2022 Buick Enclave Avenir Drives Likes a Big Bowl of Molasses

The fancier, sportier shadow of Cadillac looms large over Buick.

In order to deliver a product unique enough to earn its own badge, Buick chose to lean in hard on softness, especially with its higher-end Avenir trims.   

The 2022 Buick Enclave Avenir's on-road character is probably best described as slow and steady, like every input is being fed through David Gilmour's delay pedal, or a bowl of molasses.

Turn into a corner and the body takes a second to react with some roll. 

Lean onto the gas pedal and it takes a second for the 3.6-liter V6 to convert throttle position to motive force, although once the nine-speed transmission finally settles on a gear, the engine's 310 horsepower and 266 pound-feet of torque will be enough for most drivers.   

The Buick Enclave can be had with either front- or all-wheel drive, but AWD doesn't really affect fuel economy. 

FWD models are rated at 18 mpg city and 26 mpg highway, with AWD variants coming in 1 mpg lower in each scenario.

A combined average of 20 mpg isn't exactly praiseworthy in 2022, but it's about on par with competitors like the Acura MDX (21 mpg combined) and Lincoln Aviator (20). 

Maintaining a light right foot on the highway helped me see 30 mpg for several minutes at a time, which is nice, but even mild electrification would be better.

Keep scrolling to check out even more pictures of the 2022 Buick Enclave Avenir.