Compare the2024 Buick EnclaveVS 2024 Honda Pilot

For enhanced safety, the Buick Enclave’s middle seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Honda Pilot doesn’t offer comfort guides on its middle seat belts.

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 Pilot doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

The Enclave has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Pilot Sport/EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Enclave has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Pilot Sport/EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition offers Cross Traffic Monitor.

Both the Enclave and the Pilot have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

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

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the Enclave’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Pilot’s camshafts. If the Pilot’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Enclave has a standard 730-amp battery. The Pilot’s 650-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Enclave second among midsize suvs in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Pilot isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Buick vehicles are better in initial quality than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 28 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 18th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Buick vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Buick second in reliability, above the industry average. With 83 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 24th.

The Enclave’s 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 25 more horsepower (310 vs. 285) and 4 lbs.-ft. more torque (266 vs. 262) than the Pilot’s 3.5 DOHC V6.

As tested in Car and Driver the Buick Enclave is faster than the Honda Pilot:

On the EPA test cycle the Enclave AWD gets better fuel mileage than the Pilot TrailSport 4WD (17 city/25 hwy vs. 18 city/23 hwy).

The Enclave FWD’s standard fuel tank has almost a gallon more fuel capacity than the Pilot (19.4 vs. 18.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Enclave AWD’s standard fuel tank has 3.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the Pilot (21.7 vs. 18.5 gallons).

The Enclave’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Pilot are solid, not vented.

The Enclave stops much shorter than the Pilot:

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

The Enclave offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Pilot’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Enclave has variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Pilot doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Enclave’s wheelbase is 7.1 inches longer than on the Pilot (120.9 inches vs. 113.8 inches).

For greater off-road capability the Enclave has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Pilot (7.5 vs. 7.3 inches), allowing the Enclave to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

As tested by Car and Driver while at idle, the interior of the Enclave Essence is quieter than the Pilot Elite (38 vs. 40 dB).

The Enclave has 2.1 inches more front headroom, .2 inches more front legroom, .6 inches more front hip room, .3 inches more front shoulder room, .3 inches more rear hip room, 1 inch more third row legroom and 3.9 inches more third row hip room than the Pilot.

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

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Enclave easier. The Enclave’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 30.5 inches, while the Pilot’s liftover is 33.2 inches.

The Enclave’s cargo area is larger than the Pilot’s in almost every dimension:

Pressing a button automatically lowers or raises the Enclave Premium/Avenir’s third row seats, to make changing between cargo and passengers easier. The Pilot doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The Enclave uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Pilot uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Buick service is better than Honda. J.D. Power ranks Buick fifth in service department satisfaction. With a 37% lower rating, Honda is ranked 25th.

If the windows are left open on the Enclave the driver can close them all from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Pilot can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Enclave’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Pilot doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Enclave’s standard Keyless Access allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Push Button Start and Smart Entry standard on the Pilot doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door. Push Button Start and Smart Entry is not available on the Pilot Touring/Elite/Black Edition.

Consumer Reports rated the Enclave’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Pilot’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

The Enclave’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Honda only offers heated mirrors on the Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition.

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 is only available on the Pilot TrailSport/Elite/Black Edition.

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

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the BMW X7 has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition offers wireless charging.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Buick Enclave and the Honda Pilot, based on reliability, safety and performance.