2022 Encore Interior
The Buick Encore shares its platform, engine, gearbox, and most of its design with the Chevrolet Trax. It differentiates itself by featuring an interior that's a much classier take on the Trax, although being similar in terms of where all the major controls are situated. The materials Buick uses are slightly more upmarket, too, further elevating it above the Trax. The only upholstery option is cloth with leatherette seat trim.
The controls are easy to reach and understand. The large infotainment system's display remains a highlight, as it's also easy to master. And, while the driver's seat offers six-way power adjustability, the front passenger has to be content with a two-way manually adjustable seat.
2022 Encore Interior Photos
Seating and Interior Space
Space is adequate, rather than ample. Front occupants get 40.82 inches of legroom. Buick says it's a five-seater, but the rear seats can only realistically seat three children with its 35.75 inches of legroom. If you want to ferry adult passengers around, it's best to keep to short journeys. The headroom, rated at 39.58 inches in the front and 38.78 inches in the rear, is very good. Thanks to large doors that open quite wide, it's easy to get in and out of the Encore, too. Unfortunately, some of the nicer interior features available in the past have been lost. Seat heating is no longer available, nor is the six-way power-adjustable seat for the front passenger, which used to be standard on some pre-2021 models.
2022 Buick Encore Interior Dimensions:
| Buick Encore Trims | Preferred |
|---|---|
| Seating | 5 |
| Headroom Front Seat | 39.58 in. |
| Headroom Back Seat | 38.78 in. |
| Legroom Front Seat | 40.82 in. |
| Legroom Back Seat | 35.75 in. |
| Shoulder Room Front | 54.18 in. |
| Shoulder Room Rear | 52.5 in. |
| Hip Room, Front | 51.65 in. |
| Hip Room, Rear | 50.08 in. |
Interior Colors and Materials
Culling trims from the line-up means customers are now more limited in terms of upholstery options. The Preferred trim is all that's left and offers a choice of either Shale or Ebony cloth with leatherette, which adds some class to the interior. The leatherette trim doesn't look or feel as good as the real thing, which drags the interior ambiance down somewhat. The Buick makes up for it by featuring upscale trim on the surfaces one interacts with most, but once you start exploring it up close, those Chevrolet Trax roots are more evident. The Buick does claw back some points by offering an acoustically enhanced windshield and side glass, as well as noise-canceling acoustic material around the cabin. Fortunately, a leather-wrapped steering wheel is standard.
2022 Encore Trunk and Cargo Space
At first glance, the Buick's 18.8 cubic feet of trunk space seems good enough, but once you start comparing it to its more modern counterparts, things start to fall apart. The Encore gets close to the Hyundai Kona, which offers 19.2 cubic feet with the rear seats up and 45.8 cubic feet with the seats folded down. The Buick beats the Kona in the latter department, offering 48.4 cubic feet. Against other rivals, however, it struggles. The Kia Soul offers 24.2 cubic feet with the back seats up and 62.1 cubes with them folded down.
This Buick SUV also doesn't have a lot to brag about when it comes to cabin storage. It has a large glovebox and under-seat storage for the passenger, but that's about it. There is no armrest, and the door pockets are quite small. If you're in the market for something bigger, it would be worth investigating the Encore GX. It's one size up from the Encore, and bigger in every direction.
2022 Buick Encore Trunk and Cargo Space Photos
2022 Encore Infotainment and Features
Features
The Encore Preferred FWD has an MSRP of $24,600 and you can have the optional all-wheel-drive system fitted, in which case base pricing is $25,220. Both are equipped with manual air-conditioning, the ability to create a Wi-Fi hotspot, a six-way power-adjustable driver seat, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, steering wheel-mounted controls, cruise control, a rear vision camera, remote keyless entry, and a 4.2-inch color driver information display in the instrument binnacle. You can choose between five optional packages containing features like lane departure warning and front/rear parking sensors.
Infotainment
Only one infotainment system is available, but it is a decent one. It's composed of an eight-inch color touchscreen system that comes as standard with an AM/FM radio, dual USB ports, Bluetooth streaming for music and phone calls, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability. It doesn't have navigation, but the inclusion of the latter features makes up for that. A three-month trial subscription to SiriusXM is also included, as is the ability to create a 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot. The infotainment system is mated to a six-speaker sound system, which does a nice enough job of playing your soundtrack of choice, but there are no options for an upgrade.