Compare the2024 Buick EnclaveVS 2023 Chevrolet Tahoe

Safety
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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The Enclave has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Tahoe’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Enclave has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Chevrolet charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Tahoe.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the Enclave uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The Tahoe uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the Enclave and the Tahoe have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Buick Enclave is safer than the Chevrolet Tahoe:

	Enclave	Tahoe
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	15.6%	23%
Neck Stress	198 lbs.	312 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	53/40 lbs.	152/161 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	35.2%	47%
Neck Stress	128 lbs.	272 lbs.
Neck Compression	51 lbs.	66 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	258/133 lbs.	333/811 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Buick Enclave is safer than the Chevrolet Tahoe:

	Enclave	Tahoe
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	34 G’s	38 G’s
Hip Force	554 lbs.	764 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Enclave, with its four-star roll-over rating, is 4.3% to 6.9% less likely to roll over than the Tahoe, which received a three-star rating.

Reliability

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the Enclave has an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of some of the engines in the Tahoe.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Enclave’s reliability 20 points higher than the Tahoe.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Buick vehicles are better in initial quality than Chevrolet vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 4 more problems per 100 vehicles, Chevrolet is ranked fifth.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Buick vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick second in reliability, above the industry average. With 24 more problems per 100 vehicles, Chevrolet is ranked 10th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Buick vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Buick 9 places higher in reliability than Chevrolet.

Engine

As tested in Car and Driver the Buick Enclave is faster than the Chevrolet Tahoe 5.3 V8:

	Enclave	Tahoe
Zero to 60 MPH	6.5 sec	7.5 sec
Zero to 100 MPH	17.2 sec	20.5 sec
5 to 60 MPH Rolling Start	6.8 sec	8.4 sec
Quarter Mile	15 sec	15.8 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	94 MPH	89 MPH
Top Speed	130 MPH	115 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Enclave gets better mileage than the Tahoe:

			MPG
Enclave
	FWD	3.6 DOHC V6	18 city/26 hwy
	AWD	3.6 DOHC V6	17 city/25 hwy
Tahoe
	RWD	5.3 OHV V8	15 city/20 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	14 city/20 hwy
	AWD	5.3 OHV V8	15 city/20 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	14 city/18 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Buick Enclave uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Tahoe with the 6.2 V8 engine requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Buick Enclave higher (6 out of 10) than the Chevrolet Tahoe (3 to 6). This means the Enclave produces up to 23.4 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Tahoe every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Enclave stops much shorter than the Tahoe:

	Enclave	Tahoe
70 to 0 MPH	176 feet	184 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	130 feet	145 feet	Consumer Reports
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	141 feet	153 feet	Consumer Reports

Suspension and Handling

The Enclave has variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Tahoe doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Enclave Avenir AWD handles at .83 G’s, while the Tahoe Z71 4x4 pulls only .63 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Enclave Avenir executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1 seconds quicker than the Tahoe LT 4x4 (28.4 seconds @ .6 average G’s vs. 29.4 seconds @ .54 average G’s).

Chassis

The Buick Enclave may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1100 to 1200 pounds less than the Chevrolet Tahoe.

The Enclave is 5.9 inches shorter than the Tahoe, making the Enclave easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Unibody construction lowers the Enclave’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The Tahoe doesn’t use unibody construction, but a body-on-frame design.

The Enclave uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Tahoe doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Enclave has .3 inches more front headroom and 1 inch more rear headroom than the Tahoe.

Cargo Capacity

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Enclave easier. The Enclave’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 30.5 inches, while the Tahoe’s liftover is 37 inches.

Servicing Ease

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Buick service is better than Chevrolet. J.D. Power ranks Buick fifth in service department satisfaction. With a 20% lower rating, Chevrolet is ranked 16th.

Ergonomics

If the windows are left open on the Enclave the driver can close them all from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Tahoe can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Enclave’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Tahoe doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its OnStar® can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

The Enclave has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the Tahoe.

The Enclave Premium/Avenir has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Tahoe.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Buick Enclave has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Tahoe LT/RST/Z71/Premier/High Country offers wireless charging.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Enclave is less expensive to operate than the Tahoe because it costs $73 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Enclave than the Tahoe, including $482 less for a muffler, $62 less for a fuel pump, $49 less for front struts and $450 less for a timing belt/chain.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Buick Enclave will be $6203 to $17674 less than for the Chevrolet Tahoe.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the Buick Enclave, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Chevrolet Tahoe isn't recommended.

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