The Family SUV That Feels Like A First-Class Upgrade

9 minutes reading

Saturday, 8 Aug 2026 14:00 0 5 autotech

Flying can really be a luxurious experience, depending on where you’re sitting. If you’re not sitting in first class, then you end up shuffling past the first-class pods with the champagne flutes on your way to row 38, wondering how much it would take to get to the other side of the curtain. For a long time, luxury three-row SUVs were priced the same way. Standard examples like Fords and Chevys get you to your destination, of course, but buying something like a Mercedes-Benz or a BMW costs $85,000 and upward even before you add options.

Why Modern Family SUVs No Longer Ask You To Settle

2024 Toyota Grand Highlander Hybrid Max shown in Platinum trim and Storm Cloud color at a beach

Toyota

Have you ever heard of the phrase, “rolling penalty box”? That’s what non-luxury three-row family SUVs used to feel like, but not anymore. Today’s three mainstream offerings would even put a 15-year-old Mercedes-Benz S-Class to shame. For example, the Hyundai Palisade was recently fully redesigned and offers reclining front and second-row seats with gorgeous, supple materials and even two 12.3-inch displays. The Grand Highlander Hybrid Max delivers 362 horsepower, which is close to some full-size luxury SUVs. What we’re trying to say is: you no longer have to settle for fully loaded trims or higher-end brands.

The Three-Row Segment Is Quietly Closing In On The Luxury Brands

What A First-Class Cabin Actually Looks Like In A Family Hauler

First-class luxury is not defined by a single item; it’s a combination of features, upholstery, and technology. The Jeep Grand Wagoneer also recently had a pretty substantial refresh, but kept a lot of its luxury offerings, like the 24-way power adjustable front seats and a premium audio package, no matter what trim level you get. The Lincoln Aviator Black Label comes with different interior themes and starts at roughly $90,000. The Hyundai Palisade, again, has a counteroffer of driver-side massage chairs with a UV-C sterilization compartment mixed with better interior and upholstery options than before. What it boils down to is who is able to offer this for the least amount of money.

A Feature List Worthy Of A $90,000 Flagship

There are a few flagships in the luxury segment, and they’re expensive. Really expensive. The Cadillac Escalade starts at a whopping $91,100 while the Mercedes-Benz GLS has a starting MSRP of $90,250. Finally, the BMW X7 has an entry ask of $87,500. In this day and age, the luxury market has a predictability about what you should expect. They typically have enormous displays (including those for the passengers), hands-free driving capabilities, ultra-fine materials, and the quietest cabins possible. Even though the SUV at the center of this ticks every box, you wouldn’t believe it.

A Dashboard-Spanning 30-Inch Display Sets The Tone

2026 Lincoln Nautilus Hybrid interior showing cockpit

For some reason, luxury has recently equated to: who has the biggest screen possible? Cadillac has a pillar-to-pillar 55 inch curved display in the Escalade. The Lincoln Nautilus has a 48-inch panoramic screen with an additional screen below for controls. The car in question also has a notably large screen, and while it may not be as large as some of the previously mentioned displays, it is still large enough to be considered a contender in the luxury segment’s ongoing screen wars.

Hands-Free Highway Driving Turns Road Trips Into Relaxation

2025 Cadillac Optiq interior shot showing screen with Super Cruise

If anything screams luxury, it’s the fact that you don’t have to lift a finger. While Tesla has one of the only full self-driving capabilities on the market, General Motors has the best highway hands-free system and is widely considered the benchmark. Super Cruise is best known for its green bar spanning across several models’ steering wheels. What you might not know is that Super Cruise has over 750,000 mapped roads spanning the United States and Canada. This is also a significant advantage over competitors like Ford BlueCruise, which only has 130,000 miles of highways mapped and has not earned the best reviews. Typically, Super Cruise has been saved for the flagship flyers, but it is now available in this more accessible hauler.

The 2026 Buick Enclave Avenir Is The Surprise First-Class Ticket

Front three-quarter shot of a 2026 Buick Enclave

If you’ve ever seen Buick’s marketing campaign, you’ll be familiar with the, “is that a Buick?” question. The 2026 Buick Enclave Avenir asks that question perfectly because it is the most unsuspecting premium/luxury vehicle on the market right now. While the other two trims (the Preferred and Sport Touring) sit closer to the “standard” segment, the Avenir is considered an actual luxury vehicle. It features Buick’s PURE design language, which emphasizes clean lines, dramatic proportions, and sculptural beauty. If you’re curious where that design language came from, check out the Buick Wildcat.

Massaging Seats, Adaptive Air Suspension, And A Library-Quiet Cabin

Buick saved all the luxury features for the top of the line. The Buick Enclave Avenir is the only trim that comes with massage seats, adaptive suspension, and a Bose performance 16-speaker audio system. It also comes with other creature comforts like a heads-up display, a panoramic sunroof, and 22-inch pearl nickel wheels exclusive to this trim. The previously mentioned suspension has an adaptive damper setup that adjusts to road conditions in real time. Buick also has a patented QuietTuning technology that features active noise cancellation, putting the rest of the world on mute like a true luxury car should.

A Turbocharged Powertrain Built For Effortless Cruising

While the previous generation came with a punchy six-cylinder engine, all Enclaves now come with a single powertrain option. This powertrain is also shared with its corporate cousins, the Chevrolet Traverse and the GMC Acadia. It’s a turbocharged 2.5-liter inline four-cylinder engine that produces 328 horsepower and 326 pound-feet of torque. It’s then tied to an eight-speed automatic transmission, can get zero to 60 in 6.8 seconds, and has a towing capacity of 5,000 pounds, which is standard for the segment.

Don’t let this powertrain fool you, though. It has 18 more horsepower than the V6 from the previous generation. EPA ratings estimate that it can achieve 20 miles per gallon in the city and 24 miles per gallon on the highway for front-wheel drive, while the all-wheel-drive option achieves 21 miles per gallon combined. Applied to a 19.4-gallon tank, these EPA ratings give you 485 miles of highway range, and it’s not even a hybrid.

First-Class Comfort Without The Business-Class Price

The most unbelievable part of this whole feature has to be how much the top-of-the-line Buick Enclave costs. Especially next to its luxury rivals, the Buick Enclave has a much lower asking price. A Lexus TX 550h+ Luxury, for example, has a starting MSRP of $81,760. Meanwhile, the Acura MDX Type S featuring the advanced package starts around $77,300. Don’t even think about asking what the BMW X7 and the Mercedes-Benz GLS demand price wise. The Buick? The Buick Enclave Avenir featuring the optional all-wheel-drive, Super Cruise and illumination package comes to a cool $65,440. That is quite literally a steal next to the competitors.

How The Enclave Avenir Undercuts Its Luxury Rivals

Inteiror shot of a 2025 Buick Enclave Avenir

Interior shot of a 2025 Buick Enclave Avenir

If you’ve ever wanted something that looks good but costs next to nothing, the Buick is your best bet. It shares parts with the Chevrolet Traverse and the GMC Acadia, making maintenance a cheap breeze. The German competitors are bespoke vehicles with unique engines that require specialized maintenance, right down to the fluids. With the MSRP included, Kelley Blue Book has determined that the Avenir’s five-year cost to own will only set you back $90,550, which is $10,000 less than the Escalade.

The Few Areas Where Buick’s Flagship Shows Its Limits

Rear 3/4 shot of a 2025 Buick Enclave Avenir

Well, we did praise the Buick Enclave initially for its ability to drive almost 500 miles with no hybrid option. We would still like to see it (and any GM product, for that matter) come with a hybrid powertrain. The single engine option, albeit manageable from a maintenance perspective, does leave something to be desired. Unfortunately, outlets like Edmunds gave the Enclave a 6.4 out of 10, stating that the interior materials felt cheap and that the driving experience was just OK. Regardless of these mid-range scores, we still think it’s a solid luxury option in an overpriced market.