To be perfectly honest, when I first saw the Encore, I didn’t have high hopes for it. Past renditions have never really been what I would call exciting. But I drove all of those with front-wheel drive. The all-wheel drive 2025 Encore surprised me with its playful handling and quick feel.
The 2025 Buick Encore carries on the first generation of the compact crossover model, which debuted in 2020. At this point, it’s anything but dated, keeping up with the market well in its sporty little setup. This year, Buick changed a couple of things in trim content and upgraded the engine to be E85 compatible.
Powering this little SUV is a 1.2-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine that outputs 137 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque. That goes to front-wheel drive with a continuously variable transmission (CVT) as standard. All-wheel drive, however, swaps the CVT for a nine-speed automatic transmission. That’s how I drove it and that’s what I’d recommend if you want an engaging drive.
There are three trim levels for the 2025 Buick Encore. All three now have remote start as standard equipment, which is a boon in wintertime Wyoming, I can tell you. The Preferred (base trim) comes with a lot of great content, including wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as an 11-inch touchscreen, LED headlamps, and a digital instrument cluster. To get adaptive cruise control, though, you have to go up to the Sport Touring model, which adds some synethetic leather, a wireless charging pad, and a 360-degree camera system. All nice upgrades that are only about $1,200 more than the base model.
The little Encore does have some downsides. Mostly due to its compact nature. Small vehicles like this are difficult to keep quiet on the road and have some obvious compromises for interior comfort and space. So the 2025 Encore is loud on the highway and doesn’t have the kind of shoulder room for three across in back or the cargo space to impress your friends when they move. But the trade-off is the easy parking, the sports car-like handling around town, and the well-planted, speedy feel the Encore has.
Compared to a lot of options, the 2025 Buick Encore is pretty feature-packed for its more premium price tag. The Mazda CX-30 has a more rugged appeal and similar itnterior goodness and road-worthy quickness. That’s about the only model that’s really comparable to this Buick. Its near-twin at Chevrolet is the Trailblazer, which is a good option, but which is far cheaper in both price tag and feel.
In all, Buick is working hard to get back in Ameircans’ good graces and offerings like this show that it can be done.
