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What We Dislike: 2018 Buick Regal GS

As a follow-up to what we like about the 2018 Buick Regal GS, it’s now time to list a few of our dislikes. While we haven’t spent nearly enough time with the car—let alone really drive it—there are a handful of oddities. Let us know if you agree or disagree with us in the comment section below.

No paddle shifters

Buick says customers of the previous-generation Regal GS never used them, so they’re not present in the 2018 Regal GS. While it’s likely a savvy way to cut costs, we do find it odd this is a sport sedan without a set of paddle shifters. Many less-sporting nameplates offer them as standard with automatic transmissions, and the fact they’re missing here is kind of a letdown. Drivers can, however, shift the car via the gear selector.

2018 Buick Regal GS interior 004

The manual transmission is dead

To be fair, the manual transmission died with the last Buick Regal GS, but we still miss it. It may not have improved performance, but the fact a Buick sport sedan could be equipped with a manual gearbox really solidified Buick’s old days were behind it. Plus, rowing your own gears is simply more fun.

2018 Buick Regal GS exterior 006

The naturally-aspirated V6 engine

This landed on our “What We Like” list as well, but we think there’s a case to dislike it, too. The 3.6-liter LGX V6 is a very good engine, but we hope once we’re given extensive drive time with the car that it doesn’t turn out to be more of a dud. 310 horsepower outdoes the old Regal GS’s turbocharged four-cylinder engine, but it’s actually down on torque. The engine finds a home in so many different GM cars, crossovers and even trucks, so we hope Buick’s engineering team ensured the engine feels at home in the 2018 Regal GS. And we’ll say it: some of us will miss the turbocharged engine.

Former GM Authority staff writer.

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Comments

  1. My wife had a 2015 Buick Regal GS AWD with the auto transmission. It did not have paddle shifters. So, in this story, “Buick says customers of the previous-generation Regal GS never used them.” Is that a true statement? Did the non-AWD version have paddle shifters?

    Reply
    1. No, the FWD version doesn’t have paddle shifters either. That portion of this article doesn’t make sense.

      Reply
      1. So… maybe Buick said the previous version didn’t have paddle shifters so the newer one doesn’t need them either? Regardless, the absence of paddle shifters in my wife’s GS was a real bummer. I had a Trifecta tune on it and it went like hell. But the transmission programming was just average. With paddles it would’ve been a different beast.

        Reply
        1. Must be the case, even though that shouldn’t justify the absence of them in the new model. When the less sporty LaCrosse has them it just doesn’t make sense that they weren’t included in the new GS.

          Reply
  2. Moar powaahh!! Given that Lincoln has MKZs with 400 HP TTV6s at a nearby price point, I’d would’ve liked to see the Regal GS get one of GMs TTV6s. They have 3 to choose from – the LF3, LF4, or LGW (3.0 TTV6). I think those could’ve raised the GS from “pretty nice” to “genuinely special.”

    Or just take the LF4, tune it to 500 HP, and make a Regal Grand National again. Only paint ’em black. 🙂

    Reply
    1. I wonder if the 9T65 can handle the torque of any turbo V6. All of the GM turbo V6 Engines are in RWD based vehicles. Except the XTS. And LF3 Is detuned in that vehicle. 410 hp 6000 RPM. 369 pound feet of torque at 3500 to 4500 RPM.

      Reply
      1. That’s a good question – I know the 8L90 or the new 10 speed unit would be able to do the job. Of course, that 10 speed isn’t widely available yet, and I’m pretty sure Caddy, Camaro, and ‘vette will have first dibs on it.

        Reply
    2. We don’t know how much it weighs yet. The TTV6 MKZ weighs 4200 lbs. A Lacrosse V6 AWD weighs 3850 lbs so figure the Regal GS will be about the same or less. The GS will probably be only half second behind to 60.

      Reply
  3. The things you listed here are all things I am fine with!

    Reply
  4. For some reason they were putting paddle shifters in the Lacrosse for 2017. I can’t find anything mentioning them in the order guide for 2018, so not sure if they didn’t transition over with the 9-speed auto or if they will still be present. I can’t picture any Lacrosse owner ever using them, but they seem like a no-brainer on a car like the GS. I shed no tears for the manual tranny though, automatics can shift faster and provide better fuel economy these days.

    Reply
    1. I have a 2017 LaCrosse, and I do use the paddle shifters, and often! They respond quickly and I don’t need to take my hands off the wheel. It’s one of the reasons I like the car.

      And by the way, while the auto stop-start is annoying, there is a hidden way to disable it. Put the shifter into “manual mode” and the engine stays on, or starts if it’s not already running.

      Reply
  5. Rowing with a manual shifter is a thing of the past century. I have driven cars since 1966 and I prefer the newer automatics that smoothly shift with just my foot input. Why row when you have an automatic? Would you row a boat across the ocean, too?

    Reply
    1. Some of us find it fun, we love the direct connection, and it just makes for a more exhilarating drive in our eyes.

      I’m 41 now, and have owned 4 manual transmission cars previously (3 GMs, 1 Ford). I see both sides of the coin, therefore the CHOICE would have been nice.

      As it stands, GM wants me to buy a stripped Cruze or Colorado (can’t get a stick on loaded versions), or an all out sports car (Camaro/Corvette). Or an ATS, which is small, TOO small for my family. (The SS sedan is going, going…..)

      Reply
    2. They probably miss window winders and the rotary phone too.

      Reply
      1. We all miss things from when we were young. I miss my youth, my 4 German shepherds, and my hair.

        Reply
  6. Paddles no paddles – who needs it? I’m driving for 50 years and never missed any paddles – young generation of robots need any bull…. available on the market. The 3.6 L V-6 engine is great, so be happy you’ll have car for many years ahead.

    Reply
    1. I don’t know if I could buy a car without paddles.

      But I “finally” let myself buy my first automatic. Thank goodness for paddle shifters though. I almost died (literally) in a pontiac G8 GT because it didn’t have paddle shifters. After that I sold the car and swore I’d never buy an automatic again (the thing takes an hour to downshift. You can put the peddle to the floor in 6th gear and it just sits there like a dead horse while oncoming traffic peers down on you- I had to go into the berm because the dang thing wouldn’t accelerate. It was freaky). Finally I bought an auto with paddle shifters and its a lot better- when I’m about to pass, two taps and I’m down to 4th gear with plenty of pulling power.

      I don’t know how people in the country, where your passing 5-10 times a day do it without paddle shifters…

      Reply
  7. I’m disappointed in what the GSi and VXR gets but the GS doesn’t. The overseas versions get:
    Paddle shifters
    20″ wheels on summer performance tires (GS has 19″ wheels with all seasons)
    Rear brake calipers color matched red like the front Brembos
    10mm lower suspension
    Larger rear spoiler

    Reply
    1. Shifting on the stick much better than paddle shifters anyways, hate them

      Reply
      1. And the shift pattern is backwards. Upshift should be pull back.

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  8. What I dislike about the GS:

    No Foglights! The previous version didn’t have them either, but all other non-GS Regals do get them. Doesn’t make sense.

    The front seats. Perhaps they are comfortable, but they are just so ugly. I never liked racing seats, so the resemblance doesn’t win any points from me . Reminds me of something some redneck would install in an 80s G-Body or some punk kid in a junky 90s Civic. A Buick deserves some nice adjustable articulating headrests.

    Not available on the wagon. This is the one I was waiting for. I have no interest in the high riding, unpainted cladded, 2.0T crossover wannabe TourX.

    Reply
  9. The number of people under the age of 50 who know how to drive a manual transmission is small; thus, this means the number of people ordering a 2018 Buick Regal GS with a manual transmission option is extremely small and if buyers don’t know how to change gears manually.. then the addition of having paddle shifters isn’t really necessary because just about all buyers will put the car in drive and never do anything else.

    Reply
  10. My 2012 and 2015 were manuals, I will miss it, the stop start technology is what bothers me.

    Reply
  11. Nobody wants full sized sedans, hence why nobody is buying our impalas. GM is trying to renew the image of a brand that should have never made it past the chopping block.

    Grand Prix, Firebird, GTO, G8.

    Reply
    1. The Regal isn’t a full size sedan. It’s only marginally bigger than the Verano.

      And no one wants full size sedans right now, but everything is cyclical. They’ll come back. Remember when no one wanted large SUVs about 6 years ago? Where are we now? Everyone wants large SUVs.

      Also, GM is past the “trying” stage with Buick. They’ve done it. Successfully. Sales figures clearly point to a brand that is doing quite well.

      Reply
  12. This report and the what we like are nice reports, but they don’t sound like reports from driving the car.
    What about cornering, AWD, Sport/GS mode, stereo, dash info, etc.

    Ordering a GS may take awhile to get it, due to made in Germany.
    A GS with some options puts it into the Cadillac ATS price range.

    The way GM gradually adds features, they will see if GS has a demand. IF they would ever come out with
    a TTV6 in Regal GS as an option or in a GNX, it would be in a future year. They always phase in the higher
    performance versions after the first year, IF they will be built.

    Reply
    1. Are we sure it’s made in Germany? My wife’s 2015 GS was made in Canada at the Oshawa Assembly Plant.

      Reply
      1. Yes, it is built in Germany. The current Regal started production for the first year in Germany and then moved to Oshawa. Production will stay in Germany for this generation.

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  13. I don’t like that black is the only color for the interior.

    Reply
  14. We are older by a lot, we want to trade our Volvo S60 AWD and I was waiting for the GS because no GM have AWD in a smallish sedan. We wanted more Sport too like the Old Grand Sport. Not sure 310 HP is going to do it justice at 3,800 to 4,000 lbs. My ride is a Chevy SS from Holden, I had to add the LSA supercharger, lower it, add gauges to get it where it was at least respectable on the street. I suppose you could add power to the 3.6 Liter V6 but will all the other bits stand up? Why did I pay nearly $50K for a Chevy then another $15K to get it right. You just can’t find cars that work for us old folks anymore. I should never have sold my Ron Fellows Z06, Dang it!

    Reply
    1. Sounds like a sweet SS. Do you have any pictures?

      Reply

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