For my last weekend getaway, I had the opportunity to try out the 2017 Buick Envision Crossover SUV. We took the car from downtown Toronto up the 400 north to cottage country near Orillia.
The car is a five passenger compact luxury SUV. It was very spacious, while still being easy to maneuver. Now while there were only two of us on the road trip, it could have easily fit several tall people and a large cooler full of beer and snacks very comfortably. Or if we were to take the car on a longer trip, the rear seat easily folds flat with the pull of lever.
The technology features made it a quick and fun drive on our hour and a half up north. We connected to the OnStar 4G LTE Wifi Hotspot so that we could blast Tiesto (my boyfriend’s choice) on the ride up without racking up a massive phone bill. Not only was the main touch screen easy to navigate in terms of the built in Maps feature, but the driver’s dashboard also reminded us of the changing speed limits.
As the 400 North is full of cottage-bound cars and trucks, we really appreciated how the Envision was able to block out the surrounding roar of traffic. Thanks to the QuietTuning technology and Bose premium sound system, the car minimized road and engine noise so that we could focus on the sweet, sweet croons of Justified-era Justin Timberlake (my choice).
It was a very smooth, comfortable and easy drive up to our friend’s cottage. Usually after prolonged periods of driving, cracking open a beer is not a matter of choice, but rather, one of necessity. I’m not saying that we didn’t drink beers while lying on the dock, but this time it wasn’t stress-induced.
The technical features were helpful when we drove the car back into downtown Toronto. The auto stop-start technology turned the engine off when the car was stationary, and then seamlessly restarted once the foot was off the brake. This definitely contributed to the great mileage and we made a 360 km round trip on less than one tank of gas.
As a nervous driver (and yes, I hate being such a stereotype), it was great to have five cameras and ten sensors in the vehicle. Lights on the wing mirrors glowed when a car was passing. The driver’s seat also vibrated when it detected an approaching hazard – very useful in a city where drivers, bikers and suicidal jaywalkers battle it out on a daily basis. The automatic parking assist feature and camera made it easy to park in the tight downtown lots. Unfortunately, Buick has yet to invent a feature that makes the cost of downtown parking less astronomical.
The Buick Envision in the early morning light of Washago.
Keep in mind that while I’m no car expert, I can tell you that the entertainment, safety, and performance features of the 2017 Buick Envision made the ride as comfortable and stress-free as possible in both the city and the country roads.
A big thanks to the Oshawa Buick team for dropping the vehicle downtown with me – we couldn’t have had a river-tubing, beer-drinking, s’more-filled weekend without you!
