For enhanced safety, the front and middle seat shoulder belts of the Chrysler Pacifica are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Buick Enclave doesn’t offer height-adjustable front seat belts.
The Chrysler Pacifica has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Enclave doesn’t offer knee airbags.
Earlier warning of stopped traffic, traffic signals, dangerous road conditions, weather, or accidents, can keep driver's safer and prevent crashes. The Pacifica offers optional Emergency Vehicle Alert System, a system that seamlessly communicates important warnings to the driver about impending danger, if they're available. The Enclave doesn’t offer a system that can receive automated systems from other vehicles.
Both the Pacifica and the Enclave 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 Chrysler Pacifica is safer than the Buick Enclave:
|
Pacifica |
Enclave |
OVERALL STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
168 |
216 |
Neck Compression |
56 lbs. |
77 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
HIC |
196 |
333 |
Chest Compression |
.4 inches |
.9 inches |
Neck Injury Risk |
25% |
35.2% |
Neck Stress |
117 lbs. |
128 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
51 lbs. |
51 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 Chrysler Pacifica is safer than the Buick Enclave:
|
Pacifica |
Enclave |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Abdominal Force |
149 lbs. |
161 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
66 |
134 |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Max Damage Depth |
13 inches |
14 inches |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Chrysler Pacifica is safer than the Enclave:
|
Pacifica |
Enclave |
Overall Evaluation |
ACCEPTABLE |
ACCEPTABLE |
Structure |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Neck Tension |
335 lbs. |
446 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Shoulder Deflection |
.94 in |
1.3 in |
Shoulder Force |
223 lbs. |
312 lbs. |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.26 in |
1.5 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
5 MPH |
6 MPH |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Pelvis Force |
848 lbs. |
1116 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head Injury Criterion |
83 |
189 |
Neck Tension |
112 lbs. |
134 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
67 lbs. |
201 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Pacifica is 3.4% to 6% less likely to roll over than the Enclave.
For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Pacifica the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 98 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Enclave has not been fully tested, yet.