Almost a year after the official debut of the updated MPV in April 2020, General Motors has just relaunched the 2021 Buick GL8 Classic with several equipment upgrades in China, which is the only country where this vehicle is marketed. After expanding the older, second-generation GL8 range at the end of last year, the automaker is introducing this new update to strengthen the MPV’s broad sales leadership in the country.
The equipment upgrades to the revamped 2021 Buick GL8 Classic focus primarily on its interior design, where the Tri Shield brand’s popular people mover adds a new high-end trim with substantial upgrades to the seat upholstery and a more refined color scheme. With this, Buick seeks to satisfy the needs of the segment’s most demanding buyers in the Chinese market.
Specifically, the two range-topping versions of the 2021 Buick GL8 Classic called Welfare Luxury and Welfare Premium now include updated seats that raise the bar for luxury and comfort. Both the first- and second-row seats of the 2021 GL8 Classic adopt new padding with diamond stitch technology and a high-end trim design, improving ergonomics and overall texture.
In addition, the vehicle introduces a new and more luxurious color scheme for the interior, with a cognac brown shade for the seats, door trims and lower parts of the dash, combined with black footrests. This new colors complement the light beige finish on each of the aforementioned components with which the updated MPV was introduced.
All other areas of the 2021 Buick GL8 Classic remain unchanged, including the newly updated exterior appearance, trim levels and starting prices. The second-generation GL8, which received its third refresh in 10 years, is equipped with the turbocharged 2.0L LSY I-4 engine with 233 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, in conjunction with GM’s nine-speed automatic transmission.
The updated 2021 Buick GL8 Classic is now on sale at Buick’s official dealer network in China, the main volume market for the American brand worldwide. The upgrades have further enhanced the entry-level standard for luxury and comfort of the Buick GL8 family, further strengthening the nameplate’s competitive advantage as China’s best-selling and most successful MPV.
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Comments
How would this do if brought to the US? There a few mini-vans on the market here anymore but even fewer with this level of luxury. I think it could sell enough to be profitable. Would it pass current safety standards?
Bring it here and offer AWD. I’d buy it. GM offers nothing in mini vans. I miss my Buick Terrace CXL AWD.
Nobody buys minivans, it’s a declining market. There are more profitable segments.
Truth is hard to swallow, huh?
Thankfully no! GM has better more profitable markets to enter than a declining one that is well served by Toyota and Honda.
Welfare? Really??
The overall styling reminds me of the Honda Odessey (China has been known to copy other makers vehicles).
It does, but the Odyssey is a better product.
Have you had the ability to drive this vehicle in China? If not, how would you know that the Odyssey is a better product? It may certainly be, but I’m curious if you’ve had the opportunity to do a side-by-side comparison. I have NO desire to have a minivan myself, but clearly others here in the U.S. do.
No, I have not driven the Buick in China. Something tells me that GM isn’t going to make a better minivan than Honda or KIA. They have been continuing to make minivans for years and have been market leading products. I’m supposed to believe that a Chinese minivan with a Buick grill is going to be better than the market leaders? FYI, others on this post might want a minivan but the total market in the US combined sales is 272k in 2020 down a whopping 33% from 2019. Again, a rapidly declining market is a pretty good indication that GM has better markets to enter, given that they abandoned it years ago because there were much higher quality options available. Why would I believe that a GM product today would be better given their history?
On a serious note from a true automotive and minivan enthusiast (owned 11 and influenced family member purchases of four more) with four kids and a very active family, unless you’re pulling a 3500lb+ trailer or going seriously off road, there is no better family vehicle than a minivan. The combination of features and advantages exceed any SUV for the vast majority of families. Yes, sales are declining due to the phony “soccer mom” and “minivans aren’t cool” image projected by society. It’s really too bad for the families who would benefit from minivan ownership that so many people are influenced more by image than by more important considerations, but that’s the beauty of the marketplace and freedom of choice! GM never offered a competitive minivan in the US market but at least Stellantis, Honda, and Kia still do (2021 Sienna is a major disappointment, I know because I have a 2009 Sienna and my parents a 2020)!
I personally have never owned a minivan, but I tend to agree with you that they are extremely versatile. My in-laws owned a Chrysler minivan and it was a great “people mover”. Fold the seats down and you had plenty of cargo space. Fuel mileage was decent. For the older crowd, a minivan is without a doubt very easy to get in and out of. I personally don’t understand why GM has produced so many variants for its family of SUVs, but washed their hands on the minivan market. Do they really need an Equinox, TrailBlazer, and a Blazer as well as the GMC and Buick versions of the same types of vehicles? All (3) Chevy models seem to be very similarly sized. We really like our 2018 Equinox LT 2.0-liter, but can’t really justify another $5-10k for a Blazer for no appreciable gain in size and a decrease in MPG.
My wife has the GM stablemate 2019 Terrain 2.0L so I understand and agree with your comments about the Blazer! It’s appeal seems to be image/style driven!