mmarshall

It's the same basic vehicle, although the '21s come with standard XM satellite radio and a couple of other features slightly different from the '20s. I ordered a '21 rather than take the well-publicized incentive on a '20 because I felt that first-year GM products can be risky....the '21s will have the latest TSBs and recalls done.

One other thing that will be changing on the '21s....five exterior colors will soon be discontinued (bronze, dark-red-purple, blue, dark blue and the bright Chili Red). GM has not announced what, if any, will replace them. So, if you like those colors (I liked the Bronze), get either a '20 or early-production '21 while they are still available.

However, there is no guarantee that a '21 will be more reliable than a '20....some of the '21s had a defect in the clutch-ring-seating of the 9-speed transmission that was not present in the '20s.

mmarshall

I'm not going to make an out-and-out prediction (the auto industry often comes up with surprises)...but I would not be surprised to see the smaller 1.2L turbo three dropped from the American-spec Trailblazer and Encore GX in the near future. The 1.2L wasn't really designed for the U.S. market, and, from the figures I've seen, the strong majority of the sales have been the 1.3L, even though it is an extra-cost option in either FWD or AWD.

The 1.3L is fine, power-wise, for everyday driving, even with the added weight/drag of AWD, although you get some vibration and noise in certain RPM-ranges, even with the otherwise-effective Buick sound-insulation.

mmarshall

I've discovered a possible design-weakness in the Encore GX......something that didn't surface on my first test-drive. Twice, now, I've come out and found the front dome-lights above the windshield-header on.....fortunately, it didn't run the battery down or burn out the light-bulbs. Both times, the three-position selector switch for the lights (OFF / DOOR / ON) was in the ON position. I think what is happening is that if I lift a large object out of the front-passenger seat next to me (such as my briefcase), the case (or my hand) inadvertently but lightly brushes against the switch and turns it on. The switch itself is rather flimsy, and IMO much too easy to click from one position to another with almost no pressure at all.

As with many other vehicles, you can also turn one or both of the dome-lights on or off by simply pressing the clear-plastic lens on the light itself....but it is a much more solid-feeling switch.

As of now, I just started leaving the switch completely off instead of in the center "Door" position, where it is door-actuated. That means I won't get the interior lights at all, even with the door open, unless I press the white-plastic lens, but most of the time, I don't need the light at all, since most of my driving is in the late morning and early afternoon. I only go out one night a week.

I'm still not complaining about this vehicle, though. Overall, I think it is built quite well at the Korean plant...my specific vehicle, though not perfect, had few problems considering the complexity of today's designs. That one interior switch, though, is flimsy, and, yes, could be better.

Advance this video to 3:17 and you'll see the small 3-position black switch between the two white plastic-lenses on the dome lights, over the mirror.

SW17LS

Doesn't it have some sort of shut off that turns interior lights off after a time?

mmarshall

Maybe (?)* .....if so, I caught it before that system shut the light off.

Even if it does, I'm not going to make any excuses for it......just a flimsy design for that overhead switch. This vehicle gives you a LOT of features for your money (one reason why I chose it)....but the bean-counters have to make their ends meet somewhere, and the quality of that switch was one of them LOL, just like, with the Pacifica, it was some of the components they put in the video-screen.

* I checked the Manual, and, yes, there is a limiter for interior lights left on. But, who knows?....the sensor could be bad.

Anyhow, it's not a big deal with me. I can live with it. I just brought it up because it was one of my ownership experiences so far.


One other minor irritation is that the SD-card-verify message for the NAV system pops up on the small screen in front of the steering wheel every time the engine starts from the ignition....you have to OK it, with the steering-wheel button, to clear it before anything else shows up. A small minor inconvenience......if it doesn't wear out the button LOL. A lot of recent GM products seem to have that habit...there are references to it from owners in the GM forums. In some cases, it can be overridden by extracting the SD card and re-setting the lock, but it's risky, and can screw up the NAV system if not done correctly.

Along with the smaller box behind the steering wheel, a larger one also appears in the center-screen....see the post below. That message comes up EVERY time I start the vehicle, and I have to confirm it to get rid of that box.

This is one area in new vehicles where you clearly have more expertise than I do...I don't actually use NAV systems very often, and this is my first vehicle with a factory-installed NAV. Is that normal....to have to certify the SD card every time you start the vehicle? I know the SD card is a security-device tailored to one's specific vehicle.

mmarshall

mmarshall

Well, after announcing the loss of five non-neutral colors a few months ago, Buick has released their four new replacements (we had little or no idea if they were going to be replaced at all). Turned out it wasn't a very big change at all. Two of them (Cinnabar and Sunset Glow) are more or less similar to the Burnished Bronze I have, although the Cinnibar is a little more reddish, and the Sunset Glow a little more orangish (if I was ordering a new GX today, I'd chose the Sunset). Replacing the two former blues (the medium Azure Blue and the Dark Moon Blue) is a single new darkish Sapphire Blue. And replacing the former Black Currant (dark purplish-red) is, well, another dark purplish red....Rosewood.

https://gmauthority.com/blog/2021/03...terior-colors/

Here Are The New 2022 Buick Encore GX Exterior Colors

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  • BY JONATHAN LOPEZ
  • — MAR 16, 2021

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The upcoming 2022 Buick Encore GX is set to arrive as the third model year of the first-generation vehicle, with a few minor changes and updates compared to the preceding 2021 model year. Among the list of the changes is the addition of four new exterior paint colors, and now, we’re taking an exclusive early look at each of these new hues.



Kicking off the list of new exterior colors slated for the 2022 Buick Encore GX is Cinnabar Metallic, a zesty vermillion hue tagged with color code GFM. Up next is Sapphire Metallic, a dark blue color tagged with color code GGK. Sunset Glow Metallic is next, offering an orange color with a hint of brown, tagged with color code GHD. Finally, there’s Rosewood Metallic, a dark purple color tagged with color code GHL.

Further changes for the 2022 model year will include minor revisions to the features included with the various trim levels.


Note: 2020 Buick Encore GX pictured here.

The upcoming 2022 Buick Envore GX will continue on as a five-door crossover SUV (CUV) slotting in between the “regular” Buick Encore and Buick Envision. Engine options will include the turbocharged 1.2L I3 LIH, which is rated at 137 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque, and the turbocharged 1.3L I3 L3T, which is rated at 155 horsepower and 174 pound-feet of torque. The 1.2L LIH mates to a CVT, while the 1.2L L3T mates to a nine-speed automatic transmission.

Under the skin, the 2022 Buick Encore GX will ride on the GM VSS-F platform. Production for North American markets takes place at the GM Bupyeong plant in South Korea.
Note: 2020 Buick Encore GX pictured here.

Which of the four new colors for the 2022 Buick Encore GX is your favorite? Let us know by voting in the poll below, and make sure to subscribe to GM Authority for more Buick Encore GX news, Buick news, and around-the-clock GM news coverage.

Which new 2022 Buick Encore GX color is your favorite?

Cinnabar Metallic
0%
Sapphire Metallic
0%
Sunset Glow Metallic
0%
Rosewood Metallic
0%
Buick Encore GX Photos

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SW17LS

More colors less than 10% of Encores will have lol

mmarshall

We're talking about the Encore GX here, not the regular Encore, although, yes, Buick marketers have (apparently) changed their minds and are going to market an American-spec version of the newly-redesigned 2Gen Encore, which, last year, was relegated only to the Chinese market. We don't know what those colors will be....Buick hasn't released much info or specs on it, only that it is (confirmed) coming to the U.S.

As to the color-percentages you mention, yes, the majority of vehicles today do seem to be neutral colors (white, silver/gray, black), but I think the others will get a little more than 10%....that's underestimating it. I like some of the darker-silver/titanium-metallic shades myself, such as the Atomic Silver that Lexus uses, the Pepperdust that GM uses with the gray and tiny gold-metallic particles in it, and the striking Titanium Metallic that Audi and Chrysler once had.

SW17LS

I'm just calling whichever one I'm talking about the Encore lol. Buick's choice for such a dumb naming convention.

The vast majority of them will be neutral colors, but options aren't a bad thing.

mmarshall

If you don't like the name, you can thank Renault for the idea LOL.

Remember back in the early 1980s?

SW17LS

I don't mind the name Encore, its the whole having two unrelated cars in the same lineup that share the same name thing. They should have given the Encore GX a different name if they were going to keep the Encore. Lazy.

mmarshall

Well, part of that was exactly the problem. After 2020, they had originally not planned on having two Encores in the U.S. They were going to dump the older regular (non-GX) Encore this year from the American market, and simply not replace it with the new version. Then, they decided to change their minds and import the new version from China....perhaps (?) because both the older Encore and the newer Encore GX have sold so well.

This is not the first time GM has gotten caught up in the double-name game. Back in the 1980s, there were two Oldsmobile Cutlasses....a traditional RWD one and a smaller FWD Cutlass Ciera. There was an S-10 compact pickup and an S-10 Blazer SUV. And the Tracker, Spectrum, and Sprint, sold by both Chevy and Geo...two different GM organizations, though they both used Chevy dealerships.

I've said it before, many times, and will keep saying it.......never try and figure out auto-marketers, particularly those from GM. They never have made much sense, and never will. I can't think of another profession that gets paid the amount of money they do to either screw things up or get nothing constructive done at all. It's amazing.

I also agree that the Buick marketers are going to have to come up with a better product-naming-system than to have everything start with an "En". Having Two Encores, and old and new Envision, and an Enclave is sure to confuse people who don't closely follow the auto market like you and I do. That's similar to the alphabet-soup-naming that got Lincoln, Cadillac, Acura, Infiniti, and smoother automakers in trouble.

It's also possible that GM is simply not paying much attention to Buick because it is going to be phased out of the American market and be an all-Chinese nameplate. I hope not (that would really sadden me)......but, if it happens, it happens. I tell other people not to lose sleep over stuff......I have to sometimes do that myself.

mmarshall

Thanks. I get compliments from neighbors and colleagues on both the exterior and interior color-patterns.

A lot of people seem to be so used to black, gray/silver, and white cars today that anything else, to them, is like almost like a dose of fresh air.

The Black Currant Metallic ( the dark metallic red/purple you mention) was indeed a temptation, but the color was too dark for both my personal tastes and for parking outdoors in the sun...which I sometimes have to do in my daily rounds. My idea of purple is more along the lines of what Saturn used to call Silver Plum, some other automakers called Amythist (as with the Cadillac DTS of a couple of decades ago), and, for a really bright shade of purple, Chrysler's Plum Crazy, used on their performance-cars and some Jeep Wrangler packages.



Gas mileage has increased enormously in the last couple of weeks, from low-20s to low-30s average (today it was 35-36 MPH average, but I don't think it will stay that high). I attribute it to four things. First, spring temperatures instead of winter....though it still has been on the cool side. Second, although I'm not putting a whole lot of miles on it, it is past the end of the break-in period now. Third, I keep it out of AWD most of the time except to engage and exercise the AWD mechanicals and the A/C compressor briefly about once a week or so to keep things lubed....driving only the front wheels helps. Fourth, I drive it lightly-loaded most of the time, without carrying a lot of weight except for my own carcass LOL.

You said earlier that you did not think the break-in period makes much of a difference any more. In this case, I'm going to disagree....I think it did. My first tank of gas (I usually fill up between a quarter and a half-tank, and don't let it get low) was MPG in the teens (on a three-cylinder turbo LOL), then the next one was low-20s, then mid-20s for a couple of tanks, and now low-mid-30s, though I was on the highway a little more than usual today. Miles on the engine clearly improved the MPG rapidly....a classic sign of break-in. I think I'll be able to hit 40 MPG the moderate way I drive, on a mild day, straight Interstate, with a warm engine and no A/C or AWD in use.

So far, the EPA city mileage-number seems about right, the highway-mileage underrated.

sdls

I imagine it being confusing and frustrating from a service and repair point of view too.