Compare the2024 Buick EnclaveVS 2024 Volkswagen Atlas

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
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 Volkswagen Atlas 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 Atlas 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 Atlas doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Both the Enclave and the Atlas have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, 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 Volkswagen Atlas:

	Enclave	Atlas
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	216	307
Neck Injury Risk	15.6%	30%
Neck Stress	198 lbs.	412 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	53/40 lbs.	67/229 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	35.2%	39%
Neck Stress	128 lbs.	129 lbs.
Neck Compression	51 lbs.	117 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	258/133 lbs.	297/97 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 Volkswagen Atlas:

	Enclave	Atlas
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	204 lbs.	345 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	134	144
Spine Acceleration	39 G’s	39 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	251	279
Spine Acceleration	34 G’s	51 G’s
Hip Force	554 lbs.	800 lbs.

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

Warranty

Buick’s powertrain warranty covers the Enclave 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Atlas. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Atlas ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 3 times as many Buick dealers as there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Enclave’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Enclave second among midsize suvs in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Atlas 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 Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 87 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 31st, below the industry average.

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 Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick second in reliability, above the industry average. With 70 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 21st.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Buick vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Buick 12 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

Engine

The Enclave’s 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 41 more horsepower (310 vs. 269) than the Atlas’ 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

The Enclave AWD’s standard fuel tank has 3.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Atlas (21.7 vs. 18.6 gallons).

The Enclave has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Atlas doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Transmission

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Buick Enclave, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Atlas.

Brakes and Stopping

The Enclave stops shorter than the Atlas:

	Enclave	Atlas
60 to 0 MPH	134 feet	139 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Enclave has larger tires than the Atlas (255/65R18 vs. 245/60R18).

The Buick Enclave’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Volkswagen Atlas 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 Atlas doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The Enclave offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Atlas’ suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Enclave’s wheelbase is 3.6 inches longer than on the Atlas (120.9 inches vs. 117.3 inches).

For better maneuverability, the Enclave’s turning circle is 2 feet tighter than the Atlas’ (39 feet vs. 41 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Enclave has a 1.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Atlas (7.5 vs. 6.3 inches), allowing the Enclave to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Chassis

The front grille of the Enclave uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Atlas doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

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

Passenger Space

The Enclave has 3.3 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Atlas (157.3 vs. 154).

The Enclave has 1.3 inches more front headroom, .6 inches more front hip room, .7 inches more front shoulder room, .7 inches more rear legroom, 1.1 inches more rear shoulder room, 3.4 inches more third row hip room and 2.4 inches more third row shoulder room than the Atlas.

Cargo Capacity

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

	Enclave	Atlas
Behind Third Seat	23.6 cubic feet	20.6 cubic feet
Third Seat Folded	57.7 cubic feet	55.5 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	97.4 cubic feet	96.6 cubic feet

The Enclave’s cargo area is larger than the Atlas’ in almost every dimension:

	Enclave	Atlas
Length to seat (3rd/2nd/1st)	26.2”/54”/90”	23.8”/53”/85”
Max Width	52.7”	61.6”
Min Width	48.5”	45”
Height	30.8”	37.5”

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

Servicing Ease

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Buick service is better than Volkswagen. J.D. Power ranks Buick fifth in service department satisfaction. With a 39% lower rating, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

Ergonomics

The Enclave Premium/Avenir’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Atlas doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

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 Atlas doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Car-Net can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Enclave has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Atlas only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Enclave’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Atlas has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

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 Atlas.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Enclave is less expensive to operate than the Atlas because typical repairs cost much less on the Enclave than the Atlas, including $76 less for a water pump, $294 less for a muffler, $334 less for a starter, $103 less for fuel injection, $327 less for front struts and $618 less for a timing belt/chain.

Recommendations

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