Twinned with the Chevrolet Trax on GM's Vehicle Set Strategy – Front architecture, the Buick Envista leaves much to be desired in many respects. When it comes to crashworthiness and other safety metrics, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found plenty of things that could be improved.
Although the 2024 model aced the small overlap front and original moderate overlap front crash tests, the nonprofit organization couldn't rate it higher than poor in the updated moderate overlap front crash test and acceptable in the updated side impact test. Why is that? In the moderate test, dummy readings indicate a likelihood of injury to the rear passenger's head or neck and a moderate risk of injury to the rear occupant's chest.
The side impact evaluation didn't go well for either crash test dummy. When it comes to crash avoidance and mitigation, the Virginia-based organization rated the front crash prevention system as being acceptable due to mixed results in vehicle and pedestrian scenarios. More specifically, the nighttime crossing adult and parallel adult tests.
Headlight performance is marginal, with the IIHS noting inadequate visibility for both the low and high beams on the straightaway and curves. The Envista was rated acceptable rather than good seatbelt reminders and the LATCH system's ease of use, which are not part of the award criteria for the Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ accolades.
Everything considered, a very poor showing for a vehicle that went on sale for the 2024 model year stateside. In production since 2022, the Buick Envista is manufactured in South Korea by GM Korea and in China by GM's joint venture with SAIC Motor.
Photo: IIHS on YouTube
Although the Chinese model features a 1.5-liter turbocharged inline-four connected to a continuously variable transmission, the US counterpart makes do with a 1.2-liter turbocharged inline-three and a six-speed automatic. Three cylinders in a small crossover is a bit of a stretch, as it's also the case with most Ford Bronco Sport grades.
One could also argue that a six-speed automatic is kind of underwhelming by 2024 standards, but there's nothing wrong with six forward ratios per se. In addition to its puny engine, the Envista cannot be had with all-wheel drive, thus hindering its appeal even more. In the first six months of 2024, the Buick division moved 23,886 units in the United States market, whereas the AWD-only Bronco Sport tallied 59,754 sales.
Equipped with an eight-speed automatic, the unibody sibling of the Ranger-based Bronco returns up to 26 miles per gallon (9.0 liters per 100 kilometers) on the combined test cycle for the 1.5-liter I3. By comparison, the front-drive Envista is good for up to 30 miles per gallon (7.8 l/100 km) combined.
Rather than the rugged Bronco Sport, direct rivals for the Envista include the Mazda CX-30 and Volkswagen Taos. The successor to the Encore carries a starting price of $22,900 for the 2025 model year as opposed to $24,995 for Mazda's crossover and $23,995 for the Taos. Both rivals come with four-cylinder lumps.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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