Here Are The Top Five Things We Love About The Buick Verano

At this point, the GM Authority team has spent a collective several weeks’ worth with the Buick Verano — and we’ve come to learn a thing or two about the small luxury sedan. And so, we’ve outlined the top five things we really, really like about the car:

The Silence

The Verano is quiet. And it’s meant to be that way. This certain quality may not be particularly appealing to automotive enthusiasts who love to hear the engine, its exhaust, and be connected to the road via other audible means. And that’s not the purpose of the Verano, at all. In fact, silence is a quality on which Lexus successfully built its brand — and the new, luxury-focused Buick is triumphantly re-building itself using the same values, while branding its silence as QuietTuning. Ultimately, there is tremendous value in a car that’s quiet and doesn’t allow all the negative elements of the outside environment, like rough roads, construction, and the idiots with gigantic mufflers, into the cabin. And in this regard, the Verano exceeds our expectations.

The Looks

The exterior styling of the Verano speaks for itself. It’s elegant, charming, and classy — not aggressive and filled with testosterone. And just like the silent demeanor of its cabin, the Verano has no need for brash design. Instead, the styling is understated and classy — perhaps much like its owners. And say what you will about the chrome accents above the tail lamps (aka ass-borows), but we love the blue translucent projector-beam headlamps.

The Ride & Handling

The Verano’s ride strikes the perfect balance between “soft-riding” and “planted”, with the latter depiction practically applying to all of GM’s Delta II-based vehicles. The Verano is not overly soft and cushy, like a couch on wheels, and it’s not rigidly harsh, like a thoroughbred performance machine; rather, it’s right in the middle. Add to that the car’s steering, which simply “feels right”, in layman’s terms, and we couldn’t ask more from the driving experience of a luxury vehicle with no grandiose sporting intentions… and that’s not to say that the Verano can’t be fun.

The Technology

We couldn’t ask for more of the IntelliLink infotainment system in the Verano: the seven-inch color LED setup looks great and does everything we ask it to — like initiate phone calls, select radio stations and even media from smartphones. My personal favorite is tuning to my own Stitcher station — all without picking up the phone by using two voice commands. And, of course, the fact that IntelliLink is standard on 2012 Veranos (and all 2013 Buicks), and that a back-up camera is part of the system for 2013 as well, is nice. While we’re at it, did we mention the 9-speaking Bose sound system? If not, here’s the verdict: it’s not a base-heavy, hard-hitting unit; but just as the exterior design is classy, so is the Bose system.

The Leather

If you’re lucky enough to get a Verano in the top-of-the-line Leather Equipment trim, then you’re in for a treat. The French-stitched leather is soft, luxurious, and comfortable. In fact, we’d even go so far as to call it leisurely — which fits, given that someone spent a significant amount of time optimizing the car’s seats for paramount comfort. What makes the chairs so great is their ability, thanks to thorough design, to keep pressure away in specific touch points that eventually lead to discomfort, otherwise known as hot spots.

And So It Was

All in all, these are the top five things we love about the Buick Verano. Some other items that didn’t make the list include the steering wheel (and its ability to head the driver’s hands on a cold winter morning), the wheels, as well as OnStar and the OnStar RemoteLink app. But all that is not to say that there isn’t a single element that we dislike about the car; in fact, an upcoming article will outline the things we would change about the compact luxury sedan.

In the meantime, do you think we left something off the list of things that you absolutely love about the Verano? Sound off in the comments!