GMC Envoy

Overall Rating
 2 of 5

Value Rating
 2 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
2.50 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $13999.00 from Royal Pontiac, Susse

Year / Model Reviewed:
2004 GMC Envoy

Summary:
For financial reasons (hopefully temporary), we must let our Honda Pilot lease end, so my dad bought us a used GMC Envoy with 66,000 miles on it to help us out. It was a surprise, so I had no choice but to accept it; I am not one to look a gift horse in the mouth!!
I can't help but compare the Envoy to the Pilot. The Pilot is TERRIBLE in the snow & had several very annoying electrical problems, so it's not a keeper anyway. The Envoy is MUCH better in the snow & rain than the Pilot, & hasn't had any annoying problems, but the design, agility & transmission are sorely lacking compared to the Pilot.
The Envoy feels heavy, clumsy & outdated. The transmission is sluggish & the handling feels like I am driving a giant school bus. Step on the gas & WAIT for the thing to get going....In contrast, the Pilot is very agile for it's size, feels light, & the transmission is smooth & very refined. Step on the gas & it MOVES!!
The Envoy has poor visability, both through the front & back (the Pilot had amazing visability). The interior design of the Envoy is so poor, I can't imagine that someone let it get through the approval process after it was designed!! There is almost NO console space at all. If you want to take things with you, there is simply no place to put them, other than throwing them on the back seat. Yes, there is a small compartment for CDs, but they only fit side up, so you can't tell which CD is which until you pull it out. In the park position, the shifter is so close to the instrument panel that you can't reach the controls in front of it.
The cargo, head room, & passenger room is much less than the Pilot. Hard to believe that of two similar-sized vehicles, one has so much room, and the other doesn't. The people at GMC would do well to study the design of the Pilot, as it really is well thought out, where the Envoy is not. And check out the crash test results: the Envoy was average, but the Pilot was excellent.
Also, the gas milage on the Envoy has proved (for me) to be about 15 MPG. Pretty bad.

Strengths:
-Good in snow

Weaknesses:
-Clumsy handling
-Bad gas milage
-Sluggish
-Poor interior design
-Lack of interior space

Similar Products Used:
Honda Pilot
Ford Bronco II
Toyota 4 Runner
Subaru Legacy

Price Paid:  $29870.00 from Bouchat Olds GMC

Year / Model Reviewed:
2005 GMC Envoy XL

Summary:
i agree that the pasenber space is comfortable.

my vehicle is the extended chassis option which makes for a long SUV but it holds all sorts of things when packed.

mine doesn't have the extra options like
special wipers or an information center and i don't really miss it.

this last winter, we had quite a lot of ice and snow. in 4 wheel drive (fixed, not AWD) mode, it worked well up hills and on the unplowed roads. i had a couple of really icy day slides and a bit of counter steering pulled it straight.

i totally suggest an ice and snow winter radial on all cars and trucks where winter driving is required. i think the choice of tires is totally critical to a safe and good ride in a vehilce of this size and weight.

my tires original ones were Michelin Cross Terrains which lasted about 50,000 miles, i just replaced them with Forteras. very similar ride characteristics. i run a set of 4 - Bridgestone Blizzaks on this in the winter and can't say enough about these tires.

i have had ZERO mechanical problems with this SUV, only expected repairs, regular services, the rear brake pads replaced,...that sort of thing.

mine has the inline 6 Vortec 4200 which is fine for my uses, i don't do that much heavy trailer work but the truck hitch is a full size hitch, which can't be said for some of the competitors SUVs.

engine is OK as far as normal cruise noise goes. i would suggest to GM that they make turbo-chargers optional on their engines for a more versatile and cost efficient power plant.

the ride can be choppy on a rough paved or off road route. this is just the suspension stuff doing it's job.

came with XM radio and has great sound and a good stereo speaker setup.

has only front power seats. i enjoy them as i drive a lot. my wife likes riding in this truck but she is not fond of driving.she favors a much smaller car.

Weaknesses:
my up hill and on the road mileage in Pennsylvania runs 17 mpg and i have seen 21 mpg on the highway. fuel mileage could be better. but, after all, this is a big SUV. the other choices all seem to make me look at a much smaller contained space and payload which i am not interested in.

Similar Products Used:
2002 ford escape, 1993 ford explorer, 2005 ford explorer .. these are vehicles others in my family run. i have driven and or owned them all.

Weaknesses:
GM is reportedly NOT going to produce the Envoy in an XL chassis length. i think this may be true of it's clone the Chevy Trailblazer. Too bad.

i am considering a Trailblazer SS for my next vehicle. gas costs in the larger V8 will be an expense for sure, but driving a well setup vehicle is one of those daily treats i give to myself.

Price Paid:  $35500.00 from Farrish GMC

Year / Model Reviewed:
2007 GMC Envoy SLT 4x4

Summary:
2007 GMC ENVOY SLT 1 4 DR SUV 4WD -
I bought it 03/22 I have about 3000 miles and they are excellent miles. This is a road machine, you set up in a commanding position, ride comfort and handling prowess are all superior, It has a very confident and agile feel to it while rolling down the highway, has 18” wheels and responses very well to rapid moves (cuts & swerves), The inline 6 cy 4.2 liter w\291hp is extremely responsive when you need it. The Envoy is a very quiet ride, wind & road noise are minimal. A little tuff to turn at parking lot speeds 0 to 10mph but I’ll get over it. My Envoy has everything we could want, 2 pos memory seats\ heat mirrors 8 way with lumbar, imbedded cell phone (Bluetooth like) service with Onstar service (1yr free), XM, 6cd Bose system, Auto AC all the airbags including curtain AB through out. Elegant leather interior very comfortable, better then my old Crown Victoria. Gas mileage was an expected negative but is not terrible. This is an outstanding vehicle for the price, I did 6 months of research before I bought this Envoy and I have owned Chevy’s & Fords and test drove all the other competitors. GMC has built a quality vehicle with quality parts, fit and finish is second to none I’m very impressed with this True American car builder I am very pleased with our final chose.

Strengths:
The performance is great chews up and spits out any of the Japanese SUV's has more horsepower and torque then any other SUV in it's class (Midsize 6cyl)and most fullsize 8cyl.The Onstar diagnostics is a real bonus (free for 1yr)it has the hands free phone built in which is really nice,XM satellite radio, interior is so quiet and smooth riding not to mention it looks great a real head turner

Weaknesses:
I really have not come across any, some have said the gas mileage but I'm not complaining about an avg 18.6mpg

Similar Products Used:
2007 Toy Highlander& 4runner, 07Jeep Cherokee,07 Ford Explorer, 07Nissan Xterra,07 Honda Pilot

Price Paid:  $30400.00 from Woodbridge Pontiac-G

Year / Model Reviewed:
1992 Envoy 4WD SLE

Summary:
Generally satisfied with features and performance. Averages 15 mpg in town; 20 on highway. More recalls than I expected; 4 service trips for GMC recalls. One in-warranty failure (ignition coil) One out-of-warranty failure (4WD selector switch).

Strengths:
Versatility.

Weaknesses:
The design of 4WD selector switch is a reliability problem. The 4WD selector switch was the cause of infrequent, intermittent switching to AWD and 4WD.

Similar Products Used:
1994 GMC Envoy

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
2.50 of 5, 6.00 votes

Price Paid:  $14500.00 from dealer mn

Year / Model Reviewed:
2002 gmc/envoy slt

Summary:
I have had my envoy for about 5 months. For an suv it gets great mpg. Driving it home from the dealership about 50 miles away I was surprised to get 23 mpg. I usually average about 18 mpg between city and highway. This is my 6th vehicle, the previous 5 were cadillacs. The thing that sold me on the envoy is the ride. I test drove a durango, explorer, infinity qx4, and the envoy. The envoy and qx4 were leaps and bounds above the others for comfort and ride smootheness, and the envoy felt the most powerfull. I have not had a single problem with this vehicle and I would highly recommend it to anyone in the market for an suv.

Strengths:
heated seats warm up fast
comfortable seats
rain sense windshield wipers
information center
4 wheel drive works well
very powerfull
quiet engine
more than enough room
looks great
rides great
good stereo
power seats

Weaknesses:
don't have any other than, the same as with all suv's better gas mileage would be nice but it's the price you pay to have a bigger vehicle. If you want better gas mileage buy a micro machine hybrid and rent a truck only when you need one.

Similar Products Used:
2001 ford explorer, 2002 dodge durango, cadillac cars not suv's