Compare the2024 Buick EnclaveVS 2023 Tesla Model X

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the Buick Enclave’s middle seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Tesla Model X doesn’t offer comfort guides on its middle seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Enclave are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Model X doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Enclave has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Model X doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Enclave offers optional Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Model X doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Enclave offers an optional Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Model X only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Enclave’s standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The Model X doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.

The Enclave has standard OnStar®, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions, remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Model X doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

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

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 Tesla Model X:

	Enclave	Model X
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	15.6%	26%
Neck Stress	198 lbs.	207 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	53/40 lbs.	138/94 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 flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Buick Enclave is safer than the Tesla Model X:

	Enclave	Model X
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	69	101
Hip Force	204 lbs.	217 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	251	274
Spine Acceleration	34 G’s	39 G’s
Hip Force	554 lbs.	625 lbs.

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

Warranty

There are almost 13 times as many Buick dealers as there are Tesla dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Enclave’s warranty.

Reliability

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 22 points higher than the Model X.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Enclave second among midsize suvs in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Model X isn’t in the top three in its category.

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 Tesla vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 95 more problems per 100 vehicles, Tesla is ranked 33rd, below the industry average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Buick vehicles are more reliable than Tesla vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Buick 8 places higher in reliability than Tesla.

Tires and Wheels

The Buick Enclave’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Tesla Model X only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Enclave has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Model X doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Enclave has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the Model X; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Enclave’s wheelbase is 4.2 inches longer than on the Model X (120.9 inches vs. 116.7 inches).

For better maneuverability, the Enclave’s turning circle is 1.8 feet tighter than the Model X’s (39 feet vs. 40.8 feet).

Chassis

The Buick Enclave may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 700 to 850 pounds less than the Tesla Model X.

Passenger Space

The Enclave has .9 inches more front headroom, .1 inches more front legroom, 3.3 inches more front hip room, 1.5 inches more front shoulder room, 4.7 inches more rear shoulder room, .5 inches more third row headroom, 3.7 inches more third row legroom, 9.8 inches more third row hip room and 16.6 inches more third row shoulder room than the Model X.

Cargo Capacity

The Enclave’s cargo area provides more volume than the Model X.

	Enclave	Model X
Behind Third Seat	23.6 cubic feet	15 cubic feet
Third Seat Folded	57.7 cubic feet	33.8 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	97.4 cubic feet	88.2 cubic feet

The Enclave’s standard rear seats fold to accommodate long and bulky cargo. The Model X 6-Passenger doesn’t offer folding rear seats.

Pressing a button automatically lowers or raises the Enclave Premium/Avenir’s third row seats, to make changing between cargo and passengers easier. The Model X doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Enclave’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Model X doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Ergonomics

The Enclave’s entire steering wheel hub sounds the horn, facilitating hitting the horn in an emergency. The Model X has a small, single button on the steering wheel spoke that can be hard to find quickly in an emergency.

The Enclave Premium/Avenir has a standard heads-up display that projects speed and tachometer readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Model X doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

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 Model X doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Enclave’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Model X’s cruise control switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Enclave has a standard rear wiper. The Model X doesn’t offer a rear wiper.

The Enclave’s standard side window demisters help clear frost or condensation from the side windows in the winter. The Model X doesn’t even offer side window demisters, so the driver may have to wipe the windows from the outside to gain side vision.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Enclave has standard extendable sun visors. The Model X doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Enclave’s sun-visors swivel front-to-side to block glare from the side windows. The Model X’s visors are fixed into the windshield header.

The Enclave has a standard center folding armrest for the middle row passengers. A center armrest helps make middle row passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Model X doesn’t offer a middle row seat center armrest.

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 Model X.

The Enclave offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Model X doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Model Availability

The Enclave is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Model X doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Enclave is less expensive to operate than the Model X because typical repairs cost much less on the Enclave than the Model X, including $354 less for a water pump, $151 less for front struts and $29 less for a power steering pump.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the Buick Enclave, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Buick Enclave outsold the Tesla Model X by 27% during 2022.