Compare the2027 Kia Telluride VS 2027 Buick Enclave

Both the Telluride and Enclave have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Telluride has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Enclave’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Kia Telluride has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Enclave doesn’t offer knee airbags.

With its standard Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist, the Kia Telluride is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Buick Enclave, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

	Telluride	Enclave
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Crossing Child - DAY
12 MPH	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH	AVOIDED	-20 MPH
	Crossing Adult - NIGHT
12 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
12 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	-17 MPH
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	-22 MPH
	Parallel Adult - NIGHT
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	-22 MPH
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	-16 MPH
37 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	-16 MPH
37 MPH Low beams	-23 MPH	-16 MPH

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Telluride AWD’s standard Downhill Brake Control allows you to creep down safely. The Enclave doesn’t offer Downhill Brake Control.

Both the Telluride and the Enclave have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, front seat center airbag, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all-wheel drive and around view monitors.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4189-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Kia Telluride is safer than the Enclave:

	Telluride	Enclave
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Structure	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	44	55
Torso	GOOD	GOOD
Pelvis	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Pelvis Force	759 lbs.	915 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	44	260
Neck Tension	245 lbs.	290 lbs.
Torso	GOOD	GOOD
Shoulder Deflection	.35 in	.83 in
Torso Deflection Rate	8 MPH	8 MPH
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Pelvis Force	357 lbs.	602 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD

The Kia Telluride (built after June 2026) has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2026 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test, and a “Good” score in the revised vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention test. The Enclave is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2026.

The Telluride comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Enclave’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Telluride 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Buick covers the Enclave. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Enclave ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Buick vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in initial quality. With 2 more problems per 100 vehicles, Buick is rated lower.

The Telluride’s optional 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 1 more horsepower (329 vs. 328) and 13 lbs.-ft. more torque (339 vs. 326) than the Enclave’s 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Kia Telluride 4 cyl. hybrid gas is faster than the Buick Enclave:

	Telluride	Enclave
Zero to 60 MPH	6.6 sec	7.8 sec
Quarter Mile	14.9 sec	15.9 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	96 MPH	90.7 MPH

On the EPA test cycle the Telluride gets better mileage than the Enclave:

			MPG
Telluride
	FWD	EX 2.5 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	34 city/36 hwy
		EX 2.5 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	32 city/34 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/26 hwy
	AWD	2.5 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	30 city/32 hwy
Enclave
	FWD	2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/25 hwy
	AWD	2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/24 hwy

Regenerative brakes improve the Telluride Hybrid’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Enclave doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Telluride has a standard locking fuel door, which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Enclave. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

For better stopping power the Telluride’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Enclave:

	Telluride	Enclave
Front Rotors	13.6 inches	12.6 inches
Rear Rotors	12.8 inches	12.4 inches

The Telluride stops shorter than the Enclave:

	Telluride	Enclave
60 to 0 MPH	125 feet	128 feet	Motor Trend

The Telluride offers an optional automatic rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The Enclave doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

The Telluride SX Prestige handles at .77 G’s, while the Enclave Sport Touring AWD pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

For greater off-road capability the Telluride has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Enclave (7.4 vs. 6.8 inches), allowing the Telluride to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Telluride X-Pro’s minimum ground clearance is 1.8 inches higher than on the Enclave Avenir (9.1 vs. 7.3 inches).

The Telluride is 8.4 inches shorter than the Enclave, making the Telluride easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Telluride offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the Enclave can only carry 7.

The Telluride has .4 inches more rear headroom and 1.5 inches more rear legroom than the Enclave.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Telluride’s middle and third row seats recline. The Enclave’s third row seats don’t recline.

A standard locking glovebox keeps your small valuables safer in the Telluride. The Enclave doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The Telluride’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Enclave’s passenger windows don’t close automatically.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Telluride to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Enclave doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Telluride EX/SX/Prestige has standard front air conditioned seats and the Telluride Prestige also has them in the second row. This keeps the passengers comfortable and takes the sting out of hot seats in summer. The Enclave doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

The Kia Telluride stands out above the Buick Enclave by offering not one, but two Qi-compatible phone chargers. This convenience helps travelers with multiple devices to keep powered up on-the-go. Wireless charging eliminates lost or cluttered charging cables and two of them provide more flexibility.

The Telluride Prestige’s Remote Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Enclave’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.

According to iSeeCars.com the 2027 Kia Telluride retains 51.21% of its original value after 5 years, significantly more than the 41.48% resale value of the 2026 Buick Enclave after five years, which can save the Kia’s owner up to $8637 in depreciation.

Motor Trend selected the Telluride as their 2020 Sport Utility of the Year. The Enclave has never been chosen.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Telluride as the 2020 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Enclave has never been chosen.

The Kia Telluride outsold the Buick Enclave by over three to one during 2025.