General Motors has filed for a trademark on the word Envision. The standard character mark has an original filing date of December 8, 2011.
GM Authority sources have informed us that Buick is planning a compact-sized crossover to slot between the freshly-debuted (subcompact) Encore and (full-sized) Enclave for sale in approximately two years. The vehicle is expected to be a Buick variant of the next-generation Opel Antara crossover and ride on the short version of the Theta platform that underpins the Chevy Equinox and GMC Terrain a new architecture developed for compact crossovers; the current-generation Antara was available in North America as the Saturn Vue and is currently sold to fleets as the Chevrolet Captiva.
For the uninitiated, Buick showed off the Envision concept in Shanghai in April of 2011.
The GM Authority Take
At this point, it seems very obvious that Buick’s upcoming Theta-based compact crossover in question will wear the Envision nameplate — a fine name that continues Buick’s practice of giving its crossover nameplates the “En” prefix. Look for a GM Authority Opinion Desk article shortly with our analysis of Buick’s crossover strategy.
Comments
alex envision will not be on theta there is a new chassis for upcoming next gen chevy, gmc and buick that will underpin the new little utes. the differentiation will be greater among the next gen little suv and all design has been complete and they look great.
Thanks JD. Any word on the new chassis’ name?
Seems that GM is trying to offer as many models in N.A. with four divisions as they did with eight. How in the world are they going to advertise, and promote all the additional models? The beat goes on.
I agree. GM should “EN”gage their brains and rethink this current model proliferation. I mean an SUV BETWEEN two small SUVs in teh same brand??
Well the Enclave isn’t small, more like midsized but prbably getting smaller in the next gen. But you are right, A typical Buick dealer dueled with GMC dealer will have SEVEN Suvs to stock and promote, with straight duplication in the Enclave-Acadia and Envision-Terrain. Foolish.
The Enclave is full-sized, not mid-sized. It’s bigger than the Tahoe/Yukon! The Highlander and Pilot are the quintessential mid-sizers. The Enclave is a full one size larger (12 inches/1 foot longer).
The sales proposition of Buick-GMC stores is not very important here. The important thing is how different Buicks are becoming vs. GMC vehicles that may or may not share components/platforms/etc.
The Buicks are QuietTuned and provide a softer ride. They’re the American Lexus, if you will. Add to that styling differences — soft/beautiful/luxurious Buick styling vs. masculine GMC styling with huge wheel well bulges… they’re simply different cars appealing to different people and tastes.
“they’re simply different cars appealing to different people and tastes”….
at (mostly) the same dealerships with the same sales staffs, inventories, and ad budgets. Experience tells me that the dealerships will use them interchangeably and not really market to or cater to whatever differences there are in prospective buyers. Like it or not they will compete against other GM models and are not likely to result in enough increased sales to overcome the increased costs to produce similar vehilces and sell then at the same store.
Let’s take a step back here to run through the average consumer’s decision-making process.
The consumer will recognize their desire for either the Acadia or Enclave BEFORE heading out to the dealership. They will see one on the road, at their neighbor’s home, or in an ad. They’ll then do some research (usually online) and decide if it’s for them or not. Again, this all occurs before they go to a dealer. So once it is time to come to a store, they’ll have their mind set on the make and model of the vehicle. At that point, it doesn’t really matter what the dealer has or doesn’t have. The consumer knows what he wants.
“Experience tells me that the dealerships will use them interchangeably and not really market to or cater to whatever differences there are in prospective buyers.”
If this does occur, it’s GM’s problem at the corporate level.
And then there’s always this important piece of information: the next-gen Acadia will move from Lambda to Theta Premium:
http://gmauthority.com/blog/2011/02/next-gen-gmc-acadia-to-ditch-lambda-move-to-premium-theta/
“I mean an SUV BETWEEN two small SUVs in teh same brand??”
The Enclave is by no means small; in fact, it’s a full-sized wagon that’s bigger than any other crossover on the market today! Have a look at the specs — especially the length.
how about they envision a G8 baised rear drive park avenue like the one in China
Or perhaps they could drop the outdated, unsellable RWD land barge mindset that Buick has been trying to shake off for years now.
The ParkAve. can stay dead. We need new blood and new ideas, not trad and heritage.
so it’s a midsize then?
who said it was not rear wheel drive? It will be 2-4 wheel drive but will compete for best ride and handling on the market with some of GMs best engines. Alex I cannot reveal the chassis, but you will see soon enough at a car show. this is and will be a series of suvs that will be hard to beat styling wise by anyone It will totally suprise the auto industry and maybe lambo doors might be on one version just for effect, they don’t cost anymore to design just slightly more to build. what do you all think? the speculation on this unit or series of units will grow and audi and lexus and even BMW should look closely…..more to come
So this will be a brand new architecture?
The Acadia and Enclave co-exist and sell very well in our showroom. We like having the distinctly different styling choices. Some people like the sculptured styling of Buick, some don’t. Same goes for the masculine, rectangular styling of Acadia. Some people like both.
Envision should fit in nicely, especially if it stays true to the concept styling.
I’m glad you’re pointing that out, Craig. I for one would be drooling all over the Buicks (“…somebody call Carl… clean-up in the showroom…”) but wouldn’t go near the GMCs.
I think a lot of people, including me, thought this size and style vehicle was what the Encore was going to be? I certainly was wrong, the Encore is a tiny subcompact CUV that will be produced in South Korea. If it actually starts to sell here, they can screw some together in a NA facility. To me this tells you the story of the business plan for the Encore, really an afterthought with regard to any significant sales here in NA, mainly planned for China and other markets. It will draw some new faces into the Buick, Buick/GMC stores, so maybe a few of those will get an Encore, a few will get a Verano and even a few will get a Terrain? Meanwhile, others head elsewhere for their CUV’s? maybe look for a used SRX?
I did find another CUV out there with less cargo space than the Encore, the Infiniti EX!
Really looks like more of a wagon than a CUV, but whatever, the Encore has it beat 18.8 vs 18.6 cu. ft. !!! Never seen or heard of the Infiniti EX? Not surprising, it’s small and it’s very expensive for what you get. Nissan manages to push just over 500 of those little pigs over the curb every month. Before anyone chimes in that these 2 are different in nearly every way, I’m well aware of the differences, but there are similarities as well.
Ironically, the EX is the CUV I would buy were I in a market for a small crossover. The sloping roofline contributes to it having less trunk space, but I’m not sure if anyone will really stuff these things to their max with mulch and sand bags.
The EX is RWD-based, which allows it to drive and handle like a champ. I’d even say it drives better than the X3 (although I haven’t driven the new generation). And it definitely corners better than the Q5. And the 300-horsepower 3.5 VQ engine is engineering greatness.
But you’re right — just like with all CUVs in the compact luxury space (true compact that is, not subcompact like Encore), you’re gonna pay for it. Hence, luxury.