The Acadia shares the same platform as the Saturn Outlook, but since
the Acadia is considered a higher-end vehicle than the Outlook, the
price point is higher. Base for the Acadia starts at $29,990, while the
Outlook starts at $27,990. One of the things I don't like about minivans is that they look like, well, minivans, and they're immediately identified as "mom-mobiles." Not that there's anything wrong with that. It's just not necessarily an image people want to maintain ... even though they have kids or stuff they need to haul about.
In the all-new GMC Acadia, there is a fresh alternative to minivanitis.
The Acadia comes standard as a seven-passenger vehicle. But rather than having a three-person middle and two-person rear seat, the Acadia does something that's relatively unique in the SUV arena. It puts captain's chairs as standard fare in the middle row. Interesting.
Thus, the suave SUV exterior houses a functional minivanlike interior. Both rear and middle seats fold flat with simple release buttons, and the rear cargo floor holds clever little cubby holes for concealed small-item storage.
The Acadia shares the same platform as the Saturn Outlook, but since the Acadia is considered a higher-end vehicle than the Outlook, the price point is higher. Base for the Acadia starts at $29,990, while the Outlook starts at $27,990.
I have to admit, however, that when I did a side-by-side comparison between Acadia and Outlook, unless it's all in the captain's seats, I couldn't quite account for the extra $2K on the Acadia. Outlook and Acadia share the same 3.6-liter V-6 engine, though Acadia does get an extra 5 horsepower and an additional 3 pound-feet of torque. Hardly anything to write home about. Then there's the fact that Acadia has fog lights and Outlook doesn't. Big deal. But, what stymies me is that Outlook has standard rear HVAC controls in the base model whereas this is an option in the Acadia. Huh?
Perhaps it's name and brand recognition. I don't know. But I do know that I recently drove both vehicles, and the ride and handling is pretty much the same.
The Acadia test vehicle was a FWD SLT-1 model, which is one step up from the base trim level and adds $4K to the price tag. With the extra money comes standard steering wheel audio controls, leather seats, heated front seats, tri-zone climate control and a six-way power adjustable driver's seat.
On top of the extra standards, the test vehicle added the power liftgate ($350), head-up display ($350), XM Satellite Radio ($199), at 115-volt power outlet ($175), cargo area audio controls ($150) and heated windshield wiper fluid ($85). The final MSRP of the test vehicle, then, was $35,269.
Perhaps it's in the cool available options that the extra $2K comes into play. Some features the SLT-1 model offers that you can't find on the Outlook include: the dual SkyScape two-panel sunroof; head-up display; cargo area audio controls; and 115-volt, three-prong, household-style power outlet.
OK, that last one is pretty cool.
I was also glad to have the head-up display option during the test week because the steering wheel covered my speedometer when it was adjusted for my driving position.
The one thing that was missing on the test vehicle was the optional rear parking sensors. For a vehicle that's 200.7 inches long, I think this should be standard. I parallel parked the Acadia a lot during the test week, and I habitually overcompensated. When I got out of the vehicle thinking I'd just squeaked into a space, I found that I had 4 feet in front and in back, and I was taking up two spaces. To those people who live on my street ... Sorry about that.
Similar to the Outlook, the Acadia had nice acceleration and handled very well for a large vehicle. I got a good driving position, but I had the same blind-spot issues out the right side of the vehicle.
I took a road trip with some girl friends out to Downers Grove to visit another friend who'd just had a baby. And I have to say, my friends are better at exploring cars and pushing buttons than any kids I've encountered recently. My friend Steph pushed every button and climbed throughout the entire vehicle. She liked the XM Radio, but unfortunately for me she found the country music stations. Unfortunately for her, I had steering wheel audio controls. She liked the second-row captains seats, and she could climb easily back to the third row. While she had plenty of legroom sitting in the third row, she said her size 10 feet were a bit too big to fit comfortably as they kept bumping the tracking and back of the seat.
Throughout the test week, I did several city-to-suburb non-trafficked treks, I had a three-hour highway road trip and did some moderate city driving. So, I expected higher than average gas mileage. The EPA estimates that the Acadia should get 18 mpg in the city and 26 mpg on the highway. I don't know who set that estimate, but I think it's a bunch of hooey. I averaged a solid 18.4 mpg and spent a solid $70 filling up the 22-gallon tank when it was on E.
I liked the Acadia as much as I like any SUV, and it is the stylish second-row captain's seats that really set it apart. Of course, if you want the bench seat, that is an option with a $495 price reduction. While that doesn't equal the $2K increase over the Outlook, I think the extra available options and the GMC name itself account for the extra $1,500.
If you're looking for a basic seven- or eight-passenger vehicle, the Outlook is a great place to start. If you want something with a little more, step up to Acadia.
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