Buick has always been a brand of understated luxury. Opposed to Cadillac, which is more of an in-your-face type of brand, Buick’s marketing has always managed to keep things casual, yet customers are constantly surprised at the amount of content they get when compared to other brands, such as Lexus.
One model that holds true to that message is the Buick Verano. It’s hard to find another compact vehicle that’s as quiet as this one, and opt for the Verano Turbo, and drivers are treated with Volkswagen GTI-rivaling speed without any of the boy-racer stigma. During our time with the Verano Turbo, we noted that it could probably outrun the larger, more powerful Regal GS around a road course if it had a more sophisticated suspension (read: HiPer Strut) and better (Brembo) brakes with a dash more power.
Best of all, like the Regal GS, a hypothetical Verano GS would be a total sleeper car, giving very little hints to its sporty nature. One that would be able to hold its own with just about any other front-wheel-drive compact on the market, but without all the boisterous flash (“look at me, look at me! I’m in a Focus ST!,” clamors every single Focus ST driver). With that in mind, it could easily fit in the Buick lineup. But do you think it’s a good idea? Let us know by participating in our poll, and making points in the comment section below.
Comments
I know your thinking is to avoid the boy-racer look. But Buick should, and could really use, the Astra VXR/OPC 3-door. But yea, a Verano GS would be a good addition as well. Only thing is, it could see the Regal sales drop even more.
I don’t know if the Verano GS is really needed. I think the Verano Turbo is enough, though I would love to see the Cascada come in as the Verano droptop. However, I would love to see a LaCrosse GS with a nice V8 or maybe that Twin-Turbo V6 in it. Not so much because it would be a huge money maker, but just because it would be awesome.
Verano GS, aka Belmont VXR ??
No!
This is just not that kind of a car.
Bring the Opel hatch over and use the 270 HP turbo and you will have a car ready made for this segment.
Also wait for the RWD car that is coming for a real GS if you have to call it that. These old names are nice but do not really represent the new cars well as they are no longer muscle cars.
While there at it bring the V6 AWD variant of the Insignia over too, nothing wrong with the 4 pot, just a V6 would be nice. I also have to agree on the muscle car names, leave that to Chevy, with the Camaro or the SS or the Chevelle (if it actually does happen), luxury car buyers are not looking for nostalgia, there looking for statement and refinement.
While I do not agree with the entry level market, primarily because the cost of the vehicle when considering the features of the entry level in comparison to the mainstream brand car it is based off of, for example the Malibu compared to the Regal (true they are not related in terms of their exterior design but frame is the same), both vehicles fully loaded have most of the same interior features and similar power and handling and both are comparatively quiet, but the Regal is 7 Grand more then the Chevy because of the entry level premium price. Now I understand that this makes GM more money and the business aspect of this, but from a consumers point of view, considering that the Insignia is similarly priced as the Bu but yet we pay more for it because its a Buick. I will also state that the car is now built in Canada so import and destination charges should not come into effect due to the automotive deal struck between Canada and Stateside in ’65 reduced most tariffs and NAFTA furthered this action. This is not only a problem that I have with Buick and certainly not my main issue with them either due to the fact that I prefer that Vauxhall Insignias and Astras and what have you are sold here rather then Buick. This is an issue that I have with all entry level marques Acura, Buick, Lincoln, and certain models from Lexus and Infiniti,
But I digress, back to the main topic at hand. I would like to see a performance version of the Verano, while it will hurt the sales of the Regal, consider this how are the sales of the malibu to the cruze or the sonic. The Cruze alone sold about 27000 more units in FY 2012, the reality of the situation is that, people are buying smaller cars, gas is up to a 1.25 a litre (or about 4.75 dollars a gallon, my calculations might be off because of differences in fuel taxes), and that’s in Alberta, consider the rest of Canada there for a minute. Meanwhile Diesel is around a 1.13 a litre, I assume that smaller cars is where the market is or Diesel cars is where the market is. But I will maintain that using past nomenclature is a bad idea because GS relates to Buick of automotive past, so to say, where as, like many say this isn’t your dads Buick, which is absolutely true. I mean does Cadillac still use their old performance nomenclature on the A or CTS, no, the use the V line, so why should Buick be any different to maintain parity in the Entry level.
Leave performance luxury to cadillac. Keep buick as soft luxury
If they had already built a Verano GS as described, I would own one right now. The turbo is most of the way there, but needs more in the way of suspension and braking. I’m sure that could have been done with the price still well under 35k.
Another 30 hp would also be great, but the above improvements would have sold me this year. Absolutely no doubt.
Here is the issue.
Once Cadillac moves up the price scale more with the CTS and LTS Buick will have room to move. Right now they can not move up and with Chevy on their heels they can not move down.
Buick can and should have some performance models but they should be of the touring nature . They should be aimed at the Lexus, Acura, low end Audi and high end VW crowd.
The Verano was not designed to appeal to a touring or performance crowd. It does have more than adequate power with the Turbo 2.0 and does the job it needs to do and appeal to a down sized luxury market.
Note GM is down sizing cars we have never seen in these segments like the Verano and Encore. They are building to the future where smaller cars will be the rule. For once GM is leading a segment that few understand is coming.
The reasons we did not get the Insignia OPC is the damn thing cost around $60,000 in Europe so how would a $60K Regal play here? Buick and GM has been careful to add the Turbo 4 and now the Haldex AWD to the car and keep near $40K. It remains to be seen how many takers on this car for this price. I would love to see the Lacrosse or Regal bumped to the Alpha and do a cheaper version of the ATS in full on Buick more. Keep the high end toys in the Caddy but make a very nice car in the Buick. Now this is a car they could easily get $40K plus out of if done right and remain $10K under the ATS.
When looking to Buicks future you have to lay all the cards on the table and figure in where Chevy and Cadillac will be positioned so you can see where Buick will fit in. Their spot is not fully cleared yet but with the more expensive CTS coming and LTS it will give them the room to move.
I still think the Astra OPC Turbo hatch would be great for Buick as it would give them a very stylish car. One in a segment not know for luxury and it could compete with the mini and most other good hatches. It also would help lower the age of Buick buyers as it would have a youth appeal. Why have a crap box Fiat for over $20K when for a little more you can have a very well done hatch with 270 HP.
The Buick cars we know today will be gone soon as all three are due to be replaced in the next few years and they will make a marked difference with the new models. Some here have no idea how much things will change. Buick will no longer just be the borrower of cars from Opel converted after the fact from Chevy or Opel. They will be a integrated part of the development from the start since GM now has the money to do so.
http://www.vauxhall.co.uk/vehicles/vauxhall-range/cars/insignia-4-door/configurator.html#trim
I wouldn’t be so sure on your valuation of the Insignia OPC/VXR. I decided to see how much it would cost to buy one out in Europe and it came to about 30000 pounds, and after converting to CAD I came up with about 47000, which is only about 5000 more then a Regal GS. Don’t believe me? just configure yourself and see. The other thing is that hot hatches are not new to the luxury segment, need I remind you of the SAAB 99 or the 900, or the Audi A3, while SAAB did well with there’s because of the niche segment they held. The Audi did not fair that well, why? Because while it is a nice car, even I would have one, for the price I would have the GTI before the A3. True the luxury is nice in all, but the performance is close to each vehicle and GTI’s are pretty well equipped. On the paradigm of making alpha based Buick’s, here’s the problem I have with that. Why not make Cadillac cars with both a touring and a performance side to them, Ferrari, Audi, Merc and Beamer all do the same, why should it be any different for Cadillac. Also the issue with Cadillac moving more upmarket is a fair argument, but consider this a BMW 3 series sells at its baseline for around the same as a Regal GS, it is more well equipped and the engine under the BMW produces the same power as the Regal GS, why not go for that or similarly go for the ATS. To conclude I would much rather see that Vauxhall or Opel, depending on which name sounds better to you, selling the Corsa, Astra, Insignia, etc. here in NA, in the same manner as if they were sold in the Old World. With Vauxhall’s and Chevy’s selling at the same price point, but having a higher level of options then they do currently (in the case of Chevy) so that their is a clear line between mainstream and luxury brands. However I understand that my viewpoints will face scrutiny, on the bases of the profitability of the entry level market.
The price tested on Top Gear a couple years ago had it well over $50K and they liked the car but said the price was way too much. Sales have been limited due to price.
Lets face it the take rate on the GS is not great as it is and you could get them down on sticker below $32K.
I like the car but I would rather see these efforts in a RWD/AWD Buick Alpha based car. I think the public will do much better with that vs. the old Regal and a much higher price.
Check this one out as it has it converted to dollars at $59,900. It is not marks or pounds.
http://www.caradvice.com.au/213450/opel-insignia-opc-pricing-specifications/
Peculiar, I mean that’s the manufacturers site, I don’t see how it could be wrong. Although, it said that its going on sale later that month in February 2013, when the OPC came out in 2009. I would want to check the validity of that site when the release dates are that far off.
Well for one its in Austrailia, and considering that they have no active production of Opel in Austrailia, I can understand the price. However the Regal its badge engineered brother is now built in the Great White North, so keeping that in mind we would probably pay the same as the British do. Though it is peculiar that the Opel variant sells for so much more then it does in Britain, despite it being produced there.
Keep in mind right now it is cheaper to import to Austrailia now than it is to export on the value of the dollar and Euro. You do have added shipping but even that is not that bad.
The car was that much in too in 09 in England too.
Wither way to add all the OPC stuff would put the present car well past what most would pay here for it. Too many other good cars once you get over $40K to choose from.
It is not like the present GS is flying out of showrooms in high numbers.
I love the car but if they did not come a lot off the sticker I would buy something else. Many but not all in this country would rather have a Camaro for that kind of money.
Either way the OPC is not coming and while we will miss a great car I think GM did the right thing and we will be rewarded with a different great car better priced for our market segment.
I see a challenger for the new Acura as a prime target for Buick and they could do it easily with a AWD Alpha. Motor Trend has a story with it up against the XTS coming and while they are close on paper the XTS is a much different car in other areas.
Right now the Verano and Regal need moved apart and the Lacrosse needs moved up. They are stepping all over each other in size and price right now. Like I stated before Buick will gain room to grow very soon.
I certainly would have a Camaro, or even an ATS for that money. But still really like the VXR insignia. Despite my opinions about the Entry level lux market, I see your point, as that is their prime target along with other lexus models like the HS or LS (might be mistaken on the LS here but it is nothing more then a gussied up Avalon). The Regal should compete with the TSX/TL the Verano to the ILX and the Lacrosse to the RLX. I still wouldn’t mind a GS verano, but I would rather have the Astra.
I say yes, yes, and heck yes. Having a sportier GS type attitude would justify the added cost and lesser fuel economy than the Cruze to me. I really like these and so want one to be my next car. By the looks of the poll results, a lot of others think so too.
I sort of like the idea, but I would much prefer a hybrid option. The performance model should be reserved for a coupe, IMHO. And the Regal GS looks awful, if you ask me.
Particularly the front end treatment. I think it looks a bit gaudy.
Yep. That’s my biggest complaint, too. They didn’t do the Regal any justice.
With some extra money time and effort, you can make your own Verano GS. upgrade the rims and tires, add upgraded brakes. rotors and pads, intake and exhaust. and lower the springs.
there’s your power handling and brakes. it just takes some money and effort. Buick won’t make one so make your own.
The GS is tempting, but I think other things are more necessary. The Buick GTC/OPC and Cascada would be cool and practical additions, as well as being vehicles that fill positions that GM does not have in any brand on the NA market, meaning no overlap.
A Verano GS would be a great idea as it would continue Buick’s renaissance and attract younger buyers.
Why not turbocharge the 2.5L motor and shoehorn that into the Verano GS with a haldex AWD system. Such a motor would easily produce 300+ hp and even more torque than that.
The 2.5T could be used on the larger Regal GS as well as a proposed Malibu SS. The 2.5T would also amply power other models such as the Chevy Impala, Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac ATS, GMC Terrain, and Chevy Equinox since all come with either the 2.4L or 2.5L.
Only problem with that is if the front end will be able to handle the added stress, we have seen in the OPC Astra it can handle 270 in the corners. But pushing it to 300+, I enjoy the powerrrr bit of that, but handling will suffer. The all wheel drive would be excellent because, while we are talking about the Verano, it is based off the Astra, and I see WRC in the future with awd.
I think the reason we have yet to see the Astra GTC/OPC brought over as a Buick is because… well, look at it. Does it represent the Buick brand well? No. Of course not. But does GM need some sort of hot-hatch in America? Sure, though the best bet is looking like the next-gen Cruze, or the GTC/OPC comes over as some sort of limited-run model, not unlike the nature of the Chevy SS and Cadillac ELR.
Or you could do what Toyota did with Scion, except this Opel/Vauxhall will probably be more popular then Scion, primarily because, side from the GT86, most Vauxhalls look better then the Xb or tC do.
It represents where Buick need to go not where they have been.
Again it is not a cheap car and would a loaded OPC version as a Chevy play well at near $30K? I think not. At Buick they could do better with the price point.
Chevy needs a sporty hatch but not this one.
If Buick were to be the premium boy-racer brand as you seem to imply, that would require years worth of product portfolio shifting, and different marketing — completely undoing what’s been done for the past half-decade, which is the beginning of something great.
Maybe not as a Chevy, because keep in mind how well the GTI does for being a 30k car. If Chevy was to make a hot hatch, it would be a Cruze, end of story, the Astra doesn’t fit the overall design culture as it were to be a Chevy, it could, but it would be more work then it is worth. I see what your saying with where Buick should be going, but I’m with Manoli on this one, the Insignia/Regal represents where Buick should be going, and this is seen with the Verano, somewhat in the Lacrosse and in the Mokka/Encore, and the Enclave design aspects. The Astra as a Buick, would be great, but it is a boy racer’s car, and should be sold and priced as such.
I voted yes with my heart, but my head said no.
Your idea of a hot hatch Cruze makes sense, but a hot Sonic would work for me as well. The 2liter turbo, with Brembos, and all wheel drive would be a monster.
If you mean a Buick twin of the Opel Astra OPC — why not?
Mind you, the body style of the Astra OPC is a three door hatchback, with a small triangular side window for the back bench. I don’t like that …
On the past, the pentacostal weekend, Opel ran about a dozen cars, among them the specially equipped Astra OPC CUP and regular Astra OPC in the 24h hour race on the Nürburgring (Nordschleife), as a class by itself (“CUP 1”) , and the best of those finished as 40th out of a total of 135 clocked cars arriving of a total of 173 at the start. Not bad.
GM should offer a Verano GS in a coupe and 3-door hatch. It should also have a 5-door hatch designed for touring, maybe with the Voltec powertrain. The touring model, of course, should either have optional rails or facilitate a bolt-on rack.
What is the fetish with a roof rack always? Other than strapping a mattress or bicycle up there all it does is create aerodynamic drag. Wagons or sport utes are the answer to that.
The solution for bicycle is the FlexFix bicycle carrier system which gets out of and back in the rear bumper like a drawer. Check today’s press release by Opel Opel FlexFix: Easily Carries up to Four Bicycles.
It is available also for the Opel/Vauxhall Astra, i.e. for a hatchback and coupé version of the Buick Verano/Excelle.
@Paul. It’s about trying to get the U.S. auto makers aware of a key weakness in there strategy — a weakness that sends some buyers, like me, to foreign brands.
Wagons are out of style, so anyone with a surf board, skis, canoe, kayak, or cargo carrier is left with only bad choices: A gas-guzzling SUV/truck, an ugly/damaging clip-on rack, or a foreign car that facilitates the need.
It is curious that you would consider drag an issue, but then suggest a “sport ute” with a much larger performance hit by the added weight and volume in the base case. Just the height of an SUV poses much more drag than a rack on a hatch or sedan.
Drag is minimal with the right system, and cross rails are often easily removed. My hatch still averages about 43 highway with the rack on. That number goes way down when the boat is up there, but at least I’m not wasting fuel for the other 95% of my driving, nor am I wasting capital in buying a car that is larger than I need.
Last week I rented a mid-sized SUV while in Colorado. Aside from the added fuel expense, I hated parking the thing. The width in tight spaces had me worried about people nicking it with their car doors, and it felt like driving a truck. No thanks.
If I’m going to burn extra fuel hauling only myself then I would want it to be in a sports car — perhaps a Verano Coupe GS or a Verano “hot hatch.” Otherwise, why pay to move empty steel?
That bike thing is available on many Vauxhall’s it was introduced on the Corsa then made its way into other Vauxhall’s like Mokka, Meriva, Zafira etc.
The C segment saloon is supposed to be the next big thing according to experts & marketing people, with recent models including CLA & A3 saloon debuting. I will watch with interest to see if the market grows or if Jetta sales in Europe dwindle with competition, no doubt if there is a niche there will be the return of the Ford Orion & Vauxhall Belmont.
Until now, in Europe’s compact class segment (Golf class), sedans are insignificant.
Unfortunately, I have no hard figures, since the official statistics by e.g. the German KBA do not differenciate between the various body styles.
But it was quite significant, that Opel introduced the Astra sedan (Buick Verano in North America, Buick Excelle GT in China) in Moscow, and not at any of the important motor shows in Western Europe like the Frankfurt IAA, the Paris saloon or in Geneva.
I have read a figure which said that 60% of all compact sedans in Europe are sold in the former USSR.
Tbh Observer 7, that’s what I’m watching to see. It’s obious they are designed with overseas markets in mind such as China, is it some over enthusiastic marketing people or is there genuine demand for the upmarket saloon to make a comeback? is the market changing back to the upmarket small saloon again or are people content with hatchbacks? At the moment pending the soon to be launched A3 & CLA there is only the Jetta available in this once large market. In the UK the C segment saloons were named differently from their hatchback donor models so as to be more upmarket (a good move) time will tell if its the next big craze or just a flop.
Observer 7, “until now, in Europe compact class segment (Golf class), sedans are insignificant”. Dose this “until now” mean now they will sell in larger numbers in the future.
I doubt it, but prognosis is a difficult thing, especially when concerning the future.
Ughhhh. Verano barely makes it as a Buick. To call it a sport-ANYTHING would be an error in judgement. If GM is really serious about bringing back performance to the Buick division, start with a proper RWD platform, Turbo-V6 up front and perhaps even, dare-I-say it, a coupe! Call the thing either a Wildcat, Regal GSX, (not a Riviera), or something equally fetching and unleash that bad-boy as a pace car at Indy so people actually take notice. Unlike Cadillac, I still don’t believe the Buick division understands what it’s purpose is, other than sell a lot of near-luxury sedans to China.
Remember how the Buick Regal was introduced in November 2009: “A Buick Bred On The Autobahn.
Sport Sedan Blends Sleek Design with European Road Manners for Great Driving.”
From the November 11, 2009 press release, titled as above:
“Armed with turbocharged horsepower, a driver-selectable suspension system and a firm, European-tuned chassis, it delivers a driving experience that rivals the best import sport sedans in the segment.
[quote]
The 2011 Buick Regal is like nothing you’ve ever experienced from this brand,” said Susan Docherty, general manager of Buick GMC. “The Regal is the next chapter in Buick’s transformation and will expand the portfolio to include a sport sedan.”
[…]
The Regal’s development is rooted in Germany, where the globally led engineering team created the award-winning Opel Insignia – the 2009 European Car of the Year. The Insignia has garnered more than 31 prestigious awards and is the best-selling midsize sedan in Europe. Regal will bring all of Insignia’s award-winning design, technology and European-inspired performance capabilities to the American market.
The Regal has already been a success on another continent, in China. It went on sale in December 2008 and more than 64,000 Regals have been sold there. Enthusiastic customers cite its sculpted, flowing design and responsive performance as the top reasons for purchase.
[/quote]
please keep us updated as to if/when buick will bring the Astra hatch to North America. Thanks. Jack