2010 Buick LaCrosse/Invicta Spy Shots-Information

Yeah Epsilon II will be made in AWD versions.
 
argatoga said:
Good, I hope they stop with the overpowered FWD nonsense they inherited from Cadillac.
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Does it make any difference at all? Buicks aren't bought for their sporting potential. As long as it feels like a melting marshmallow, it doesn't matter if it's fwd or awd.
 
Punisher Bass said:
Yeah Epsilon II will be made in AWD versions.
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Excellent. I hope it's not just squandered on some pathetic soft-roader.

bartboy9891 said:
Does it make any difference at all? Buicks aren't bought for their sporting potential. As long as it feels like a melting marshmallow, it doesn't matter if it's fwd or awd.
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Well 20 years ago they were bought for their 'sporting potential', I don't see anything whatsoever wrong with them trying to regain that image.
Obligatory GNX:
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That was then and this is now, I'd be impressed if Buick could pull that kind of turnaround. As of now, Buick is making generic looking bore-mobiles. This new one just seems to be a better one.
 
Personally I think Buick should be going for something like the Holden Berlina we have here, comfy but moderately sporty .
 
tigger said:
Well 20 years ago they were bought for their 'sporting potential', I don't see anything whatsoever wrong with them trying to regain that image.
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Going back slightly further, you've got one of the definitive muscle cars of all time, the 1970 GS/GSX:
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I don't think Buick is going to go back to those days (to be honest, the GS and GN/GNX were one offs in their respective times as well), but I do think they could be a real player in the $35K-$45K near-luxury bracket.

GM's making some strides, but they really need to go for it if they're going to exist in ten years. Their cars are starting to look better but they probably have a long way to go. No time like the present.
 
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Spies in Sweden snapped photos of a prototype that appears to be a next-generation Buick LaCrosse, but there's more going on here than meets the eye. According to a check of the prototype's license plate information, the car is registered to Saab and was built by Holden. The car is also listed as having a 260 hp engine four-cylinder ? the type GM officials have hinted might show up in the Pontiac G8 and other large cars.

GM vice chairman Bob Lutz told Leftlane that such a model was under development at the 2008 New York Auto Show, and these photos appear to be confirmation. According to the car's wrap sheet, it's powered by a 260 horsepower engine and weighs about 300 pounds less than the Pontiac G8 GT.

Lutz indicated that the Holden-derived Chinese market Buick Park Avenue would also be power by the same 260 horsepower 2.0L turbo four found in the Pontiac Solstice GXP, Saturn Sky Red Line, Chevrolet HHR SS and Cobalt SS, due to China's graduated taxation system which drastically increase on engines larger than 2.0L.

Despite the engine being in a car that is "seemingly way too big," Lutz says the engine "[feels] just great."

The combination of the smaller displacement engine ? which is a third of the size of the Pontiac GT's 6.0L V8 ? and lighter curb weight could see the these sedans post fuel economy numbers in the low 30s.

With ever-rising fuel prices and stricter CAFE regulations, it might not be long until we see a four-cylinder powered G8 on our shores.

http://www.leftlanenews.com/gm-four-cylinder-prototype.html#more-7192
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These are the newest pictures of the 2010 Buick LaCrosse that our spies have spotted in Germany. The car has heavy camouflage, but you can tell where the Buick is heading with its second generation LaCrosse. The car will use a new platform called Epsilon II that has a front-wheel drive.

Production is expected to start in the beginning of 2009 and the model should go for sale soon as a 2010 model.

http://globalmotors.net/2010-buick-lacrosse-spied-in-germany/
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When Buick unveiled its Invicta Concept at this year's Beijing Motor Show, it was believed that the car was a preview of the next-generation Buick LaCrosse. And now, thanks to the clearest spy shots of the car's interior, we can decidedly say that the Invicta was the front runner to the next LaCrosse and many of the show car's designs will make it to production. However, it's not known if the production car will be named LaCrosse or Invicta, which is Latin for "invincible" ? a name used by Buick decades ago.

The sedan is expected to be sold in the United States and China, and was developed with both markets in mind. It might be badged Regal in China.

Buick is clearly stepping up its game when it comes to exterior design ? and we hope driving dynamics and interior quality will be equally improved.

Buick has relocated its signature portholes from the front fender to the hood ? a seemingly more functional location. Most of the other details follow Buick's latest design language, including the 'waterfall' grille and smooth sculpted surfaces.

The concept's interior will not be toned down at all for production, and our spy photos reflect this. As seen with our earlier spy photos of the Chevrolet Equinox' interior, the LaCrosse will continue GM's latest twin-pod gauge design.

Codenamed GMX353, the new LaCrosse will be the first car in the United States to ride on the new global front-wheel drive Epsilon II platform.

According to our sources, the new Buick will be assembled at GM's Fairfax facility starting in February of 2009. The LaCrosse should hit dealer showrooms in mid-2009 as a 2010 model. LaCrosse annual production is expected to be in the 65,000 to 75,000 range.

http://www.leftlanenews.com/buick-lacrosse-invicta.html#more-7140
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How is the average Buick driver going to be able to comprehend half of those buttons on the dash?
 
bartboy9891 said:
How is the average Buick driver going to be able to comprehend half of those buttons on the dash?
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This is just a guess mind you but it seems that they are trying to expand the appeal of Buick. I've seen quite a few Buicks not driven by older people.
 
jetsetter said:
This is just a guess mind you but it seems that they are trying to expand the appeal of Buick. I've seen quite a few Buicks not driven by older people.
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That doesn't justify the lack of organization in the dash, I like gadgets but that just looks like a potential headache.
 
Lupin_IV said:
The same way the average S-class driver does.
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The difference is that the important controls are much easier to figure out and the layout is much better. The S-class's electronics controls get confusing once you get into the more complicated features, and I really doubt that the average S-class owner even knows about most of them. Plus the Buick has to rely on ease of use and practicality much more so than the S-class; as long as the S-class is around it will sell in relatively large numbers. Just based on those pictures, the Buick looks like it has lots of small buttons within a very small space.
 
Most of those buttons actually appear fairly large.
 
jetsetter said:
Most of those buttons actually appear fairly large.
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I'm just basing this off of two pictures, I would have to actually sit in the car to see whether or not the controls would be an annoyance. The buttons look small to me, but they might be fine in real life.
 
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In just its third model year since debuting for 2005, the Buick LaCrosse is still a relatively new vehicle. While a freshening was expected?and confirmed earlier this year?for 2009, we weren?t under the impression that Buick?s mid-size sedan was being totally redesigned so soon. However, in light of these leaked photos of a pre-production 2010 LaCrosse, it appears GM has put the car on fast-forward.

While grainy, these photos do give us the very first look at the car without camouflage and in near-production guise. Having first seen this vehicle in concept form earlier this year at the Beijing Auto Show as the Invicta Concept?and again last month via another set of leaked GM photos labeled, simply, ?Buick Sedan??the feeling at the time was that it may have been an all-new model for Buick.

Looking very similar to the Invicta concept overall, the new LaCrosse doesn?t have a typical Buick feel to it. Sporting an aggressive roofline?similar in profile to various ?four-door coupes? such as the Volkswagen Passat CC and the Mercedes-Benz CLS?and smooth front end, the styling closely mirrors that of Buick?s new Enclave sport-ute. While the translation to production from concept appears to have taken the typical toll?smaller wheels, higher stance, less flash?the rest of the car stays fairly true to its auto-show roots.

The theme continues in the cabin, which?borrowing small cues from the also recently redesigned Cadillac CTS?looks just like illustrations Buick showed us earlier this year. Featuring a slick center console, modern instrument cluster, and curvaceous dashboard, this car may be on track to appeal to a wider market than the previous-generation LaCrosse.

While the hood looks to be popped in the main exterior spy shot, unfortunately no photos were taken of the vehicle?s powerplant. With the Invicta concept sporting a 2.0-liter direct-injected and turbocharged four-cylinder engine with a six-speed automatic transmission, we would expect base versions to come equipped similarly. Another powerful and fuel-efficient possibility is the corporate direct-injected V-6, which makes as much as 304 horsepower in the CTS. With gas prices on the rise, this seems like a more palatable performance option than a V-8?powered ?Super? model.

We?ll be sure to get any official photos to you as soon as we have them; we expect an official debut sometime in the near future?possibly at November?s L.A. auto show or in Detroit in January?with sales beginning next spring.

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...uick_lacrosse_exclusive_photos_spied/(page)/1
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