My first American car in 10 years

Author's Rating:

Pros: German-like feel, spacious interior, great turning radius, decent acceleration.

Cons: No visual navigation system, feature buttons are archaic. Low gas mileage.

The Bottom Line: 
If you like SUV's and you don't mind the low gas mileage (I'm averaging 16 miles to the gallon) than buy this car.

Author's Review
Reluctantly I purchased my first American owned vehicle in 10 years. In the last 10 years I have been fortunate enough to drive mostly German-Engineered vehicles. In fact, after driving the Mercedes ML 430 for 2 years and liking that car for many reasons, I knew my next vehicle would have to overcome some tough competition. The ML 430 was stolen recently so my wife and I went SUV shopping.

Our goals for our next vehicle: First, we wanted to spend less (the economy stupid). Second we wanted a safe car that handled well. Third we wanted a reliable car that would retain a lot of resell value. Lastly, it must be able to carry all of the stuff we tote around for various activities (which includes 4X4ing).

The Test Drive:
Great feel (felt most German-Like of all I tested), handled well and decent acceleration. The breaks worked well, and the turning radius was fantastic. We didn't test it in 4x4 mode.

Interior:
We purchased one with leather interior and simulated wood and I rate that interior an 8 out of 10. The interior design looks retro to me but in style. The buttons on the steering wheel help while driving (a safety requirement for us) but were initially difficult to figure out what they did (yes we read the manual). The OnStar system is nice, but pricey. Besides, I don't want to spend $10 a minute while some operator navigates me around while I'm lost. I like the 2 driver presets. When I let the car know that I'm driver number two it instantly sets itself up for me including car position, radio station

Exterior:
Flashy, sophisticated and rugged. You can take this vehicle to the ocean or the Opera. We didn't purchase the side rails but I wished we had. I like the exterior more with them on.

Cost vs Value:
Fortunately our brother-in-law owns a dealership so our cost for this vehicle was low (under $28k new). However, even at $33k we would have purchased it. Compared to the BMW and Mercedes SUV, this vehicle is a bargain. In my experience, it was difficult to tell the difference between the feel of the three cars. The only exception is the navigation system. The Mercedes navigation system was a life-saver on numerous occasions. I'd guess it saved me hundreds of hours of lost time searching for unfamiliar destinations. As far as I know the Envoy does not come with that option, a shame since the OnStar system costs so much to use.

Noteworthy Negatives:
* Low gas mileage
* No Visual Navigation System