Just over a year ago, we received word that Buick was designing a performance coupe that was assumed to be a new Grand National, or a GNX performance vehicle that would appease the enthusiasts. And during a Buick event, the night before the 2016 North American North American International Auto Show, we almost got it.
Rear wheel drive? Check. Allegedly, Alpha platform.
Twin turbo V6? Check. A supposed 3.0L twin turbo V6, at that.
Coupe? Check.
Buick? Check.
Looks like it was built with hammers? Wait.
Wait, wait, wait, wait… we get it now.
So, there will not ever again be a Buick Regal Grand National or a GNX. But apparently that wasn’t to say there wouldn’t be a RWD, twin-turbo performance coupe. And there’s a good reason for that. Because after enough close-up observation, and enough scrutiny, there is no way that the Buick Avista Concept could pass as some sort of Grand National without upsetting the idea of what a Grand National or a GNX is or has been.
Look, the Grand National/GNX was an alpha lion in its time. But that time is over. And that time for Buick is over. Buick is now a global brand and it needs a global performance car. Not an American muscle car. Just look at the Avista Concept. It doesn’t echo the GN or GNX in any way. The Buick Avista Concept far more elegant, far more of a statement, and far more sophisticated. Yet, it echoes the GN and GNX beneath the sheetmetal. It’s still a twin turbo RWD coupe, from Buick.
So, everyone, your new Buick Grand National. Just don’t call it one.
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Comments
I wish we could move on from the GNX or GN. I as a great car and had it’s time.
We want people to think of Buick as a different and more advanced company so we need to stop fully living in the past. We can remember the highlights like the 63-65 Riv or the GN and GNX but we do not have to relive them.
It is time to create new products and new legends that globally would be appreciated and make a statement about Buick as being serious. This is just the car that could make that statement.
Also if you deleiver this car as an Opel in Europe. A Vauxhall in England and Holden in Australia it would send a global signal of change in all these companies and one for the better.
I get it that some of you are infatuated witht he GNX but it is not a car from out time and it has to remain just what it was or it would not be the car it was. Time to let new product carry the torch forward and be the new product of change.
I agree we need to get over the GNX name for this car, but there are plenty of names in Buick history that still have a modern ring to them. Invicta, or GSX could be brought back and other than car nuts that remember these names they could bring excitement to a generation that has never heard them. As good as this car looks, Avista just doesn’t do it justice or sell it. Avista sounds more like a name for a Minivan.
Well the GNX and many of the other prime names have had their time. It is time to let go of some of the past if you want to move forward.
The truth is the average car buyer and non Buick fan really see no advantage to the old names if anything they can be a negative as that was what grand pa drove.
Today the buyers Buick is targeting really has few great memories of the really great Buicks anymore.
It is time to take design in a new direction like this sans Port Holes and other bits of the past. It also calls for a new host of names to create the new Buick legends of the future.
A car like this shares nothing with anything Buick has offered since the 1965 Riv. It is such a break from the past it deserves it’s own name and it’s own styling.
I agree for the most part. At the same time though Buick is not coming up with any names that exude a legendary connotation to match the designs. In a time where we have a sea of cars that are identified by alpha numerics, a company has to know if they actually come up with a memorable name much less one of legend Avista won’t be it. What in the world is an Avista other than this car? Move on from the past I agree, but when you come up with mediocre names for a product it doesn’t exactly thrust a brand into the future. This is a beautiful car and could be a boon for Buick should they build it, but the name will get this car lost in the mix. The name already sounds old and definitely not the name of a performance machine to break the Grandpa brand stereotype Buick has.
While I am not a fan of the name I also know I have see much lesser names go on to great legends. In fact I have seen simple numbers and letter do some of the greatest legend building.
A great car sell the name not the great name sells the car. If you have the worst car in the world the name is not going to save it.
Just look at the first down sized Riv in the 80’s It was a train wreck that not even a classic name could help.
But I do agree this would not have been a name I would have chosen but it is what it is and the car will better help define the name moving forward so if they chose.
Hopefully it will come to Europe and beyond too. My guess is it was styled by Mark Adams and his team (Head of Opel-Vauxhall design). It has his hall-mark signatures all over it and is all the better for that! Bring it on.
Yes! This car screams Mark Adams and the GT come again that Opel has been discussing.
Adams should control Buick as well as Opel considering over lap. Avista is by far the best Buick concept in recent years, including Aveair, and should have been the basis of LaCrosse.
Avista is a very Insignia.
There’s no reason to ‘let go of the past’ especially with the success and popularity of the GN. It’s legendary. What many are failing to realize is the fact that the GN was basically a trim package for the Regal. In the 80’s it wasn’t as if the Regal was replaced with a GN. The model was available in various packages. So for all of the naysayers out there; why couldn’t a GN package of the Avista be offered to target those who DO want American muscle or relive days gone by? There’s no doubt that it would be a success in limited availability. It’s laughable to think having it as an option would somehow be detrimental to the high end Avista.
This car reminds me of the F-type Jag, and that’s a good thing!
I was going to say the same thing! It looks like an F-type and an Aston Martin had a baby. I think it looks great!
Oh look! A Jaguar with a Buick emblem…. What a let down.
If built it will be $20k less and have more horsepower than the Tata owned Jaguar.
Nah bro, only you a let down @Chris
Well, this Chris likes it. With all-wheel drive, I’d consider one if they built it, even though I still love the Avenir more.
Note to self, change user name: too many people named Chris post here.
My nephew is also nicknamed Chris, and it is so common so now he uses his full name: Christopher (Christ carrier).
The GNX was offered during a very confusing time at Buick. You had Park Avenues, LeSabres, Skyhawks and Riverias. The fastest of them could produce no more then around 170HP. I am quite sure Buick never expected the GNX to become such a cult classic that it did. And after that car there was never a peep of performance of that magnitude from Buick again. I think this car if produced would really help Buick.
please build it. i sell Buicks and we need to liven up these showrooms!
I’m perfectly fine with calling the (“not”) GNX successor an Avista. If Buick is serious about garnering the younger buyers, then they’ll have to start thinking beyond the family-friendly crossover and sedan segments, and start injecting some performance models into their portfolio! The Buick brand is still quite a bit tame! None of the models in their current lineup speak to those who crave a handsome, exciting, luxurious and sporty vehicle! Sure the brand is relatively successful, but it can be so much more if GM would let the brand expand beyond just the average 55-60+ year old customer! I’ve said it plenty of times before: brands like Hyundai, Kia and Volvo are encroaching upon territory that the Buick brand should be owning right now! Cars like the Avista and Avenir would be the crowning jewels of what makes the Buick brand worth taking a second look at!
I agree that this car should not be a GN. That car has so become so legendary that it would no doubt disappoint in just about any form.
But this car has some potential. As someone who works at a Buick GMC dealership, this car could be a great thing.
Hope its AWD and at least 450RWHP ….
Is there any chance that this could be the 2 door sports car that holden will get? We know that holden will get a 2 door sports car that won’t be the Camaro. Maybe this could end up being a buick, opel and holden..
Don’t show me show cars don’t show me show cars Buick, show me a real car that looks like this and then I’ll get excited
I am 33,A GM Guy,Corvettes,Camaros and Grand Nationals,T-Types and GNX and yet I see the influence of a Car that I loathe the politically correct and hideously styled Tesla/Fisker garbage cars.They should have done something similar to the Camaro and made it GNX.Instead no Originality as usual every modern car designer now can’t style anything,They wish they could have The Harley Earl or Bill Mitchell style!
I certainly hope the name, Avista, is only a placeholder, that’s the name of my electric utility…
I certainly hope the same thing. On top of that though, I hope this is something more than a turn table dream. Buick, If you build it and call it by another name they will come!
Your points are well taken. Grand National cars were perfect for their times, but the times have changed and GM has to change with them, too. This Avista concept is stunning and shatters the entire Buick brand image as one that appeals only to Baby Boomers. This car hits all the right notes for the younger demographics as well as boomers who love both performance and luxury, who long for memories of their youth and yet are at a stage in life where they expect the rewards of a life of hard work and the luxuries earned from it. I and I’m sure thousands would buy this car in a heartbeat and knowing that if it goes into production, so much of the concept will be compromised and removing some of the sexy allure. Let’s hope GM’s C-suite puts the Avista into production with as few compromises possible. It truly will change the entire Buick lifestyle brand perception from bland to bold. Wouldn’t this be a great Christmas gift? C’mon, GM, it’s time to execute!
Obligatory “I like it, but it should really have a V8. Wasted potential.”
The refusal to call it GN/GNX further underpins that like the Focus RS, GM is likely going to make this an front-based AWD affair in production.
See my comments in the other article for more details: http://gmauthority.com/blog/2016/01/no-the-buick-avista-is-not-a-new-holden-monaro/#comment-674303
That’s what I was thinking too. If it’s FWD/AWD, then on the bright side, Buick can go all out in interior appointments. In that case, it’ll be nice if the E2XX Avista is offered as AWD only. If this happens, in the same way the Lincoln Continental is the return of the American-style luxobarge, the E2XX Avista would be the return of the American-style personal luxury coupe, therefore having virtually no competition remaining.
If somehow this all changes and Buick decides to stick to the Alpha platform, I’d still prefer it to at least offer AWD, if not standard AWD. I’d even go as far as to say it should have a turbocharged AND supercharged v6 as the top engine choice, preventing it from stepping on the Camaro’s toes. If it remains RWD/(AWD?), I propose that the Avista’s interior more closely aligns with the Buick Verano or Regal than the LaCrosse, preventing it from encroaching on Cadillac’s market territory.
The Buick has an opportunity to be everything the Camaro can’t be due to heritage, brand, and positioning, but the problem is that it can’t become a CTS coupe replacement. Cadillac needs a 6-series fighter, this Buick can’t be it.
Let Cadillac worry about developing a BMW 6 Series fighter.
No one needs to prop up Cadillac. Dumbing down Buick is dumb.
There is enough room for two GM luxury brands.
Sloan’s ladder became dangerous once the 1980s import surge. Buick has no option but to produce the best products possible seeing as luxury is a wide and very competitive segment.
Hopefully Cadillac can design something good.
sorry for Buick but must be sold or suppressed for the sake of Cadillac, as the only global brand premium, then restore the Hummer brand, while Chevrolet and Opel \ Vauxhall \ Holden will be global brands generalists, this is my opinion.
Sorry guys but it looks a little too much like a Hyundai Genesis Coupe for my liking–call me olde’ fashion but I think Buick should still have at least one Muscle car in the game instead of trying to cop out with this “global automaker” nonsense… This is part of the problem (and a major one at that) with Buick, unlike Ford, Chrysler, and Chevrolet who still want to deliver fun to it’s hardcore muscle car enthusiasts. Hell even Cadillac went from all luxury to luxury/sport/muscle… I had hoped Buick could sort of fill in the void created by the loss of Oldsmobile and Pontiac, and continue to carry the torch but I was wrong–Buick sold out, and forgot where it came from, it’s roots, and storied past which includes a pretty good racing heritage to boot… I digress…
Avista is beautiful. Chevy does old school baby boomer sentimental with Camaro and you guys still have Dodge.
I love global design. It’s sleek. Avista reminds me of a sexy Regal or even CTS Coupe.
Avista is beautiful.
sorry for Buick but must be sold or suppressed for the sake of Cadillac, as the only global brand premium, then restore the Hummer brand, while Chevrolet and Opel \ Vauxhall \ Holden will be global brands generalists, this is my opinion.
One has to think that if Buick were to build the Avista, it would be like the Cadillac ATS and Chevrolet Camaro meaning it would feature a base 265-275 horsepower turbocharged 2.0L 4-cyl engine and be price at about $28K; the mid-range car with the naturally aspirated 300-335 hp 3.6L V6 be $34-40K and the top tier Avista with the 400hp twin-turbo 3.0L V6 would most likely be $44-50K with it topping off near $55K with the magnetic-ride-control and Brembo brakes (just a bit less than the ATS-V).
For goodness sakes, Buick! Paint it black and call it the Grand National. Add more ponies and badge it as a GNX. Dump the frumpy image and resurrect Bad to the Bone!
I am 62 years old. I’ve owned a total of 29 cars in my life and currently own 10. Of the current, except for one Ford, all are G.M. Two are trucks (2 door standard cab short bed) , the rest performance coupes and convertibles. I have never owned a four door and never will. I consider myself an enthusiast but more importantly a true purist, I have never been a fan of most Asian brands but am inspired by a number of European makes. But G.M. has always built at least one vehicle that raised the level of passion for me whenever I was ready to buy. In the case of Buick, I have never owned one and was heavily in favor of G.M. letting the brand go down back in 2009 and retaining Pontiac. Since then, Buick has elevated itself to a respectable level in appearance and quality but none that stirs passion for any enthusiast. The Avenir and Avista could change their direction to new heights immediately. Avenir could be their flagship model and Avista would give them a stunning rear wheel drive high performance luxury coupe (pillar less) that they desperately need. I cannot imagine the time and dollars it took to develop these concepts only to display them for public reaction but never intending to put them into production. The Alpha platform and shared components and powertrain from Cadillac or Chevrolet should make a business case to produce the Avista. If Mark Reuss and Ed Welburn could also inject their enthusiast passion to this business case as well, it could ascend the Buick brand to a world class level. Their current lineup of cars have no curb side appeal in a very competitive segment in the near luxury class. If the Avista makes it to production (not watered down) it would be without a doubt my first Buick.
Make The Grand National! the Best Car that Buick ever The following is Huge and if you never had one then you don’t know what your talking about! I paid 18 k in 87 now they are well over 60k
Okay Buick ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! Time to get back in the ring instead of cowering in your nuetral corner. If you don’t want to use the GN or GNX names then perhaps something in the spirit of? In any case at least throw us a bone.
How about the Buick Grand International? This name meets two objectives — it pays homage to the nostalgic American fans who would like to see a modern take with retro inspired lines, as well as appease the European crowds your rebranded Opel fans have come to accept. I’ve even done the hard work for you — here is an idea for the 30 second tv commercial spot…
What do you get when you mix American muscle with European refinement? Grace, style, class, sophistication, and power. Buick Grand International—make a statement…
A former GN owner…