The Buick Envista is America's wake-up call for Chinese cars

Chinese, Japanese, dirty knees, learn about these.

I'm now no longer Chinese, but growing up, that became the nicest of the sort of jingoistic bullying I constantly heard by smart alecs on the playground.

I'm Filipino, but probably one of many most first things I learned as an Asian American became that no bully, bigot, or racist that I encountered truly cared and can now no longer distinguish the difference. My appearance, my presence, and my being were something they held malice towards; there became no “punch first, ask questions second, and express feel sorry about” policy all of the way through the hallways and schoolyards of my formative years.

But as I leaned into cars and my identity as a gearhead and car enthusiast for an get away and solace from the "real world," I learned early on that cars are yet another a sort of things to find a technique to be given labels and unnecessarily racialized and politicized.

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Even earlier than I enrolled in a vocational high school to get more mechanically inclined, I got a full education on the labels that people unnecessarily connected to cars.

In my day, Hondas and other Japanese cars were “rice burners.”

Toyota Priuses were "for f--s,” while “real men” expressed themselves with a deal different kind of car. My peers would emphasize that "real men" liked either loud, powerful Ford Mustangs and Chevrolet Camaros or monstrous Hummers and chromed-out GMC Yukons and Cadillac Escalades.

That kind of sentiment has turn right into a relic from the past, but like bad fashion trends that perceived to come and go and old fads we forgot about, it comes back again to bite people like me all of the way through the ass infrequently as if it never left.

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Car culture turns political in due course of an election year

It truly is an election year, and Chinese vehicles versus the U.S. auto industry has turn right into a political football with which both political parties are playing.

One day of his presidency, former President Trump applied a 25% tariff on Chinese cars and has vowed to forestall automakers from importing cars from factories in Mexico.

On the flip side, some months ago, President Biden implemented a 100% tariff on Chinese EVs, and his administration recently proposed a rule that would ban Chinese "connected car" hardware and software on national security grounds.

It truly is the Buick Envista. Technically, it’s now no longer a Chinese car, nonetheless it truly is an exceptional distance a car that General Motors (GM) initially developed for the Chinese market earlier than it landed on American shores.

While test-driving it for every week, I decided to strip away the politics and mystique surrounding the vehicle and find out if a car built for a foreign market — that just happens to be our biggest economic and militia rival — can work for American buyers.

Buick in China is a special beast

Earlier than I dive into anything, I should give a proof for that Buick in China is an awfully different animal than it truly is an exceptional distance all of the way through the US.

Buick is an awfully respected brand in China.

Based on a 2019 CNBC report, its popularity owes itself to being "the vehicle of choice for many famous Chinese figures all of the way through the middle of the 20th century, including most of the U.S. of america’s best-known political leaders," solidifying itself as a top rate brand all of the way through the eyes of Chinese citizens.

In 1997, General Motors established a partnership with Chinese state-owned automaker SAIC, and by 1999, the first Buick Regals for the Chinese market rolled off the line in Shanghai.

Ever since then, Buick's Chinese-exclusive models have vastly differed from its American lineup, catering to local tastes, needs, and desires.

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The longest-running, and possibly the foremost notable, Chinese-exclusive Buick is the GL8, a minivan with appointments so luxurious that it seems to rival Rolls-Royce or Maybach. The most modern iteration of the GL8, dubbed the "Century Flagship," can come equipped as a spacious four-seater featuring La-Z-Boy-style reclining backseats and a 32-inch flat-screen TV that acts as a limousine-style partition.

Knowing the sort of luxury Buick is able to providing, that you just may imagine the sort of excitement car enthusiasts like myself had after we learned that one of their China exclusives became coming stateside. In November 2022, Buick announced that it became bringing over the Envista, a small crossover that previously had solely been a Chinese exclusive.

In September 2024, I got to drive it.

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The Buick Envista

The Envista I tested became the 2025 Envista Sport Touring, or ST.

Upon first glance, I quickly began admiring how sleek the car became. If you happen to thought that Buick became only able to creating puffy, blobby left-lane residents corresponding to the Regal, LeSabre or Century, re-evaluate.

The angles and sharp lines of the Envista are un-Buick-like, and now no longer in a bad way. Overall, the shape is a sweeping, coupe-like design that creates a fastback-like shape towards the back of the car, deal like BMW's X4, X6, or Mercedes GLC.

The Envista's design is now no longer only an update for Buick all of the way through the 2020s but additionally a game-changing shape that elevates its brand image to be palatable to higher tastes. Accurately, I suspect from an exceptional distance away it looks a lot like a a Lexus with a special badge.

The same "upscale" look is transferred over to the inner, where deal of the subtle important points indicate that this car is intended to be a deal more top rate offering.

Hints of chrome add an elegant and classy touch, and the leather-wrapped, flat-bottom steering wheel complements the dark leather seats. Additionally, the headrests have a bit "ST" brand embroidery stitched onto them, like on a Bentley, Rolls-Royce, or Ferrari.

One thing it be prioritized all of the way through the Chinese market is rear legroom, and corresponding to the Buicks of your grandparents, the Buick Envista's backseat is THE place to be on this car. Despite the indisputable incontrovertible fact that the shape of the coupe-style body appears like there is rarely to any extent further deal headroom in addition, there is as deal headroom all of the way through the back as your typical family SUV.

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I like my seat pretty an exceptional distance back when I drive, and even with the motive force's seat in my driving position, I'm able to take a seat down behind the motive force with none discomfort whatsoever. Also, this car's high driving position and soft suspension makes for a fairly gentle ride that does no longer send jolts to your spine when encountering a a pothole.

This Envista I drove came with the $595 "Advanced Safety Package," which features adaptive cruise control, an awfully convenient feature that worked incredibly well on the motorway.

In theory, the Buick Envista has the total lot it should be a extremely powerful car for its price. It might probably be a well-designed, low-priced top rate taking a look crossover SUV act as a extremely powerful personal sled or family hauler.

On the choice hand, what holds me back from having that opinion is what took place after I started to truly experience the Envista for what it truly is an exceptional distance.

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The Buick Envista has glaring flaws

Many of the flaws of the Buick Envista popped out at me when I truly frolicked with the car and started driving it around. At some point of my time with this car, any illusion of the Envista being a “top rate” product all of sudden started to disappear, and it left me with the ugly truth.

I liken the feeling to the experience of buying items from Temu. Say this might well be important buy shades, but that $One hundred eighty pair of Ray-Ban's is rarely something you may be willing to spend presently. You are drawn to a disturbingly low price for something that appears like Wayfarers on Temu, but while you get them, the temples break while you place them on.

I realized the demanding truth once the rose-tinted glasses came off.

After some dozen miles, I felt that the cool, leather-wrapped, flat-bottom steering wheel felt as thin because the ones on a Logitech racing wheel for a PlayStation.

Additionally, I realized that the screen behind the steering wheel is in point of fact two separate, smaller screens. On the Chinese-market Century GL8 that I previously mentioned, this may be one unit that functions as both the gauge cluster and the infotainment screens. It looks now no longer only sleeker and seamless but deal more luxurious.

I also found that almost all of the places surrounding the motive force's seat have uncomfortable demanding plastics that vary in texture and feel. In some places, they are glossy and smooth, and in other places, they are going to be slightly soft. Other surfaces, corresponding to the dashboard, felt like they were intended to replicate forty-grit sandpaper.

To the naked eye, these materials seem like leather with contrast stitching, shiny chrome and piano black wood. Obviously, they are now no longer, alternatively the feeling that I felt when I reached out to touch what I thought I became touching became disappointing. I felt corresponding to the car is an infinite tease.

By an exceptional distance, absolutely the worst thing about this car is the creature below the hood. The Buick Envista is powered by a 1.2-liter turbocharged inline three-cylinder engine. Yes, you heard that right: a 3-cylinder engine.

On paper, it generates 137 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque. Zero to sixty miles an hour takes 9.four seconds and could reach a top speed of 112 miles per hour.

This car weighs about Three,060 pounds, and it feels a bit torquey and quick around town at speeds lower than Fifty five miles an hour. It feels adore it has enough power for quick trips to the mall or the grocery store,

But like many Americans who reside in or near the metro areas of major cities, most of my each and every day driving is on highways with speed limits of Fifty five to 65 miles per hour. Here, the actual speed of cars driving on them is about 10 to fifteen miles per hour greater than that.

The Envista might keep up with the high-speed motorway traffic, nonetheless it felt like I became pushing its tiny 1.2-liter motor to its limit. I became now no longer able to discover a tachometer on the Buick's digital screen, but attempting to withstand the flow of traffic from a motorway entrance or passing an 18-wheeler made the engine rev so loud that it got louder than the music and podcasts I became paying attention to.

Indirectly, the Buick Envista is a car that left me yearning for more and disappointed that it couldn't deliver.

In Reflection

As tested, this car costs $27,780, and for that price, I could direct buyers to either the Honda HR-V or the Subaru Crosstrek earlier than this one.

At that price point, neither of those cars have leather or leather-like seats, but they are going to be both fitted with stronger motors and still come with many other cool features. As an instance, the Honda comes usual with adaptive cruise control, and the Subaru comes usual with all-wheel drive.

The Buick Envista is a extremely powerful car, but other choices exist on this crowded segment.

Because we reside in a time when the foremost benign opinions shall be misconstrued as a salvo all of the way through the ongoing culture wars, I should make one thing clear: my opinion is now no longer based on whether or now no longer it truly is an exceptional distance a Chinese car. Accurately, the window sticker of this U.S.-bound version of the Buick Envista shows that it became built in Bupyeong-gu in Incheon, South Korea.

I suspect it be a important to point that out. I in actuality factor in that this car has its flaws, nonetheless it truly is an exceptional distance now no longer since it truly is an exceptional distance or is rarely a Chinese car. Anyone might've built this car and this car might've been built anyplace: Detroit, Toyota City, Shanghai, or Mars—the product is the product.

The issue lies all of the way through the indisputable incontrovertible fact that I do know full well that GM and Buick make very cutting-edge and sumptuous vehicles for the Chinese market, and the Buick Envista does now no longer fully represent that. There are a sort of of expectations behind the Buick badge, and unfortunately, the Envista falls an exceptional distance wanting them.

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The Buick Envista is now no longer my cup of tea, nonetheless it lives below an awfully complicated shadow, because the Chinese domestic car industry giants like BYD and Geely step up their game.

In a presentation earlier than the Automotive Press Association in June 2024, Bank of The united statesa. autos analyst John Murphy gave Detroit's Big Three an ultimatum.

“I suspect you see [Detroit's Big Three] exit China as soon as they possibly can,” he said. “China is rarely to any extent further core to GM, Ford or Stellantis.”

I'm now no longer an analyst, but as someone who knows a bit bit about how the big investment bank analysts come to their conclusions, I still factor in there is a chance for GM and Detroit's Big Three to best the likes of BYD and Geely, whether in China or inside remainder of Asia, Europe, and the US.

It'll require a spread of of work, a shifting of priorities, a spread of of learning, and a spread of of self-reflection.

So to beat them, a car with an interior fit for Temu should not cut it.

So to beat them, a car that fights for its life to accelerate to eighty miles per hour should not cut it.

If Buicks and other Detroit Big Three products stay on tons in China while BYDs fly out the doors, then they be doing something right.

Disclosure: Buick offered James Ochoa the chance to experience the 2025 Buick Envista ST and loaned the example he wrote about for seven days with a full tank of gas.

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