1937 Buick Century Sedan-mdl-61--best I Have Ever Driven--2 Owner on 2040-cars

Auto blog

GM may kill 6 car models as it works with UAW to tackle sales slump

The president of the United Auto Workers union said on Thursday the union is talking with General Motors about the potential threat to plants and jobs from slumping U.S. car sales. GM's response will be more trucks and SUVs, and sources say at least six slow-selling car models may be killed off. "We are talking to (GM) right now about the products that they currently have" at underused car plants such as Hamtramck in Michigan and Lordstown in Ohio, and whether they might be replaced with newer, more popular vehicles such as crossovers, Dennis Williams told reporters. "We are tracking it (and) we are addressing it," Williams added. GM has cut shifts at several U.S. plants this year as inventories of unsold cars have ballooned. Industry analysts said more jobs could be at risk as the automaker wrestles with permanently shrinking production of small and midsized sedans. GM is reviewing whether to cancel at least six passenger cars in the U.S. market after 2020, including the Chevrolet Volt hybrid, which could be replaced in 2022 with a new gasoline-electric crossover model, Reuters has learned from people familiar with the plans. Other GM cars at risk include the Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac CT6, Cadillac XTS, Chevrolet Impala and Chevrolet Sonic, sources said. Some analysts have singled out GM's Hamtramck plant in Detroit as one of the most vulnerable because of plummeting car sales. The plant, which opened in 1985, builds four slow-selling models: Buick LaCrosse, Chevrolet Impala, Cadillac CT6 and Chevrolet Volt. In the first half, it built fewer than 35,000 cars, down 32 percent from the same period in 2016, according to suppliers familiar with GM's U.S. production schedule. The typical GM assembly plant builds 200,000-300,000 vehicles a year.COMING ATTRACTIONS: TRUCKS AND SUVS GM must "create some innovative new products" to replace slow-selling sedans "or start closing plants," said Sam Fiorani, vice president of AutoForecast Solutions. The auto maker already has begun to shift future production plans from cars to trucks, according to Morgan Stanley auto analyst John Murphy. He estimates that fewer than 10 percent of the new vehicle models that GM will introduce over the next four years will be passenger cars, with the rest divided among trucks, SUVs and crossovers. GM plans to add production of the new Cadillac XT4 crossover next year to its Malibu sedan plant in Fairfax, Kansas.

2018 Buick Regal Sportback First Drive Review | Eyes wide shut

AUSTIN, Texas—Barreling along the tight backroads of Austin's Hill Country, my driving partner was coming in a little hot. Usually, beads of sweat would have appeared by now, hand crushing the grab handle. On roads such as this one, which are barely a car and a half wide, unusual confidence in the car is essential. But even with eyes closed (from the passenger's seat), it felt as if I was riding in an Audi, not in a product that shares its roots with the Chevrolet Malibu. This is a very good thing for Buick. It's unusually planted and stable, almost Germanic in nature. There's no traditional sedan available on these shores, which begs the question: Did the new Regal have to be a hatchback? Nope. Buick sells a traditional four-door Regal in China. The Regal Sportback, which is built in Russelsheim, Germany, is a European take on the sedan, in the vein of the recent proliferation of four-door "coupes" from all sorts of car manufacturers. It's far more versatile than most stylized sedans, however, with a wide opening that can swallow a full-size bicycle with both wheels on. Really—we tried it. There is an alternative to the hatchback, although it won't please sedan purists: the Regal TourX, a wagon in all but name. The 310-hp Regal GS isn't far away, either, and a luxe Regal Avenir is likely to appear. A hybridized Regal eAssist is also a possibility. Alas, the Regal nameplate is unlikely to reappear on a two-door coupe, according to a Buick spokesperson. The closest analogy for the Regal Sportback is the recently departed Volkswagen CC, in both form and function. From the quarter angles, the Regal Sportback has hints of the last-generation BMW 5 Series. Dead on from the front, or in your rearview mirror, there is more than a hint of the Audi shield grille. The LED headlight signature is distinctly European in style, but vaguely defined. Dynamically, the front-wheel-drive Regal Sportback is a match for the Audi A4/A5 Sportback duo. The smooth, turbocharged 2.0-liter inline four is a formidable powerplant, particularly when paired with the nine-speed automatic transmission. Its 250-horsepower output is a close match for Audi's engine of the same displacement. All-wheel drive is offered on the top two trim levels, Preferred II and Essence, as an option, paired with an eight-speed automatic. A trick differential that can direct torque to individual wheels, in addition to splitting it front and rear, is standard on the AWD models.

2014 Buick Regal GS

A few months ago I drove the 2014 Buick LaCrosse and wrote up a First Drive review of it. For all of my quibbles with that sedan (and I had a fair number), I understand that it speaks to the heart of what new Buick loyalists like in a car; it's roomy, has a cushy ride and is as placid as a summer's morning at highway speeds.
Those qualities, while undeniably desirable, don't mean a whole lot to me personally. I prefer sedans that conjure up words like "nimble," "punchy" or even "raucous" on occasion. So, directionally, the high-performance GS version of the 2014 Buick Regal is more my cup of tea than any other car in the company's current range.
In fact, I'd already come to know the Regal GS from its 2012 model year introduction, and grown more than a little fond of the sporting sedan in its original front-wheel-drive, six-speed-manual guise. The fast, sweet-handling car with well-sorted controls may have suffered from a slight identity crisis in terms of pricing (and may still), but it was undeniably fun to drive. So, when I heard that the GS was coming to market for 2014 with optional all-wheel drive (albeit only in combination with a six-speed automatic transmission), I was stoked to have another go and concentrated my driving impressions on the AWD car.