The 2025 Buick Enclave ST AWD: A Premium Paradox Missing Its Mark
As an industry veteran with a decade embedded in the automotive landscape, I’ve witnessed countless vehicles attempt to carve out their niche. Some succeed spectacularly, others fade into obscurity, and a select few hover in a perplexing middle ground. The 2025 Buick Enclave ST AWD, particularly in its midline trim, unfortunately, falls into this latter category. Buick has positioned the Enclave as a premium three-row SUV, a flagship for a brand striving to redefine itself. Yet, after extensive evaluation, the ST variant feels less like a confident stride forward and more like a hesitant sidestep, lacking the essential sparkle to truly dazzle in a fiercely competitive market.
Initially, I approached our review unit, a 2025 Enclave ST, with keen interest. The expectation was for Buick to send its top-tier Avenir, the trim designed to showcase the brand’s ultimate vision of luxury and capability. However, experiencing the ST proved to be a valuable lesson. It stripped away the highest-end accoutrements, revealing the core product without its most flattering attire. What became evident was a vehicle that, despite a handsome exterior and practical intentions, struggles profoundly to justify its premium aspiration, especially at an asking price hovering just north of $61,000. This is a critical juncture for Buick, and the Enclave ST’s proposition, or lack thereof, merits a deep dive.
Design Language: A Promise of Modernity
Let’s begin where most consumers do: with aesthetics. The 2025 Enclave introduces a refreshed design language, drawing heavily from the acclaimed Wildcat concept. This is undoubtedly one of its strongest assets. The exterior is genuinely attractive, projecting a sense of modern elegance that Buick has diligently cultivated. The new front fascia, characterized by slimmer headlamps and a prominent grille, gives the Enclave a more sophisticated and confident stance. The overall silhouette is clean, with well-proportioned lines that cleverly mask its increased size. In an era where many SUVs resort to overly aggressive or bulbous designs, the Enclave maintains a refined presence that should appeal to a wide demographic seeking a polished family vehicle.
The growth in dimensions is welcome, particularly for a three-row SUV designed for family utility. It translates directly into enhanced interior volume without rendering the vehicle unwieldy. Parking in suburban lots or navigating tighter city streets, the Enclave manages its footprint surprisingly well, avoiding the “transatlantic liner” feel that some larger SUVs exhibit. This balance of presence and practicality in design is commendable and represents a solid foundational element for the Enclave’s market appeal. It’s a handsome vehicle, no doubt, and from the curb, it certainly looks the part of a contemporary, upscale crossover.
Powertrain Evolution: Efficiency Over Excitement
Under the hood, Buick has made a significant shift for 2025, ditching the previous V6 in favor of a new four-cylinder turbocharged engine. From an efficiency standpoint, this is a clear win. The EPA fuel economy figures show a welcome improvement, a crucial factor for many buyers in today’s market facing fluctuating fuel costs. This move aligns with broader automotive trends, where manufacturers are increasingly opting for smaller, forced-induction engines to meet stringent emissions standards and consumer demands for better mileage.
However, this transition comes with a noticeable trade-off in acceleration and overall driving character. While the previous V6 wasn’t a powerhouse, it offered a certain smoothness and effortless surge that the new turbo-four, despite its modern design, struggles to replicate. The acceleration penalty, while slight on paper, is perceptible in real-world driving. For a premium family SUV, one expects a sense of refined power, an assurance that passing maneuvers or merging onto highways will be executed with ease and confidence. The Enclave ST’s new engine, while competent, feels merely adequate, lacking the robust responsiveness that elevates the driving experience in competing luxury three-row SUVs. It gets the job done, but it doesn’t inspire. This efficiency-focused approach, while practical, dilutes the premium driving feel that a brand like Buick should embody.
Advanced Driver Assistance Systems: A Tale of Two Modes
One of the most anticipated technology integrations for the 2025 Enclave is the availability of Super Cruise, GM’s lauded hands-off-the-wheel driver assistance system. Having earned a 2025 MotorTrend Best Tech award, Super Cruise represents the pinnacle of semi-autonomous driving capabilities currently available to consumers. Its cautious, highly mapped approach instills confidence, making long highway stretches significantly less fatiguing. The system only engages on pre-mapped roads, and it’s remarkably adept at sensing when to hand control back to the driver, prioritizing safety above all else. This feature, for those who regularly travel on compatible interstates, is genuinely transformative.
However, the Enclave’s implementation of Super Cruise reveals a significant strategic oversight, particularly for the ST trim. While the hands-off functionality is impressive on mapped roads, the moment you deviate from them, the Enclave ST offers no form of lane centering whatsoever. This is a critical deficiency. Many similarly priced, and even less expensive, SUVs from brands like Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, Honda, and Toyota offer comprehensive lane-keeping assist systems that provide continuous, if hands-on, lane centering across a much broader range of roads. These systems act as a constant safety net and fatigue reducer.
Buick’s decision to omit a hands-on lane centering mode, which is available in Cadillac models equipped with Super Cruise, feels like a calculated marketing decision that ultimately shortchanges the customer. It creates a stark contrast: revolutionary hands-free driving in one scenario, and a complete absence of basic lane support in another. This puts the Enclave behind a significant portion of its competitive set and undermines its claim as a modern, technology-forward premium SUV. For a luxury family vehicle, consistent and comprehensive driver assistance features are no longer optional extras; they are fundamental expectations. The absence of this basic functionality in the Enclave ST is a glaring weakness in its otherwise impressive ADAS suite.
Interior: Where Aspirations Meet Reality
Stepping inside the Enclave ST AWD is where the dream of a premium Buick truly begins to unravel. The ST model, by design, comes with a monochrome black interior. While some might appreciate its understated nature, in the Enclave’s context, it’s arguably the worst way to present the cabin. It drains any potential for visual interest, highlighting rather than camouflaging the areas where material quality and design execution fall short. Without contrasting colors, metallic accents, or varied textures to draw the eye, the cabin feels stark, bordering on utilitarian.
The large, curved screen dominating the dashboard is a technological bright spot, seemingly lifted from the Cadillac Vistiq and adapted for Buick. Its integration of Google Assistant works seamlessly, providing natural voice commands and a robust built-in app ecosystem. The idea of installing apps like Spotify and Waze directly onto the car’s operating system rather than relying solely on phone mirroring is forward-thinking and generally well-executed. For users embedded in the Google ecosystem, this is a significant advantage. However, Apple CarPlay users will find their experience relegated to a smaller window, a concession that might frustrate a substantial portion of the premium market.
Beyond the impressive screen, the interior experience quickly loses its luster. It feels as though Buick’s designers poured most of their attention into the digital interface at the expense of tactile quality and ergonomic design throughout the rest of the cabin. The center console, in particular, looks and feels like an afterthought. Its design lacks the integrated, cohesive feel expected in a vehicle vying for a premium price tag. Hard plastics abound in areas frequently touched, and rough edges are noticeable upon closer inspection. This isn’t just about superficial aesthetics; it impacts the everyday experience of interacting with the vehicle.
When compared to rivals, this disparity becomes even more pronounced. A Chevrolet Traverse High Country, priced nearly a thousand dollars less than our Enclave ST test unit, offered an interior that felt equally, if not more, refined in terms of material choice and fit-and-finish south of the dashboard. This is a critical misstep for Buick. A premium brand is defined not just by its technology but by the pervasive sense of quality and comfort throughout the entire cabin. The Enclave ST, unfortunately, fails to deliver on this fundamental expectation, leaving a lasting impression of indifference rather than indulgence.
Family Functionality: A Practical Performer
While the ST trim struggles with its premium aspirations, it performs adequately where functionality is concerned. As a family-focused SUV, it largely fulfills its purpose. The three rows of seating offer a reasonable balance of passenger room. The third row, while not limousine-like, is genuinely useful for smaller children and average-sized adults on shorter trips. Access to the third row is manageable, an important consideration for parents. The second row is comfortable and accommodating, providing ample legroom and headroom for adult passengers.
Cargo capacity is another strong suit. With all seats in place, there’s a reasonable amount of luggage space, sufficient for daily errands or a weekend getaway. For larger hauls, the rear seats fold flat at the touch of a button, transforming the Enclave into a surprisingly capable moving van. This ease of conversion is a significant plus for active families who often need versatile cargo solutions. From a pure utility standpoint, the Enclave checks the boxes, offering the flexibility and space that buyers in this segment demand. It’s practical, adaptable, and handles the core duties of a family hauler without complaint.
Driving Dynamics: The Bland Side of Buick
Now, for the driving experience. This is where the Enclave ST truly earns its “snoozetastic” moniker. There’s not much to critique severely, but there’s also very little to praise with enthusiasm. The Enclave simply…drives. It gets you from point A to point B comfortably enough, but without any discernible character, poise, or engagement. The ride quality is generally soft, soaking up road imperfections without much fuss, which is commendable for passenger comfort. However, it lacks the sophisticated damping and body control found in more premium offerings.
The Avenir model, we know, benefits from upgraded active shocks that significantly refine the ride, adding a layer of composure and luxury that the ST explicitly lacks. Our ST test vehicle, without these crucial components, felt less composed over varied surfaces. Furthermore, attempting to inject some excitement via the “Sport” drive mode proved counterproductive. It merely made the steering artificially heavy, adding resistance without any corresponding improvement in feel, precision, or chassis responsiveness. The result was a cumbersome, rather than engaging, steering experience.
For a brand aiming for premium status, the driving dynamics of the Enclave ST are a glaring omission. It doesn’t feel particularly posh, nor is it exciting. There’s a noticeable disconnect between the vehicle’s exterior styling, which promises refinement, and its on-road performance, which delivers competence but little else. In an era where even mainstream SUVs like the Mazda CX-90 offer genuinely enjoyable driving experiences, the Enclave ST’s indifference behind the wheel is a significant drawback. Buyers seeking a luxury SUV often expect a certain level of driving refinement and enjoyment, and the ST simply doesn’t deliver.
Value Proposition: A Question of Identity
This brings us to the most critical question: Is Buick truly a luxury brand, and does the Enclave ST AWD live up to that promise? At over $61,000, the ST trim steps into a territory where expectations for luxury, refinement, and advanced features are incredibly high. It competes not just with well-appointed mainstream three-row SUVs like the Kia Telluride SX-Prestige or Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy, but also encroaches upon the entry-level of true luxury crossovers such as the Acura MDX, Lexus RX L, and even the Volvo XC90.
In this company, the Enclave ST struggles to define itself. Without the richer color palettes, the panoramic roof, the enhanced suspension, and the more attractive interior materials of the Avenir trim, the ST simply doesn’t feel premium enough. The pervasive hard plastics, the monochrome interior, and the lack of consistent refinement make it difficult to justify its price point. As noted earlier, even the slightly less expensive Chevrolet Traverse High Country offers a cabin experience that rivals or surpasses the Enclave ST in critical areas of perceived quality.
Perhaps the most damning comparison is with the Hyundai Palisade, a vehicle that, despite its mainstream badge, offers an interior and feature set that, even in its top trims, feels more luxurious and cohesive than the Enclave ST, often at a lower or comparable price. The Palisade’s interior execution, its wealth of standard features, and its generally more polished driving dynamics make the Enclave ST appear, as the original insight noted, “a little tatty” by comparison.
The Enclave ST AWD is, at its heart, a good and decent servant. It’s practical, spacious, and visually appealing from the outside. But it fails to be a stand-out SUV, largely because it attempts to play in a luxury space without fully committing to the elevated standards required. It lacks the cohesive luxury experience, the dynamic sophistication, and the comprehensive feature set expected at its price. The critical elements that would elevate it from merely “competent” to “compelling” are either absent or confined to the higher-priced Avenir trim, which itself faces stiff competition.
The Road Ahead: An Invitation to Experience
For buyers in 2025 navigating a landscape rich with exceptional three-row SUVs, the Buick Enclave ST AWD presents a perplexing dilemma. Its handsome exterior and efficient powertrain are strong points, as is the availability of Super Cruise on mapped roads. However, the midline ST’s interior shortcomings, inconsistent ADAS offerings, and underwhelming driving dynamics prevent it from truly shining in the premium segment it aspires to dominate.
Ultimately, the Enclave ST AWD feels like a missed opportunity to fully embody Buick’s renewed vision of affordable luxury. It serves its purpose as a family hauler, but it doesn’t elevate the experience to the premium standard its pricing suggests. If you’re considering a 2025 Enclave, I implore you to drive both the ST and the Avenir trims to truly appreciate the difference the upgraded accoutrements make. Understand your priorities: is it pure practicality, cutting-edge hands-free driving, or a consistently refined luxury experience?
Don’t just take our word for it. The automotive market is dynamic, and personal preferences vary widely. I encourage you to visit your local Buick dealership, experience the 2025 Enclave ST AWD for yourself, and compare it rigorously against its many formidable competitors. Does its handsome exterior and Google-powered infotainment outweigh the interior’s material compromises and the driving experience’s blandness for your family’s needs?
Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below. What do you look for in a premium three-row SUV, and how do you think the 2025 Buick Enclave ST AWD stacks up against its rivals? Your insights help shape the conversation and guide fellow consumers toward their ideal vehicle.
