General Motors is upping the appeal of the hot-selling Buick LaCrosse sedan for the 2014 model year with the introduction of the upscale Ultra Luxury Interior Package.
The interior option adds front and rear seating upholstered in a soft semi-aniline leather, which has been dyed a ‘deep sangria’ color. The leather is swathed over the center console and armrests and is accented by ebony-colored accents such as the suede headliner and door pillars.
The luxury treatment continues with the dashboard and interior trim, which is covered in a deeply grained Shadow Tamo Ash wood (yes, it’s real). Buick says Tamo Ash wood is a high-grade species of wood which varies widely in appearance, making no two Ultra Luxury-equipped LaCrosse interiors alike.
“With this exclusive combination of premium materials and color execution, we are extending Buick’s distinction in interior design,” Ven Lai, Buick lead creative designer for color and trim, said in a statement. “The Ultra Luxury Interior builds on the success and increasing demand for environments that evoke luxury and personal expression. Every detail matters: From the grade, pattern, texture and color of the leather to the layering of natural wood, metal and stitching, this interior moves beyond convention.”
The Ultra Luxury Interior Package is now available with Leather, Premium and Premium ll-equipped 2014 LaCrosse models with the 3.6-liter LFX V6 engine.
Comments
And yet “Ultra Luxury” doesn’t have prestige to go along with the package. They could have gone with “Luxe” and been better off.
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lol this isn’t directed at you, but everyone who thumbs-downed my comment. “Ultra Luxury” sound ultra stupid for a package on a car that will cost $50k and is competing with even higher level German sedans now. It’s like adding an ‘X’ to something’s name to make it sound “Xtreme”. The “Ultra” part is cheap. It is the equivalent to chrome plastic trim.
My thoughts exactly ,it just sounds cheesy “ultra luxury” ??? Why does it have to label “Ultra luxury”because of real wood and semi-aniline leather wraped everywhere ? What’s been taking so long for this package in the first place . I know GM is pushing buick to be a more premium brand but it just looks and sounds cheesy in my opinion
Just built one on the Buick website. Pretty loaded for $44k.
Guess they need to raise the price to get it to be a Lux vehicle. The package does put in items that are in luxury vehicles.
Ultra Luxury Package
Sangria Semi-Aniline perforated leather seating
Real wood on instrument panel, door inserts and console, and leather-wrapped center console and door armrests
Heated leather-wrapped steering wheel
MicroSuede headliner, pillars and vanity mirrors
lol @ ultra luxury
Yeah, lol. New color and a few tidbits do not make “Ultra Luxury” to me. But…. I do kinda like the color, at least in photos anyway.
I think if you use the context Buick used the term Ultra it makes perfect sense.
In the past the top line models Buick used Ultra as in Park Avenue Ultra to set it apart from the standard models. Seeing that Premium and many other terms are already used and the fact Buick already holds the rights to this name it was easy for them to use.
This is no different than using the name Regal today. If you really thing about it the Regal is not what I would term what that car is today. It has become more of a sports sedan than a proper royal like sedan. But it is a well established name and recognized name that Buick owns. Less time and money needed to use owned names vs. the marketing to promote new names and to legally secure new names.
New names can be 10’s of thousands of dollars to register, Millions to market and a year and a half to secure.
There is a lot more to names than just thinking a cool name up. If it were only that cheap and easy.
While they could have done better you must consider the number of these packages they will sell and the time span it will be offered to justify any major spending on a new name. The sales numbers will be small and we may only see this package for 2 years till we see a new car.
What we should note here beyond bickering over the name is that Buick is stepping up their trims to things like better and more leather with real wood. This is telling you where Buick in moving in status in the global market.
Buick is going to move up more in a Euro kind of way and while these details are small it will better help Buick to fill the gap between Cadillac and Chevy.
When was the last time Buick used real wood in a car not counting the framing of the body.
Like I said these small details are hints. Also it will help the older car to remain stronger in the last couple years before it is replaced.
I get why auto makers hold onto familiar names given the massive costs associated with branding and marketing; however, what if the name being used brings with it negative baggage?
Someone my age remembers blandly styled, weak performing Regals. They were primary driven by older people or individuals locked into 1980s conventions surrounding perceived status.
I think the name Regal has harmed sales, especially on the coasts. I notice that the rest of the Buick line up received new names, and models like Encore and Enclave have benefited from new identities.
Tradmarking Insignia would have been less expensive given usage in the UK. GM could even mine its own history using names like Invicta or even non Buick names such as Cutless, Tempest or Fiero assuming they still own rights.
Chevy dropped Cobalt, Aveo and Cavalier due to bad memories. This demonstrates the value of breaking from damaged branding.
What is ‘deep sangria’ ? I know what “Sangria” is: a Spanish beverage made with fruit juices and wine, but the color depends on the fruit and wine colors. So if I mix citrus juice and white wine I get a “sangria” color that isn’t so “deep” as a “sangria” made with grape and red wine?
Sangria is traditionally made using red wine, when white wine is used it has a different name (sangria blanc[a])
I like that Buick keeps moving up market. Someone mentioned the brands lack of “prestige” but that sort of aura takes time to build, and this package is a good starting point.
I love Buick stepping on the Caddy price point because they are such different cars, aimed at different demos. Buick moving further up market helps Chevy maybe more than anything else.