[kidsenclave]

I did not need the Enclave's size...like I said I bought it for tax purposes....If not I would have bought something smaller....
However a real smoking deal is the Kia Sorrento with the 3rd row

Yeah, I'd have to spend some time with that vehicle to really judge it. Sounds great on paper, but there's got to be short commings with the price they go for. I think it's only 7 passenger, not 8. I also think the space behind the 3rd row is a lot less than the Enclave, based on photos I've looked at. However, if someone needs a mid-sized CUV that mostly doesn't need the 3rd row, but sometimes needs to carry a couple extra passengers, than it makes sense. I think the Enclave, and other Lambdas still have most the other CUV's and SUV's beat, because they have a dedicated 3rd row, and seating more like a mini-van.

 

[sciond]

it is a 7 so is my Enclave though....I did an extended test drive on it as my buddy was a GSM at a dealer...very impressive for a car that is roughly 2/3 of what I paid for me Buick...if I am basing value on size the Enclave will win of course as I call mine the behemoth...however it weighs within 100lbs of my ML which is a foot shorter..what does that tell you?

 

[EastEnclave]

The three vehicles I considered are the Enclave, Mercedes GL550, and the Flex/MKT.

• GL550 $30,000 more than Enclave, higher insurance, higher operating cost, and you are tied to the dealership. Slightly used, (20,000 miles) still $55- 65,000
• Flex/MKT, second row room was great but the third row was poor Nice features SYNC. MKT dash is very nice. MKT when optioned up goes way past $52,000

I also like the Audi Q7. I attended the launch of the model in NY and one of the Audi guys tried to demonstrate the third row seating and got stuck back there. My wife and I had to help him get out. Needless to say, we had a good laugh on the way home.

 

[Uncle_B]

Re: Re: Re: Enclave Pros & Cons

The three vehicles I considered are the Enclave, Mercedes GL550, and the Flex/MKT.

• GL550 $30,000 more than Enclave, higher insurance, higher operating cost, and you are tied to the dealership. Slightly used, (20,000 miles) still $55- 65,000
• Flex/MKT, second row room was great but the third row was poor Nice features SYNC. MKT dash is very nice. MKT when optioned up goes way past $52,000

I also like the Audi Q7. I attended the launch of the model in NY and one of the Audi guys tried to demonstrate the third row seating and got stuck back there. My wife and I had to help him get out. Needless to say, we had a good laugh on the way home.

This is exactly my point. With the competing cars you have to pay more or pay the same but get less car.

The car that we did forget to mention is the Toyota Highlander. Not bad looking on the outside in my opinion, but not as nice inside as the Enclave. It did have enough room inside for us, but a simple thing was the deal breaker. When you fold down the third row its all or nothing - the seat backs aren't split 2/3. So if you need a bit more trunk space, you can only fit 4 people in the car.

 

[GoldEnclave]

Two highlights about the lambda's third row seating are real room with decent access for three people and highly functional cargo space behind the third row for routine errands. Most other three row CUVs can seat only two in the third row and must fold down the third row for most common errands. My three row Tribeca falls into this category.

 

[sciond]

I guess at the end of the day... I am different than most other folks here I did not buy mine because I loved it...I bought because it was better than the Acadia and traverse and had a GVWR of 6411lbs

 

[GoldEnclave]

I guess at the end of the day... I am different than most other folks here I did not buy mine because I loved it...I bought because it was better than the Acadia and traverse and had a GVWR of 6411lbs

The appeal of a tax return deduction can be quite strong.

 

[sciond]

yes special depreciation rocks

 

[wvuguy]

However a real smoking deal is the Kia Sorrento with the 3rd row

The Sorrento SX I saw on display last week at the NAIAS was anything but a "smoking deal".

Even with a 4th row.....let alone a 3rd row.....anything presently in the Kia lineup with an MSRP of >$36K is borderline silly. That's more money than an equivalent Honda Pilot or Toyota Highlander; though a Kia dealer is clearly going to move a lot more on his sticker than the Honda or Toyota guy.

But, unless you just have to have the Sorrento's styling, I don't see how anyone can justifiably select the Kia over either of those imports.

 

[sciond]

The Sorrento SX I saw on display last week at the NAIAS was anything but a "smoking deal".

Even with a 4th row.....let alone a 3rd row.....anything presently in the Kia lineup with an MSRP of >$36K is borderline silly. That's more money than an equivalent Honda Pilot or Toyota Highlander; though a Kia dealer is clearly going to move a lot more on his sticker than the Honda or Toyota guy.

But, unless you just have to have the Sorrento's styling, I don't see how anyone can justifiably select the Kia over either of those imports.

Ok Yeah I want the risk of a Highlander..nope.... the Pilot have you driven it is weak at best... I hate it....
Hyundai quality on their new vehicles is superior to most right now....add in the warranty an lower OTD the door price it wins...not to mention much better styling and form.....
BTW almost every manufacturer uses Hyundia's robotics to build their cars.....What does that say?

 

[flguy]

Having lived with an Acadia for 39 months and just turned it in for a new Enclave, here are my impressions:

Cons:

1) Enclave needs a light in the glovebox, come on!

2) Decontented cup holders for the second-row occupants that used to flip out from under the driver's center console...gone! We didn't notice until our first road trip last weekend.

3) Missing HUD, a shame they can't figure out how to offer it on Enclave.

Pros:

1) Much quieter than our Acadia

2) Much improved transmission reponse, no longer bogs down between 2-3, and holds shifts on highway inclines.

3) Interior overall is much more upscale and rich feeling than Acadia, although Acadia did look/feel more "sporty" to me.


Other notes:

We had so many problem with the sunroof leaking on Acadia, not to mention solar load in FL, that we opted NOT to get one this time. Plus there was extra wind noise and the sun screen rattled. Now we have added benefit of more headroom and the drop-down DVD screen no longer intrudes on rear vision.

We also opted NOT to get NAV this time. Money was not an issue, it was just an awful system that had to be replaced at least once (went on the fritz), and we were never going to pay the $250 for new discs each year. Instead we bought a top of the line portable unit. We still get turn-by-turn nav through OnStar, though, which is nice.

So our Enclave actually cost less overall than our Acadia, but we like it much better and it actually feels like a more expensive vehicle. Time will tell if it holds up, we felt like our Acadia was on its last leg with only 35k lightly-driven miles. Sad, but we did not find any other SUV we liked enough to replace lambda.

 

[BORREGOGUY]

It's very sad when a car with only 35,000 miles is on its last legs.

I bought an 2011 Enclave; am glad I sprung for the 70,000/7 year bumper to bumper.

 

[GoldEnclave]

flguy, I do not have the Nav either, but am very satisfied with OnStar's Directions and Connections Turn-by-Turn navigation system. I have managed to get a promotional rate of only $198.96, or there abouts, for my current annual subscription. Not bad for all of the the services and the peace of mind the money buys. :thumb:

 

[flguy]

It's very sad when a car with only 35,000 miles is on its last legs.

Yes, and we were ready to buy a different brand but none of the competitors, namely the new 2011 Explorer and 2011 Durango, had the space and ergonomics we were so used to on the Acadia (nor the discounts or the quiet-tuning or OnStar), so we decided to chalk up the Acadia as a "new model" fluke with hopes that by 2011 GM has improved the quality and durability. We liked that the Buick came with the 4 year/50k bumper-to-bumper since we purchased this one instead of leasing (thank GOD we leased that Acadia). Only time will tell. Honestly, I will be surprised if we make it to payoff in 5 years and are still in love with it.

 

[ccaats]

It's very sad when a car with only 35,000 miles is on its last legs.

I bought an 2011 Enclave; am glad I sprung for the 70,000/7 year bumper to bumper.

I own TWO 2008 lambdas with 50K+ miles on each and they both drive just like they are brand new and we have had only one problem (bad rear liftgate hydraulic strut on Enclave at 1.5 years). I'm kinda wishing now that I hadn't spent the money on 100K mile B2B warranties as I may not get my moneys worth back.

 

[sciond]

funny after reading all the stuff I see here I am glad I bought the B2B warranty

 

[ccaats]

funny after reading all the stiff I see here I am glad I bought the B2B warranty

You're right sciond, it could all go downhill tomorrow with a piece of machinery, so the peace of mind is always good to have.

 

[Grimm]

Ours has over 56K and runs like a new car. Praying the water pump is the only non maintenance issue for several years.

 

[GoldEnclave]

ccaats, your extended B2B warranty will likely keep the gremlins away. It's a lot like carrying an umbrella when it is forecast to rain; it never rains because you've got the umbrella. :happy:

 

[lodgepole]

Over all the Enclave is a beautiful ride, inside and out.The thing that realy gets under my skin is the transmission. When you let your speed drop to 50, you get a downshift. When you drop to 40, you get another downshift with a small jolt that raises the rpm's to 2000. I can't believe more people don't pick up on this. There is no justification for this on the LEVEL or DOWNHILL. It causes excessive rpms and POOR mpg in all city driving. To further worsen the city mpg,the torque converter is very loose off the line causing excessive rpms just to start moving. Also won't hold on a hill without foot on the brake and could cause you to roll back into another car. I would think that with the inherant timing chain problems, GM engineers? would want to keep rpms down to prolong chain life. I have never had a vehicle that pulled these goofey stunts.
I have a 2010 CXL awd and had the dealer check the flash. he says it has the latest and greatest. Well, thats not good enough, it needs a COMMON SENSE & GOOD JUDGEMENT flash. Guess I will have to have a transmission expert streighten out GM's goof up.