The Chinese-Made Buick Envista SUV is Coming to the United States
This affordable, ultra-aggressive little Buick looks like it’ll appeal to U.S. consumers, though they’ll have to not care where it’s made.
General Motors will sell the Chinese-made Buick Envista crossover SUV here in the United States, GM president Mark Reuss confirmed last week.
"It's already in production in China. Again, the paying-forward of the Buick design off of the Wildcat [concept], beautiful vehicle, getting ready for the U.S. here as well," Reuss said during his presentation at GM Investor Day 2022. "Just a beautiful addition to the Buick lineup."
Revealed earlier this year, the Envista is a compact crossover (think Honda CR-V size) built in China on GM's VSS-F platform, which is also used in the Chevy Trailblazer. It's modeled after the Buick Wildcat concept car and is not the only one from the automaker, too. Propulsion comes from a turbocharged, 1.5-liter four-cylinder making 181 horsepower and 183 pound-feet of torque, which it sends through a CVT automatic. Buick's release doesn't specify drive wheels, though a cutaway appears to show only front-wheel drive, and its estimated 36 mpg suggests efficiency that's tricky to achieve with AWD.
Inside, Buick claims the Envista has the best rear legroom in its class (at least, for China), and up to 45 cubic feet of cargo space with the 60/40 second row folded flat. The front row's defining feature is a 10.25-inch touchscreen, which offers at least wireless Apple CarPlay if not also Android Auto. (Android isn't available on the Chinese model, but it's probably a must for the U.S. version.) It's currently unclear whether its 3D surround-sound audio system or 360-degree camera is standard equipment or options, though the latter is more likely at the Envista's price point.
In China, the Buick Envista starts at the equivalent of just $20,925. We should expect to pay more, as the Envista has to cross the Pacific to reach us, and its current U.S. counterpart the Envision starts at $36,995. But if whatever Buick's doing in China to be one of the country's biggest auto brands works here, then the price may not be a sticking point.
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