Test Drive: 

The Buick hit the market about four months later than the others, tagged a 2008 model, while the
others were launched as '07s.

It has given the Enclave a quieter cabin and smoother, if slightly number, ride.

Thus the Buick comes off as a truly different vehicle, even though the engine, transmission and suspension hardware
are the same and it's built by the same workers on the same assembly line as the Saturn and GMC models.
It retains most of the practical and visceral appeal that make the others standouts.

The bad news:

Enclave tortures the slim, straight elegance of Outlook and Acadia.
Enclave's detailing — the faux portholes, the overlarge grille (so thin and flexible on the test vehicle that it twisted in
your hands when the hood was raised), the sloping side windows and inexplicably ovaled rear window
— harass the eye and reduce what already was limited rear visibility.

If you could see the Buick just in shadowed silhouette, no highlights, it would look good, voluptuously muscular.
But the devil is in the details.

Reasonable people often disagree on matters of taste, so you might love the look.

Inside, the luxury touches are too often affectations rather than graceful expressions of the high life.
The arch in the center of the dashboard is an example of trying too hard.
The wood steering wheel serves the purpose of looking good, but it is cold, hard and far less pleasant than the
leather wheels in the Saturn and GMC versions.

Different tires and slightly different tuning of the suspension hardware give Enclave an isolated feel in contrast to the
responsive personae of the Saturn and GMC versions and the slightly smaller (which sports a bigger engine for '08,
3.7 liters vs. 3.5) that's a very classy alternative to the GM crossovers.

Goody, the old-fashioned among you are saying. Finally something not obsessed with "European" ride and handling.
Add Buick's comfortable seats to the equation and folks who prefer smooth to taut might indeed find the Enclave
a good choice.

What might trigger second thoughts:

• The driver's side power seat in the test vehicle began to move in jerks instead of smoothly.
GM says that's a problem with a few components on early models and has been fixed.
Trust but verify, as the late President Reagan said.

• The fuel economy suddenly went south. Tooling along getting about 16 mpg in suburban driving, then almost in a wink,
the average tumbles to less than 14, even though more highway miles and fewer stop-go miles were being driven.

GM examined the all-wheel-drive test vehicle, found no error codes in the vehicle's computer, and handed it back.
It wound up recording 14-and-change overall, disappointing considering the heavy mix of highway miles during the
test drive, the 18 mpg combined-driving rating, and the somewhat better mileage of Outlook and Acadia.
Enclave weighs a modest 60 to 80 pounds more than the others, according to GM specifications, not enough to
make a big mileage difference.

"I'm at a loss," says Pete Nico, vehicle line engineer for what GM calls midsize crossover utility vehicles, even though
they are the same size as, and have more interior room than, a full-size Chevrolet Tahoe SUV.

• Automatic transmission initially jerked and delayed, but while GM had the tester to see why the mileage plunged,
it also installed a transmission software upgrade — "third and last," Nico says — to correct shift problems.

All '08s that use the transmission, not just the Buick, are supposed to get the upgrade.
That includes not only the other crossovers, but some Saturn cars.

After the latest fix, the transmission shifted much better, but:

When you really, really wanted a right-now two- or three-gear downshift to, say, elude a rampaging dump truck,
the transmission took a while to believe you meant what your right foot said. Once it decided you did, the shifts
were crisp and well-executed.

And the gearbox nervously hunted for the proper gear on minor grades.

Oh, the shifts among gears were crisp enough during the hunt, but so much fussiness was unwelcome.
Gave you the sense the vehicle was underpowered and needed to downshift to tackle an anthill.
It's not. GM's 3.6-liter V-6 that powers all the big crossovers is a snappy number.

• Rear visibility. It's crummy in the Saturn and GMC versions, which have straight-edge rear windows,
and becomes a significant problem in the slant- and oval-window Buick.

• Storage isn't quite what you want. There's no handy spot for the headphones that accompany the rear-seat
video system, for instance. And the center console in front isn't commodious.

On the other hand, Enclave is from a good family. In some mysterious fashion, GM has given all the big crossovers
an engaging feel that invites you to drive for enjoyment, not just to get to soccer practice on time.

Steering, brakes, handling (even Enclave's) are satisfying. Driving position is properly comfortable.

As on the Saturn and GMC versions, the second-row seats slide forward to expand the rear cargo space and
backward to provide generous legroom in the second row.

Second-row seats flop and slide forward unusually far, if not entirely smoothly, for good access to the third row.
And that third row is sized for adults. Sliding the second row back into place afterward is cumbersome, however.

The array of features, standard and optional, is just right. Tire pressure monitor, for example, shows the status of each
tire so you don't have to guess which one's low, as you do in the Mazda and some other vehicles.
Standard satellite radio is XM, which has better reception (at least along much of the East Coast) than rival Sirius does.
(CX-9 offers only Sirius).

OnStar telecommunications system can call for help automatically if you crash. Personal preferences, such as whether the
horn beeps when you lock the vehicle or how long the lights stay on after you shut down, are easy to program.
Trip computer (you can't get one in the CX-9) is easy to use.

The Enclave, Outlook and Acadia haven't been on the road long enough to establish a track record for reliability.
But maybe that's not an issue for you. And perhaps you aren't put off by limited rear visibility.
And you embrace, rather than reject, the Buick styling details.

Well, then, sign the check. Enclave has the same good genes the other GM crossovers have even though to some
eyes it's the misshapen member of the tribe.

2008 Buick Enclave

•What is it? Full-size, four-door, seven- or eight-passenger crossover SUV, available with front-wheel drive (fwd)
or all-wheel drive (awd). Mechanically the same as Saturn Outlook and GMC Acadia; built at the same Delta Township
factory in Lansing, Mich.

•How soon? On sale since April.

•What's the drivetrain? 3.6-liter V-6 rated 275 horsepower at 6,600 rpm, 251 pounds-feet of torque at 3,200 rpm;
six-speed automatic transmission with manual-shift feature, traction control.

All-wheel drive is tuned to anticipate, rather than only react to, need for rear traction; programmed to keep vehicle stable
in corners by funneling power to outside wheels rather than cutting power to inside wheels, as stability control does.

•What's the safety gear? Expected bags and belts, plus front-seat, side-impact bags, head-curtain bags for all three
rows of seats, anti-lock brakes, stability control, OnStar emergency communication system

•What's the rest? Standard on all models: Three-zone automatic climate control; power steering, brakes, windows,
mirrors, locks, seats; AM/FM/CD/MP3-compatible stereo with input jack for auxiliary audio players; auto-dimming inside
rearview mirror with compass; remote-control locks; high-intensity discharge headlights; fog lights; power operated tailgate;
rear-window and outside mirror defrosters; tilt-adjustable and telescoping steering column; XM satellite radio with three
months free service; OnStar telecommunications system with one year free service.

Other standard and optional features vary by model. 

•How big? Full-size; same footprint as Chevrolet Tahoe. Enclave is 201.5 inches long, 79 inches wide, 72.5 inches tall
on a 119-inch wheelbase.

Weight is listed as 4,780 (fwd) or 4,985 (awd) pounds.

Cargo space in cubic feet is listed as: Behind third row, 18.9; when third row's folded, 66; when second and third rows
are folded, 115.1.

Turning circle is listed as 40.4 feet, curb-to-curb.

Rated to tow 4,500 lbs. Rated to carry 1,280 — 1,635 lbs. depending on model and equipment.

•How thirsty? Fwd is rated 16 miles per gallon in town, 24 on the highway, 19 in combined driving. Awd is 16/22/18.
For comparison, those are 1 to 2 mpg better than the slightly smaller Mazda CX-9, which weighs about 450 pounds
less than Enclave. Test vehicle's trip computer showed 14.4 mpg in mixed driving.

Tank holds 22 gallons. Regular-grade (87 octane) gasoline is specified.

•Overall:  Poor rear visibility and overwrought styling make the mechanically identical Saturn Outlook,
GMC Acadia seem like better machines.