Compare the2024 Mercedes GLAVS 2024 Buick Envista

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Mercedes GLA have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Buick Envista doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The GLA’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Envista doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

The Mercedes GLA has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Envista doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The GLA offers an optional Post Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Envista doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

The GLA offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Envista doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

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

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the GLA has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Alert and Active Brake Assist automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Buick charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Envista and the Envista’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.

The GLA’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Envista doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

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

Warranty

The GLA comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Envista’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The GLA’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Envista’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

Reliability

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the GLA’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Envista’s camshafts. If the Envista’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the GLA third among small premium suvs in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Envista isn’t in the top three in its category.

Engine

The GLA’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 84 more horsepower (221 vs. 137) and 96 lbs.-ft. more torque (258 vs. 162) than the Envista’s 1.2 turbo 3-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Mercedes GLA is faster than the Buick Envista:

	GLA	Envista
Zero to 60 MPH	6.8 sec	9.4 sec
Quarter Mile	15.3 sec	17.1 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	90.8 MPH	80.2 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

Regenerative brakes improve the GLA’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Envista doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

Transmission

An eight-speed automatic (SMG) is standard on the Mercedes GLA, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a six-speed automatic is available for the Envista.

The GLA offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Envista doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the GLA’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Envista:

	GLA	Envista
Front Rotors	12.6 inches	11.8 inches
Rear Rotors	11.6 inches	11.3 inches

The GLA stops shorter than the Envista:

	GLA	Envista
60 to 0 MPH	123 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the GLA has larger tires than the Envista (235/55R18 vs. 225/60R17).

The GLA’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Envista’s standard 60 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the GLA has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Envista. The GLA’s optional 20-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels optional on the Envista.

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires available on the GLA can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The Envista doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

Suspension and Handling

For superior ride and handling, the Mercedes GLA has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Buick Envista has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

The GLA offers an optional 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 Envista’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The GLA’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Envista doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the GLA’s wheelbase is 1.4 inches longer than on the Envista (107.4 inches vs. 106 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the GLA is 1.9 inches wider in the front and 1.6 inches wider in the rear than on the Envista.

The GLA 250 4MATIC executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Envista Sport Touring (27.8 seconds @ .61 average G’s vs. 28.5 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

Chassis

The GLA is 9 inches shorter than the Envista, making the GLA easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Passenger Space

The GLA has 5 inches more front hip room, .8 inches more rear headroom, 11.5 inches more rear hip room and .3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Envista.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the GLA’s rear seats recline. The Envista’s rear seats don’t recline.

Cargo Capacity

The GLA has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Envista with its rear seat folded (50.5 vs. 42 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the GLA. The Envista doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

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

Ergonomics

When three different drivers share the GLA, the memory seats and mirrors make it convenient for all three. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver and front passenger’s seat positions and outside mirror angle. The Envista doesn’t offer a memory system.

The GLA offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Envista doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The GLA’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Envista’s power windows’ switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully.

The GLA’s standard Keyless-Go allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Pushbutton Start standard on the Envista only offers hands-free access for the ignition, none to unlock the vehicle.

The GLA’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Envista’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer fluid is optional on the GLA to defrost the washer nozzles and quickly clear ice and frost from the windshield without scraping. The Envista doesn’t offer heated windshield washer fluid.

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

The GLA’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Envista doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Both the GLA and the Envista offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the GLA has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Envista doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

The GLA’s available GPS navigation system has a real-time traffic update feature that plots alternative routes to automatically bypass traffic problems. (Service not available in all areas.) The Envista’s available navigation system doesn’t offer real-time traffic updates.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Mercedes GLA has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the Envista.

The GLA 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 Envista doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The GLA’s Active Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Envista doesn’t offer an automated parking system.