Compare the2024 Buick EnclaveVS 2023 Toyota Highlander

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
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 Toyota Highlander doesn’t offer comfort guides on its middle seat belts.

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 Highlander doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

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. Only the Highlander LE/XLE/XSE/Limited/Platinum offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Enclave has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Highlander LE/XLE/XSE/Limited/Platinum offers Rear Cross Traffic Alert.

Both the Enclave and the Highlander 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, 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 Toyota Highlander:

	Enclave	Highlander
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	216	292
Neck Injury Risk	15.6%	38.2%
Neck Stress	198 lbs.	347 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	53/40 lbs.	321/243 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Stress	128 lbs.	179 lbs.
Neck Compression	51 lbs.	90 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	258/133 lbs.	545/323 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 Toyota Highlander:

	Enclave	Highlander
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	204 lbs.	300 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	14 inches	15 inches
HIC	251	366
Spine Acceleration	34 G’s	41 G’s
Hip Force	554 lbs.	664 lbs.

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

Warranty

The Enclave’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Highlander’s (6 vs. 5 years).

There are over 58 percent more Buick dealers than there are Toyota 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 Highlander 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 Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 32 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked 22nd, 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 Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick second in reliability, above the industry average. With 11 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked fifth.

Engine

The Enclave’s 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 45 more horsepower (310 vs. 265) than the Highlander’s 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Buick Enclave is faster than the Toyota Highlander:

	Enclave	Highlander
Zero to 60 MPH	7.4 sec	7.7 sec
Quarter Mile	15.8 sec	16 sec

Fuel Economy and Range

The Enclave FWD’s standard fuel tank has 1.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Highlander (19.4 vs. 17.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Enclave AWD’s standard fuel tank has 3.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the Highlander (21.7 vs. 17.9 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 Highlander 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 Highlander.

Brakes and Stopping

The Enclave’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Highlander are solid, not vented.

The Enclave stops shorter than the Highlander:

	Enclave	Highlander
60 to 0 MPH	130 feet	133 feet	Consumer Reports
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	141 feet	143 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Enclave has larger tires than the Highlander (255/65R18 vs. 235/65R18).

The Buick Enclave’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Toyota Highlander 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 Highlander 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 Highlander’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

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 Highlander doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Enclave’s wheelbase is 8.7 inches longer than on the Highlander (120.9 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Enclave is 2 inches wider in the front and 1.6 inches wider in the rear than on the Highlander.

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 Highlander 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 Highlander doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Enclave has 15.5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Highlander (157.3 vs. 141.8).

The Enclave has 1.4 inches more front headroom, 1.8 inches more front hip room, .5 inches more rear headroom, .7 inches more rear hip room, 1.5 inches more third row headroom, 5.5 inches more third row legroom and 2.9 inches more third row hip room than the Highlander.

Cargo Capacity

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

	Enclave	Highlander
Behind Third Seat	23.6 cubic feet	16 cubic feet
Third Seat Folded	57.7 cubic feet	48.4 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	97.4 cubic feet	84.3 cubic feet

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

Servicing Ease

The Enclave uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Highlander uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Buick service is better than Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Buick fifth in service department satisfaction. With a 24% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

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 Highlander 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 Highlander doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

Consumer Reports rated the Enclave’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Highlander’s headlights, which were rated “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 Highlander offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

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 is only available on the Highlander Limited/Platinum.

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 Highlander.

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 Highlander XLE/XSE/Limited/Platinum offers wireless charging.

Recommendations

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

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