2025 Buick Envista Avenir: Enough to challenge a Corolla?

2025 Toyota Corolla FX vs. 2025 Buick Envista Avenir: Two options to avoid being spendy.

This week: Buick Envista

Price: $31,485 as tested. Power moonroof and Avenir Advanced Safety package, $795 each.

Conventional wisdom: Consumer Reports liked that there’s “lots of features for the price,” plus the “secure handling, short stopping distances,” and “hatchback versatility.” Less impressive were the “noisy cabin, uneven power delivery, low-end interior materials,” and that there’s “no all-wheel-drive option.”

Marketer’s pitch: “Redefine expectations.”

Reality: To answer the opening line, two options to avoid being SPEEDY.

What’s new: The small crossover from Buick gets some new colors plus standard remote start and park assist.

Competition: In addition to the Corolla, there’s the Honda Civic, Hyundai Venue, Hyundai Elantra, Kia Niro, Kia Soul, Mazda 3, Nissan Kicks, Subaru Impreza, and Toyota Prius, to name just a few.

Up to speed: The 1.2-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine performed disappointingly at first. I took the Envista to the Y and was frustrated with its noise, its lack of acceleration, and its fast and slow cycles as I held the accelerator in one spot.

But the little crosshatch tended to be going faster than I thought. Every time I looked down at the digital display, the number was higher than expected.

Still, Car and Driver recorded a 0-60 time of 9.3 seconds. That’s quite turtly, but to be expected from a mere 137 horsepower. And I felt great nervousness climbing the long hill to Coatesville, and pulling out into traffic.

If you’re not in a great hurry, the Envista might not be a bad deal. I made peace with the accelerator after a few days, and didn’t mind driving the car once we were moving. Still, advantage Corolla.

Shifty: I was shocked that the Envista has a 6-speed automatic transmission. With acceleration that unpredictable, I was certain this had the worst continuously variable transmission ever made. I got little sense of shifting as I moved around from place to place.

The old-school PRNDL floor shifter has a throw worthy of far larger vehicles; it seems like a long pull from Park to Drive. No matter; set it and forget it. Gear control is limited to a button on the shifter. Sad face, because that would probably help with the Envista’s get-up-and-go.

On the road: Looking at the bright side, I can say the Buick Envista does go on the road.

Once it gets there, it seems a little unsure of itself, letting loose over bumpy spots, handling winding roads like its ancestors, with little road feel or steering feedback. It’s kind of like a go-kart. But it’s small enough to not need much going for it.

There is no Sport mode. Fittingly. Advantage Corolla.

Driver’s Seat: Seat comfort and feel are quite nice for the price point. Unfortunately, the seat bottom is short, so at 5-foot-10 I’d say I’m about at the tall end for this vehicle.

The digital display feels futuristic, with a digital speed readout plus a little pixel-based speedometer dial that unfolds as you accelerate. It draws too much attention to itself and provides scant information.

Also, nothing like a screen that would cost, I’m betting, thousands to replace for someone who’s trying to drive a bargain. Let’s keep it simple. Slight advantage Corolla.

Friends and stuff: The rear seat space in the Envista is surprisingly roomy. Legroom is immense and headroom is better than you’d expect from the swoopy roofline. Foot room is good too.

The seat feels unsurprisingly low-budget. The angle, the fabric, it’s all designed to inspire mutiny among any kids who happen to be stuck back there. If I ran Buick I’d have saved money on the graphics and upgraded this. (I’m a lot harsher on the seat than I was when I tested the 2024.) Cargo space is 20.7 cubic feet in the back and 42 with the seat folded. Advantage Envista for its crossover spaciousness, although that’s really tiny among crossovers and the rear seat almost negates the advantage.

In and out: The height is quite nice. But the door feels thin and the interior panel plasticky and cheap.

Play some tunes: General Motors has evolved some of the easier infotainment interfaces over the last few years. A row of icons on the left side of the screen gets you to most of the places you want to go. Sound adjustment, though, is nested several levels in.

Sound from the system is actually not terrible, a B+ or so. Advantage Corolla.

Keeping warm and cool: Toggles underneath the infotainment handle the temperature, fan speed, and air source. The digital readout is pretty clear and the system takes over the infotainment for a second when needed.

Fuel economy: The Envista averaged about 31 mpg in trips shared with other drivers. Virtual tie. And that’s a pretty sizable improvement over the test of the 2024.

Where it’s built: Bupyeong-gu, South Korea

How it’s built: Consumer Reports predicts the Envista reliability to be a 3 out of 5. Advantage Corolla.

In the end: Mr. Driver’s Seat “didn’t mind driving the car,” which is about the highest praise I could give this Buick.

I’d opt for a Corolla Hatchback or Cross and then have a nice Corolla with cargo space, and that would probably be my pick among all the vehicles in the competition category above. Sorry, Buick, you’re getting there but not quite there yet.