranty covers the car for 3 years/36,000 miles.
Fuel Economy
Fuel economy’s a good reason to pick the Encore GX.
Is the Buick Encore good on gas?
It’s very good, with all models rated at more than 30 mpg highway, for a score of 6 here.
Base versions with the 1.2-liter turbo-3 earn EPA ratings of 29 mpg city, 31 highway, 30 combined. The uprated 1.3-liter engine sits at 29/32/30 mpg with front-wheel drive; with all-wheel drive, it’s 26/29/27 mpg.
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