Collectible Classic: 1963-1965 Buick Riviera

Fewer than twenty years after the first-generation Buick Riviera debuted, I was induced to write a chapter on cars for the Catalog of Cool, a cultural compendium assembled by an editorial team of swingin' savants. One of the entries: "Buick's hippest move was the Riviera (especially '63-'65): two-door hardtops with bucket seats, sharp looking from every angle. Inspiration apparently struck style chief Bill Mitchell one foggy night in London town -- a coachbuilt Rolls sliced through the mist, Bill flashed, and the Riv was born." Another three decades on from those scribblings, Mitchell's divine inspiration still has us fawning. His goal to combine the formality of a razor-edge Rolls-Royce with the aggressive stance of a Ferrari stands as one of the greatest styling triumphs of the midcentury.

The Riviera -- with its expansive egg-crate grille, pontoon fenders, neatly creased formal rear quarters, and sumptuous interior -- was more successful at recalling, not mimicking, styling of the classic era than the much-vaunted Continental Mark II. It also stole the spotlight from Ford's four-place Thunderbird that had the personal-luxury segment to itself since '58.

No two ways about it, the Riv was, and is, a scene-stealer of the highest order. Southern California resident Dan Gregg has lived with one such object of adoration for the better part of his life. His father acquired the breathtaking '64 seen here around the time that the Catalog of Cool went to press and bequeathed it to his son, who undertook a thorough, although not frame-off, restoration thereafter. Upon bearing witness to its brawny beauty, strangers invariably lament, "I had one of those; shoulda kept it."

The Gregg family chariot is a '64, very similar to the first-year model but for the fact that it has absolutely no visible Buick badging. Even the stand-up hood ornament, new for '64, was a stylized R rather than the Buick shield. These details underscore that the Riviera had a look all its own; it seemed to have come from a more tasteful automotive universe than its contemporaries. Even most Mercedes-Benzes still had fins at that time.

Read more: http://www.automobilemag.com/features/collectible_classic/1202_1963_1965_buick_riviera_collectible_classic/index.html#ixzz1mZpeP6dF

Chicago Buick

Buick eAssist Smartphone App Makes A Game Out Of Saving Fuel

Want to get the next generation of drivers thinking green, long before they get behind the wheel?
Buick has come up with an innovative and fun app for Android and iPhone platforms that carefully blends entertainment with education. It bundles three games into one app, called Buick Fuel Efficiency Games.

Players learn about concepts like regenerative braking, aerodynamics and even Buick’s eAssist mild hybrid system, which provides supplemental electric power to boost acceleration without using additional fuel.

“Regeneration Road,” one of the three games included, has players focus on regenerative braking to increase battery charge. The goal of the game is to reach your destination with as much gasoline remaining in the tank as possible.

“Roll and Boost” gives players a simple understanding of how the eAssist mild hybrid system adds power and helps increase fuel economy. Players get a single tank of fuel, and the object of the game is to make that tank last as many miles as possible.

Read More: http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1072335_buick-eassist-smartphone-app-makes-a-game-out-of-saving-fuel

GM shows how interactive car windows could be fun for passengers

 How do you fight boredom if you're stuck in the back seat during a long road trip? Surf the Web on your smart phone? Stare at the scenery and wonder what you're whizzing by? Researchers at General Motors, along with students at the Future Lab at Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Israel, think there are ways to merge the two.

GM's Windows of Opportunity (WOO) Project asked the Israeli students to "conceptualize new ways to help rear seat passengers, particularly children, have a richer experience on the road." And what they came up with is quite stunning.

Using existing—albeit expensive—technology, the futurists created a prototype entertainment and information system that uses touch- and gesture-sensitive rear door windows. The system ties into the car's information systems—speed and location via GPS, for example—and the wireless Web. Four experimental "apps" displayed on the special window keep the back seat passenger entertained and informed.

According to the press release, the apps include:

• Otto, an animated character projected over passing scenery that responds to real-time car performance, weather, and landscape. With Otto, passengers can learn about their environment in fun, playful ways.
• Foofu, which allows passengers to create and explore by drawing on the window with a finger.
• Spindow, a social media like app that connects riders with others passengers around the globe in real time.
• Pond, an app that allows passengers to stream and share music with other cars on the road, download favorite tracks, and share messages with other passengers on the road.

The Bezalel Academy students demonstrate the prototype system in a video (see below), but there are no immediate plans to put such interactive displays in production vehicles, said GM's press release.

Read More: http://news.consumerreports.org/cars/2012/01/gm-shows-how-interactive-car-windows-could-be-fun-for-passengers.html

2012 Detroit auto show video: 2013 Buick Encore

The Buick Encore paves the way for a new market segment: The very-compact upscale SUV. The Encore is smaller than the Chevrolet Equinox. In fact, it is 13 inches shorter than a Toyota RAV4. When it launches next year, the Encore may be the first vehicle of its kind in America. The BMW X1 and Audi Q3 are its natural competition, but the Buick is expected to beat them to market here, assuming those Germans even make it here at all.

The Encore fully utilizes the global nature of GM’s vehicle development system. Developed in the United States, the Encore will be built in South Korea. Although the Encore is expected to sell modestly here, Opel and Vauxhall variants will likely ring up more sales in Europe. And given the popularity of Buick in China, the Encore is expected to do well there.

I was able to sit in the Encore for a bit while filming our auto show video. It’s a bit odd--like sitting in an Enclave that was squeezed out of a tube. You sit up high, but the cabin feels really narrow. Rear-seat leg room is surprisingly decent, but the dramatic upward sweep of the beltline reduces the rear glass area to the detriment of visibility.

The Encore’s 1.4-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder engine is shared with the Chevrolet Cruze and Sonic. If the Encore’s curb weight sticks to the claimed 3,300 pounds for an all-wheel-drive version (just a bit more than the Cruze), it should have reasonable performance. Active noise cancellation, a Buick first, aims to help the Encore achieve the quietness that’s always been a brand hallmark.

But how will the Encore do when cross-shopped with other small SUVs? Directly on the other side of Cobo Hall from the Buick booth were several 2013 Ford Escapes. This Escape has a nicely-done interior with much more room, and it also can be had with a small-displacement turbo engine. No pricing was announced on Encore (or Escape yet), but it’s likely that the Encore and Escape will overlap in price. Then there is that new RDX that was also introduced in Detroit. It all comes down to price, and whether American shoppers are looking for the premium attributes the Encore offers, yet not coveting space that is available in competing models.

We’ll see how this new direction for Buick works when we buy one in early 2013 to test.



Chicago Buick

Driven: 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist

Hybrid or V-6? That's the choice Buick is offering LaCrosse buyers for 2012, and neither option is extra-cost.

The V-6 is a 3.6-liter that makes 303 hp, which is considerably more power than you get with the 4-cylinder hybrid. The V-6 also is alone in offering the option of all-wheel drive.

The hybrid, which Buick calls eAssist, is a mild hybrid, in that it can't propel the car solely on electric power, even at low speeds. Instead, as the car's name implies, it assists with 15 hp and 79 pound-feet of torque, helping the 182-hp four-cylinder accelerate this 3835-pound car. More importantly, it allows the engine to shut down at stoplights and then smoothly and instantly restart, aiding the cause of fuel economy. Speaking of miles per gallon, the LaCrosse eAssist is EPA rated at an impressive 25/36 mpg. That's much better than the 19/30 mpg for unassisted four-cylinder offered previously, not to mention far more economical than the V-6's 17/27 mpg.

A six-speed automatic, instead of a stepless CVT, gives the LaCrosse conventional-feeling throttle response rather than the elastic response conveyed with a CVT. Speaking of response, though, with the LaCrosse's ultra-tall final drive ratio, you really have to put your foot into it to awaken this powertrain. On a positive note, the 2.4-liter Ecotec --which, like many direct-injected four-cylinders, is not known for its mellifluous sound quality -- here has been so effectively muffled that could almost be a V-6, at least under 3000 rpm. And the car is very quiet overall.

If that's what you'd expect from a Buick, then so too is the chassis. The car comfortably sops up bumps but would benefit from greater damping of body motions, to quell squat and dive. The electrically assisted power steering is rather numb and artificial-feeling.

As in many other hybrids, the eAssist battery pack is located behind the rear seat, and it takes up a bit of trunk room (as do the old-fashioned-style gooseneck hinges and their big plastic housings).

Read more: http://www.automobilemag.com/reviews/driven/1111_2012_buick_lacrosse_eassist/viewall.html#ixzz1eZ8D7sJg

LaCrosse GL Concept Refines Buick’s Signature Style

LOS ANGELES – When designers set out to capture the essence of Buick luxury for the LaCrosse GL concept vehicle, they looked to the fine cuisine, heirloom objects and enriching experiences the brand’s customers savor. The design study is on display at the L.A. Auto Show through Nov. 17.

Buick’s color and trim designers worked from a palette of cabernet red, dark cocoa brown and caramel choccachino. They took inspiration from the burnished metal of antique jewelry, ombré patina on vintage guitars and flocked lining of keepsake boxes. For GL’s French-stitched premium leather seats, the designers looked to the understated elegance of classic club chairs and contours of windswept sand dunes. And their use of smooth suede for the headliner is designed to invite one’s touch like a favorite pair of gloves.

“The LaCrosse GL concept expresses Buick’s distinctly human kind of luxury – one that is as warmly inviting as it is elegant and refined,” said David Lyon, executive director of design. “The design cues that already distinguish the production LaCrosse – such as the premium leather-upholstered seats, ice blue ambient lighting and soft touch surfaces – are amplified in the GL and serve as inspiration for future Buick models.”

LaCrosse GL’s cabernet red exterior paint is complemented by brushed and tinted chrome accents on the grille, door handles and deck lid, as well as around the windows, taillights and headlights. Machine-face, satin-finish 20-inch rims fill the wheel wells for a firmly planted appearance.
“The brushed-and-tinted chrome trim gives the GL a more subdued appearance than if we had used bright chrome. The overall effect is more in keeping with Buick’s quietly confident aesthetic,” said Magdalena Kokoszynska, creative designer on LaCrosse GL.

Read More: http://media.gm.com/content/media/us/en/gm/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2011/Nov/1109_lacrosse_gl

Driven: 2012 Buick Regal GS

How does a European sport sedan dovetail with an American luxury brand that exists because the Chinese want to ride in the back of pillowy four-doors? It's a mind-melting philosophical question, but the answer is simple for the masters of brand management. After a seven-year sabbatical, the forty-seven-year-old Gran Sport name is back.

The Buick Regal GS has its roots in Europe's Opel Insignia OPC, but don't call this a badge-engineering exercise. Buick opted not to use the OPC's strident 2.8-liter twin-turbo V-6 and Haldex all-wheel-drive system in a play for lower weight and higher fuel economy. Instead, our GS has a high-output version of the Regal Turbo's direct-injected, boosted four-cylinder driving the front wheels. Even so, compared with an Audi A4, the GS is about 200 pounds too heavy (at 3710 pounds) and comes up at least three miles short for every gallon of gas it swills (at 19/27 mpg city/highway).

Dialing the boost pressure from 15 psi to 20 psi pushes power from 220 hp to 270 hp and smooths out some of the awkward surges that plague the Regal Turbo. Despite the more civilized power delivery, the GS-tuned engine is still afflicted with subtle, uneven pulses at part throttle, and the turbocharger whistles and whirs like it's bolted into a Class 8 truck. At full tilt, it doesn't sound more exciting than any other frenzied four-cylinder, but the 2.0-liter turbo delivers prolonged bursts of power that stretch all the way to redline. Its 295 lb-ft of peak torque isn't reached until 2400 rpm, which translates to a single breath of lag leaving the line.

To combat torque steer, the GS employs the so-called HiPer Strut front suspension that decouples the steering and suspension geometries. It can't eliminate every tug at the steering wheel, but it does reduce the severity enough to turn punches into prods. The Sachs adaptive dampers are similarly adept at softening blows -- at least in their most compliant standard setting. There's now a mode (on top of sport) called GS that makes the ride -- and body control -- substantially tauter. Few adaptive suspensions manage to effect changes that are both as palpable and as constructive.

The nicely contoured steering wheel is backed by quick responses and a natural effort, although there isn't much feedback from the front wheels. New sport seats offer excellent bolstering without being too aggressive, and the six-speed manual swiftly clicks through light throws. (A six-speed automatic becomes available in early 2012.) Driven quickly over back roads, the Regal GS displays obedient fluidity, impressive composure, and surprising balance. The optional twenty-inch Pirelli PZero summer tires stick impressively through corners, and the chassis responds positively to trail-braking. The Regal GS doesn't have the connected, organic feel of the best sport sedans, but it is much sharper and more fun than an Acura TSX V-6 and more alert than an Audi A4.

Read more: http://www.automobilemag.com/reviews/driven/1112_2012_buick_regal_gs_driven/index.html#ixzz1ckYgf5Ea

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