The Envoy feels even more dated than its four years on the market unchanged suggest. For it was designed to meet the expectations of midsize SUV buyers from even before its release date, and the market has changed dramatically since then. No longer is the standard notion of pickup truck with an enclosed cargo area, reasonable pricing, and a few luxury features representative of what the best vehicles in this class offer, there is now more emphasis on comfort, interior quality, and refinement, even formerly alien traits such as performance, agility, and fuel economy. It is in those areas where the Envoy falls so far behind most competitors, falling back on its price advantage to keep sales coming.

The Envoy has a smooth, soft, and generally comfortable ride over smooth road surfaces, but it gets easily unsettled over imperfections, and gets floaty at high speeds. The general suspension softness, an attempt to make the Envoy feel less like a truck, does not help the vehicle in cornering. It feels bulky, cumbersome, and clumsy, with excessive body roll and slow responses from the vague steering. The 4.2-liter I6 makes the vehicle quick enough, and it is quite smooth in all circumstances but hard acceleration. Wind and road noise are excessive. Gas mileage does not impress.

Inside, the Envoy’s front seats are uncomfortably low and soft, and poorly shaped. The rear is set at a more comfortable angle, but is also too low, soft, and lacking in support. Head, leg, and foot space are at least reasonable. A third-row seat is only available on the extended-length XL variant. On the dash, false wood fails to disguise the cheap-feeling and ill-fitting plastic trim pieces. The instruments are clumped at the center of an unusually wide center stack. Were they to be resized and spread out in accordance with the available space, they would be more-legible and easier to use. The gauges are large and clear, at least.  Drivers sit comfortably enough, if a bit low. Visibility is impeded by thick roof pillars. A high ride height complicates entry/exit, and a poorly shaped door opening doesn’t help. There is a reasonable amount of cargo space, and it is easy to access.

The Envoy earned three stars for the driver and four for the front passenger in its NHTSA frontal crash test, and five for both the driver and for the rear passenger in the NHTSA side crash test. NHTSA estimates a 19% chance of rollover in a single-vehicle accident, good for a rating of 4 out of 5 stars. A 2002 version was rated Marginal (the second lowest of five ratings) in its IIHS offset crash test, but it has not been tested since a 2005 upgrade. The IIHS also has yet to evaluate the Envoy’s head restraints.

The Envoy reviewed here came very well equipped at $29,803. There are no torso-protecting side airbags, but head-protecting side airbags, XM satellite radio, heated power leather seats, a sunroof, and other features are all offered, and equipped on the version reviewed. OnStar and stability control are standard.

Overall, the Envoy comes with a lot of features for the money, but doesn’t have much else going for it. It’s not comfortable or refined, handles poorly, has mediocre interior quality, and lacks even a small third row seat. The only things it does even reasonably well are easily matched or outmatched by many competitors. There are better choices, even at similarly impressive prices.