As I said, I always drive an SUV and Buick did not produce an SUV in the size I buy after the Rendezvous until now with the release of the Envision. The Hyundai so far has been a good vehicle, and thankfully with the turbo isn't boring to drive and in my eyes attractive looking. I don''t believe I have said much negative about any other brand other than Toyota's tend to be a really boring overall ride/brand and in my experience with customers not more or less trouble free than most other brands. As someone someone that deal with customers on a daily basis I learn to see past the sheeple mentality that is out there with Toyota and Honda and hear the real world accounts and really no more brand loyalty to those two brands now than any other. My arguments have been the blanket and unfounded assumptions that the new Buick's are somehow not worthy of consideration and falsely being labeled as unreliable. If a new Buick is not your thing fine, just don't feel the need to bash them for no founded reasons.
The most recent release now shows 57, the Encore has helped reduce the average age significantly. I can see Buick wanting to drop a few more age years but in the market segment they are in they will never drop as far as some brands due to the price point nor do they have any grand thoughts of doing so. Their bullseye is to be at the same age medium as Lexus.
It's a global market, cars and parts are made all over the world for every manufacturer. Just because a vehicle is made in one country or another does not change the quality control standards of any given model. The vehicles being brought here from China need to hold up to the same standards as if they are produced here, or in Mexico or Canada or............ We have been talking about Toyota, is a Toyota made in the USA different in quality as a Toyota made in Japan or China for that matter? Of course not, they all built to the same standards. It's funny when people make comments about where a car is built lol, those Ford trucks have as many Chinese parts in them as American built parts but of course that's different.
You can almost always tell... Fascinating. I'll probably never get to where I can tell whether a person wants a boring Toyota or an exciting Hyundia. Your powers of observation must be outstanding in IMHO, because no middle of the road anything sedan or SUV is going to stir much in me, whether it be a Camry, Impala, Fusion, or a Sonata. That sheep thing some of you mentioned... A lot of folks used to call that word of mouth or reputation. Of course it now entails social media. Regardless, our society develops general views on things. Please forgive the language if you watch this one minute scene from the movie The Gambler. John Goodman's character discusses sound financial decision making. Hilarious! Maybe even wise. He mentions "Japanese" cars specifically. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdfeXqHFmPI
"Buick has made gains in China, not North America. The only reason GM didn't kill it instead of Pontiac was because it's doing so well in China. I guess the statement about misguided brand loyalty fell on deaf ears; - nobody here disputes that old Buicks are great cars and worthy of collecting, only that modern Buicks leave something to be desired. Are Toyotas boring? Yup, they sure are; - and they're ugly too. But they work and they run, they will get you from A to B, something I can't say a modern Buick will. A modern vehicle is a bloody appliance and is about as attractive to me as a new fridge is. It's about as reliable too, 5 years and it's crap or has quit. Runs just long enough for the warranty to expire. I'll swallow my pride and look at a Toyota before I ever grace another GM showroom again; jeez, I'd even buy Euro-trash like Mercedes before I buy another modern Buick!" Well said Marc, although I don't know that Toyota's look any worse than all the other stuff. It all looks pretty much the same to me.
2007 Saturn Outlook XR AWD (GM product) - almost 100k and no issues and well outside of manuacturers warranty. So....I guess there is that, right?
The biggest reason for GM to fold Pontiac and not Buick has more to do with GMs goals (global branding). Buicks having a good reputation in more (important) countries made Buick a better investment. Sadly due to changes in the auto industry both Pontiac and Olds lost their "identifying market". Pontiac being nothing more then a renamed Chevy with less potential as a world brand. I personally owned a Pontiac (1956 Starchief Catalina). At that time every brand had a small niche market, but a identity. Fast forward to corporate GM of the 90s and Pontiac and Olds are in very serious trouble. They lost their identity as a brand. Buick likes to make new niches and prides on engineering quality. Olds had a crisis for decades with identity. A few smoking cool cars don't make a identity (compare Buicks smashing sales in the mid 80s to its 1 off Regal model). That change in sales reflects a change in consumer opinion and finds the brand as fulfilling their needs. In the early 2000s Buick was on life support. It wasn't the quality (think lesabre and Park Avenue), but the market was changing. Younger buyers grew up with "new, vibrant" brands from Asia that offered something a little cheaper and different. They go out looking for a ride with this new mentality and Buick seems like that little old lady at church with to much perfume and powder on brand. That however is a fairly recent impression and easy to change with Buick helping to push its identity to show it's alive. Pontiac however lived happily in that grey area between Chevy and Buick and didn't offer much new. Its market share it built its identity on went to Chevy or Buicks. Internationally Pontiac didn't have a twin brand like Buick and Opel had since 1958. In a nutshell the reasons why Buick survive are far more complicated.
The February Motor Trend has a write-up on the redesigned Envision. This was supposedly built as a world car but they said it is really built more for the China market. They said that Buick sold 130,000 Envisions in China last year when they sold about 200,000 of ALL models here. MT was NOT very complementary about this car. It's a shame they don't, or are not allowed, to design and build a car strictly for the U.S. market. Cars for American size people and good old fashioned performance cars would fly out of the showrooms.
As much as I hate to say it because I love the Buick 3.8, the new 3.6 like the one in our 2012 Lacrosse will eat a naturally aspirated 3.8 alive. When I drove our Lacrosse I was amazed at the acceleration. complete with wheel spin on dry pavement. Other than that I seriously doubt that the 3.6 is going to be the engine the 3.8 is. I guess time will tell but it is going to be a tough row to hoe for the 3.6.
Brian: Keep patting yourself on your back for buying 3 new Toyotas for how much $$$? and sending money to Japan. The OP asked about Buicks and this is a Buick site. If you want to gloat about your Toys go to a Toyota site. I have driven combined over 500,000 miles for less than $10,000 in used 1996-2002 Buicks in the last 15 years. Roadmasters, Regals and a Reatta...... Bruce BQUICK JAGUICK
This is a V8Buick site, correct? Why on earth is there so much hostility about discussing late model cars that have other nameplates in the bench? Apparently I am the perverbial square going into a round hole here, but I do find it ironic that a hot rodder with an import car stuffed with a V8 Buick engine (very cool but not my point) has little or no acceptance or patience for a discussion about the little 4 banger and 6 banger vehicles most of us drive daily. It's the V8 part of this website that I really appreciate. If this were a site covering the crap built after the Buick V8, I can tell you this site wouldn't mean nearly what it does to me. Whether Jim or whoever decided that, I applaud their decision! While I can't accept yet another invitation to find another site to talk about this subject, I will "layoff" the thread because there appears to be much more sensitivity than I honestly could have ever anticipated. I've learned that for some people the Buick/GM nameplate is still alive in their eyes. There's nothing wrong with that what-so-ever. I just feel no kinship to what is currently GM and thought more people on this site were in the same boat. Lesson learned to some degree. Besides, I haven't been this popular since I complained about people and their dog threads LOL Happy trails...:3gears:
If the V8 discussion part of the forum is what you really appreciate, why do you even lower yourself to discuss lowly newer Buick's with non-V8's (you realize in Buick history V8's were only offered approx 40 years of Buick's 113 year history) - bet the GN/GNX guys love that attitude about V8. There is a great solution, just skip by these threads.
Get back in your 2016 Hyundia Sante Fe Turbo Sport. There's nothing left to see here. You and another fellow on here will have to clear out your PM boxes, because I really need to check with you and others of the thought police on what I can discuss on this website and what theads I should participate in. I'm done talkin' Toyo's, but I didn't leave the door open for attack.
