Compare the2025 Buick EnclaveVS 2024 Mercedes GLB

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 GLB 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 GLB doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Enclave has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The GLB doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

The Enclave’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the GLB.

Both the Enclave and the GLB have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive, front parking sensors and driver alert monitors.

The Buick Enclave weighs 646 to 1095 pounds more than the Mercedes GLB. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

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

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

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

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Buick vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick above average in initial quality. With 42 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mercedes is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Buick vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick third in reliability, above the industry average. With 69 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mercedes is ranked 21st.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Buick vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Buick 17 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

The Enclave’s 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 107 more horsepower (328 vs. 221) and 68 lbs.-ft. more torque (326 vs. 258) than the GLB’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Buick Enclave uses regular unleaded gasoline. The GLB requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Enclave FWD’s standard fuel tank has 5.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLB (19.4 vs. 13.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Enclave AWD’s standard fuel tank has 8.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLB (21.7 vs. 13.5 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 GLB doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

For better traction, the Enclave has larger standard tires than the GLB (255/55R20 vs. 235/55R18). The Enclave’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the GLB (275/45R22 vs. 235/55R18).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Enclave has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the GLB. The Enclave’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels optional on the GLB.

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

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 GLB; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the GLB don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Enclave’s wheelbase is 9.5 inches longer than on the GLB (120.9 inches vs. 111.4 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Enclave is 4.1 inches wider in the front and 3.9 inches wider in the rear than on the GLB.

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 GLB 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 GLB doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Enclave has 1.9 inches more front headroom, 3.2 inches more front legroom, 6.3 inches more front shoulder room, .7 inches more rear headroom, 3.4 inches more rear legroom, 7.2 inches more rear shoulder room, 3.5 inches more third row headroom, 3 inches more third row legroom and 14 inches more third row shoulder room than the GLB.

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

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the Enclave’s optional second row seats and pressing a switch automatically lowers or raises the third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The GLB doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The Enclave has a 1500 lbs. towing capacity. The GLB has no towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Sway Control on the Enclave uses the StabiliTrak® sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The GLB doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Buick service is better than Mercedes. J.D. Power ranks Buick third in service department satisfaction. With a 29% lower rating, Mercedes is ranked 17th.

The Enclave’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The GLB does not have an oil pressure gauge.

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 GLB only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

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 GLB doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Both the Enclave and the GLB have standard heated front seats. The Enclave Avenir also has standard heated second row seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated second row seats aren’t available in the GLB.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Enclave Avenir keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The GLB doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

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 costs extra on the GLB.

The Enclave Avenir has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the GLB.

The Buick Enclave outsold the Mercedes GLB by over two to one during 2023.