2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe vs 2022 Buick Enclave

The 2022 Buick Enclave represented a significant shift for Buick, which had traditionally favored conservative styling and functional interiors. Over the past 15 years, Buick transitioned from a sedan-heavy lineup to an all-SUV portfolio, reflecting broader market trends. The Enclave, introduced in 2008 and redesigned in 2018, became a flagship model, offering a blend of comfort and upmarket features. The 2022 mid-cycle refresh brought exterior enhancements like a new grille, updated fascias, and redesigned headlamps and taillamps. Inside, the Enclave featured a restyled center console, upgraded materials, and available heated, cooled, and massaging front seats, especially in the top-tier Avenir trim.

The 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe, meanwhile, stayed true to Jeep's heritage with its iconic seven-slot grille and rugged design cues. The Grand Cherokee 4xe was a two-row, five-passenger plug-in hybrid, offering a blend of traditional Jeep styling and modern efficiency. The trim lineup included the base 4xe, Trailhawk, Overland, Summit, and Summit Reserve, with the High Altitude package adding extra style. Our test vehicle, an Overland trim, featured a silver exterior with a black roof and 20-inch wheels. Inside, the Grand Cherokee 4xe offered a comfortable and upscale feel, with leather seats, wood and metal accents, and heated and ventilated front seats. However, the presence of hard plastic materials in the interior was a notable drawback.

The 2022 Buick Enclave kept things straightforward with a single powertrain option: a 3.6-liter V6 engine paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission, delivering 310 horsepower and 266 pound-feet of torque. The Enclave offered front-wheel drive as standard, with all-wheel drive available on all trims. The SUV's maximum towing capacity was 5,000 pounds when properly equipped. The Enclave was known for its quiet and smooth ride, enhanced by the optional Avenir Technology package, which included a premium ride suspension and continuously variable real-time chassis damping. Despite its size, the Enclave's powertrain was responsive, and the nine-speed automatic transmission performed seamlessly.

The 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe's standout feature was its plug-in hybrid powertrain, combining a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline four-cylinder engine with a 400-volt, 17-kWh battery pack. This setup produced an impressive 375 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque, surpassing the output of Jeep's 5.7-liter V8 engine. The Grand Cherokee 4xe offered standard four-wheel drive, managed by an eight-speed automatic transmission, and achieved 56 MPGe. The vehicle had a total driving range of 470 miles, with 25 miles of all-electric range. The Grand Cherokee 4xe featured E Select powertrain modes, regenerative braking, and two off-road systems: Quadra-Trac II and Quadra-Drive II. The Trailhawk trim, with its 10.9 inches of ground clearance and Quadra-Lift suspension, was the most off-road capable.

The 2022 Buick Enclave offered easy ingress and egress, excellent visibility, and comfortable seating with standard eight-way power driver and six-way power front passenger seats. The Enclave's spacious cabin accommodated passengers in all three rows, with ample headroom, legroom, hip room, and shoulder room. The second-row captain's chairs provided easy access to the third row, which could comfortably seat six-footers. The restyled center console featured new push-button transmission gears and a covered compartment with cupholders. The Enclave also offered generous cargo space, with 23.6 cubic feet behind the third row, 57.7 cubic feet with the third row folded, and 97.4 cubic feet with both rows folded.

The 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe, while not available in a three-row configuration, provided plenty of space for passengers in its two rows. Folding the second row expanded cargo space from 37.7 cubic feet to 70.8 cubic feet. The Grand Cherokee 4xe's air suspension allowed for quick adjustments, making loading and unloading easier. Despite testing the vehicle in hot conditions, the standard heated steering wheel was noted as a valuable feature for colder climates.

The 2022 Buick Enclave featured a standard 4.2-inch driver information center, with an 8-inch reconfigurable version on Premium and Avenir trims. The Essence trim included an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as wireless phone charging. Premium and Avenir trims added navigation. The Enclave's infotainment system could pair up to 10 devices, with a built-in WiFi hotspot supporting up to four devices. The Premium and Avenir trims also featured a 10-speaker Bose audio system. Other notable features included adaptive cruise control, a head-up display, and HD surround vision.

The 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe came equipped with the Uconnect 5 infotainment system, an Android-powered interface with customization options like My Pages. The vehicle featured multiple screens, including a 10.25-inch front-passenger display and a frameless 10.25-inch digital driver information display. A wireless charging pad was optional, and four USB ports were standard. Rear-seat entertainment screens with Amazon's Fire TV for Auto were also available. The Grand Cherokee 4xe's 19-speaker McIntosh stereo was highly praised, though it was only available on higher trims.

The 2022 Buick Enclave saw significant updates to its safety tech, with the Buick Driver Confidence Plus package becoming standard on all trims. This package included automatic emergency braking, forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection, lane-change alert with blind-spot warning, rear cross-traffic warning, lane-keeping assistance with lane-departure warning, rear park assist, following-distance indicator, and automatic high-beam headlights. Additional features on higher trims included enhanced automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, a surround-view camera, and rear pedestrian alert. The Enclave received a four-star rollover resistance rating from the NHTSA and "Good" ratings in most IIHS crash tests, with an "Acceptable" score in the updated side-impact test.

The 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe offered a mix of standard and optional advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). Standard features included automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, rear parking sensors, and rear cross-traffic alert. Optional features included intersection-collision assist, night vision, front parking sensors, and a 360-degree surround-view camera. Jeep announced a hands-off driver assistance feature suite for the Grand Cherokee 4xe, though it required additional hardware and was not available to early buyers. Neither the IIHS nor the NHTSA had crash-tested the 2022 Grand Cherokee 4xe at the time of writing.