2022 Buick Envision

2024
The Car Connection
Best Car To Buy

The Car Connection Expert Review

Martin Padgett Martin Padgett Editorial Director
June 5, 2022

Buying tip

The Envision Essence with front-wheel drive offers the best value, so long as you spend up for the surround-view camera system and head-up display.

features & specs

AWD 4-Door Avenir
AWD 4-Door Essence
AWD 4-Door Preferred
MPG
22 city / 29 hwy
MPG
22 city / 29 hwy
MPG
22 city / 29 hwy
MSRP
$41,650
MSRP
$37,400
MSRP
$33,300

The 2022 Buick Envision comes into clear view with energetic performance and a suave shape.

What kind of car is the 2022 Buick Envision? What does it compare to?

The Envision is a five-seat crossover SUV with premium looks and a premium price. It’s engaging to drive, spacious and supportive for four adults or more, and has good infotainment with either its smaller or bigger screen. It competes with the Volvo XC60, Lincoln Corsair, and Lexus NX. 

Is the 2022 Buick Envision a good car?

We give the 2022 Envision a 7.2 out of 10, with IIHS crash-test scores still to come. (Read more about how we rate cars.)

What’s new for the 2022 Buick Envision?

Very little, other than some new stitching and a new paint color. The Envision retains its toned, sleek body that reeks of Pilates and Peloton, and couples it with a sweeping and elegant cabin covered in a high grade of trim. It’s especially soothing in light-beige leather, with the expansive upgrade of a 10.2-inch touchscreen.

With a 228-hp turbo-4 and a 9-speed automatic, the Envision overcomes a stout curb weight with a strong surge of power from low engine speeds. The powertrain’s present, but not noisy. The suspension copes with most surfaces with aplomb, though we’d recommend the adaptive dampers to soak up the impacts generated by the available 20-inch wheels.

Five passengers will be a snug fit in the Envision but four large adults fit well. Its front seats can be upgraded from cloth and synthetic leather to soft leather that’s heated and cooled—and the rear bench seat can be heated in outboard positions, too. Fold down the rear seatback and the Envision can carry up to 52.7 cubic feet of stuff, easily loaded through the power tailgate that’s standard on Essence and Avenir trims.

All Envisions have automatic emergency braking, active lane control, and rear parking sensors. Most models can be fitted with rear parking sensors, a head-up display, and a surround-view camera system. 

How much does the 2021 Buick Envision cost?

The base Envision costs less than $35,000, and has an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, 18-inch wheels, and LED headlights. We’d pick an Essence with front-wheel drive, and keep the price below $40,000; the most expensive Envision Avenir with all-wheel drive, adaptive cruise control, and a panoramic sunroof approaches $50,000.

Where is the 2021 Buick Envision made?

In China.  

8

2022 Buick Envision Styling

Elegant outside and in, the 2022 Envision wears Buick’s best finery.

Is the Buick Envision a good-looking car?

With expressive curves like those on the bigger Enclave and smaller Encore GX, the Buick Envision seems to wear them with the least effort and the best impact. It’s elegant, day or night, inside or out. It’s an 8 for styling.

With the graceful echo of Volvo reverberating through its body, the Envision sculpts its face and body sides with a light touch. The swept-back headlights blend in casually, and team with LED daytime running lights to frame the Envision’s attractive grille. Thick roof pillars are balanced out with creased rear fenders to keep the Envision well grounded. A Sport Touring package blacks out some of the shiny bits on the body.

The Envision cabin has a couple of notable foibles—the steering wheel is thin, and the touchscreen tilts back from the driver at an awkward angle. Mostly, it’s a soothing environment dressed in a high grade of trim. The driver sits amid swoops of upholstered dash and console panels, thin metallic ribbons, and panes of gloss trim. A sport-appearance package blacks out some exterior metallic trim. In Avenir guise, a pretty but not very convincing silvery-wood trim has a dimpled texture that gives away its synthetic status; the light-beige leather offsets it handsomely.

7

2022 Buick Envision Performance

The even-keeled Envision sports strong turbo pull.

The Envision taps a 9-speed automatic and an energetic turbo-4 engine for power, and grafts adaptive dampers on the best-handling versions. We give it a 7 for its well-tuned performance.

Is the Buick Envision 4WD?

All-wheel drive can be fitted to every model.

How fast is the Buick Envision?

With its 228-hp 2.0-liter turbo-4, the Envision passes traffic on the highway with good urgency. It twists out 258 lb-ft of torque, which comes into effect at 1,500 rpm and lets the Envision pull strongly past 5,000 rpm. It’s eager to needle through urban traffic, so long as it’s not stuffed with a full load of cargo and passengers—it weighs between 3,692 to 3,932 pounds without passengers. It does put out a fair amount of engine noise even with active noise cancellation, and front-drive Envisions scrabble for traction from a stoplight launch.

The 9-speed automatic standard on every Envision judders very infrequently at low speeds, but shifts cleanly in most scenarios. A drive mode selector spins it from Touring to Sport or Snow/Ice modes, and paddles let the driver shift at will. With all-wheel drive, the Snow/Ice mode gives way to Off-Road and AWD modes—optimistic Band-Aids, since the Envision has only middling ground clearance, all-season tires, and a low tow rating of 1,500 lb.

Refinement is the Envision’s safe word. With an independent suspension at all corners, the Envision has standard 18-inch wheels that may offer a more pleasant ride. We’ve driven Avenir editions with 20-inch wheels and adaptive dampers, and with the constantly adjusting shocks the Envision still skitters over big bumps. It’s not rough or uncontrolled, though. Its electric power steering doesn’t offer feedback through its slim steering wheel, but the steering responds quickly to inputs without overreacting.

7

2022 Buick Envision Comfort & Quality

The Envision suits four best.

Buick wraps the Envision’s lovely shape around a five-seat cabin; four large adults fit easily, with room to spare for their luggage in a cabin that’s refined and well-appointed. We give it a 7 here with points for cargo space and very good front seats.

The Envision measures 182.5 inches long and rides on a 109.4-inch wheelbase, in range of rivals like the Lexus NX and Volvo XC60. Climb in, and the thin-looking front seats offer great support with power adjustment and a cloth-and-synthetic-leather covering. Spendy versions gain heating and cooling in front, as well as perforated leather upholstery.

The Envision’s twin-lidded armrest teams with a big storage bin that sits under the climate controls and a lower storage area; there’s plenty of space to hide small items.

The Envision’s back seat has swell shaping for two large passengers and surrounds them with good foot and knee room; head room gets trimmed by the optional panoramic sunroof. We say pass it up, and get heating for the rear outboard seats instead.

With a power tailgate (standard on most versions) the Envision opens up a 25.2-cubic-foot cargo hold that can be expanded to 52.7 cubic feet by folding down the rear seats.

The Envision’s cabin is softly padded and quieted with thicker materials and active noise cancellation for the engine. It has a solid feel, and with the lighter-toned interior, it pings Volvo’s radar in the right ways.

8

2022 Buick Envision Safety

The Envision’s crash-test scores are encouraging.

How safe is the Buick Envision?

The IIHS hasn’t crash-tested it yet, but the Envision earned five stars overall from the NHTSA, and comes with standard automatic emergency braking. Along with a passel of available safety features, we give it an 8.

The Envision also comes standard with rear parking sensors, active lane control, and blind-spot monitors. It’s a good thing since the thick rear roof pillars blot out some of the view to the rear.

Adaptive cruise control, a head-up display, front parking sensors, and a surround-view camera system can be fitted to the Envision on models where they’re not included.

8

2022 Buick Envision Features

The 2022 Envision scores with infotainment and standard features.

Buick fits all Envision SUVs—whether they’re Preferred, Essence, or Avenir trim—with a good infotainment system and great standard equipment. It’s a good value, too, but options can be expensive and its 3-year/36,000-mile warranty lags rivals. We give it an 8 here.

Priced below $35,000, the front-drive Envision Preferred has automatic emergency braking, power features, an 8-way power driver seat, LED headlights, 18-inch wheels, cloth and synthetic leather seats, and an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Buick charges about $1,800 for all-wheel drive, and $495 for any paint color that’s not white.

A $2,500 package upgrades the Preferred to 9-speaker Bose audio and a 10.2-inch touchscreen, front parking sensors, a head-up display, and a surround-view camera system. A Sport Touring package factors in 20-inch wheels and dark body trim. 

Which Buick Envision should I buy?

For less than $38,000, the Envision Essence with front-wheel drive offers the best value. It gains leather upholstery, a power tailgate, heated front seats, a power front passenger seat, the 10.2-inch touchscreen, and remote start. We’d pass on all-wheel drive and the available panoramic sunroof, and spend about $4,000 extra for the technology bundle’s head-up display and surround-view camera system.

How much is a fully loaded Buick Envision?

At more than $41,000, the Envision Avenir has heated rear seats, 20-inch wheels, navigation, and a surround-view camera system. For about $2,000 more, it’s topped off with adaptive dampers, automatic park assist, a rear camera mirror, and adaptive cruise control.

5

2022 Buick Envision Fuel Economy

Envision gas mileage is average.

Is the Buick Envision good on gas?

It’s fine for a mid-size luxury crossover, with EPA ratings of 24 mpg city, 31 highway, 26 combined. That’s for the front-wheel-drive version; add all-wheel drive, and the ratings dip to 22/29/25 mpg. Unlike Lexus and Volvo rivals, the Envision doesn’t have a hybrid or a plug-in model.

USED PRICE RANGE
$21,990 - $38,295
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7.2
Overall
Expert Rating
Rating breakdown on a scale of 1 to 10?
Styling 8
Performance 7
Comfort & Quality 7
Safety 8
Features 8
Fuel Economy 5
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