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2018 Buick Enclave: How engineers made it larger, lighter, more sophisticated

Buick used the unveiling of the 2018 Enclave at the New York Auto Show to introduce its new range-topping Avenir sub-brand to the world. With fancier interior finishes and exterior details, it's Buick's latest effort to make itself a proper luxury brand (or perhaps re-establish itself as such). However, lost in the Avenir song and dance is the fact that the 2018 Buick Enclave is a (very) long-awaited all-new model regardless of the trim level one selects. Like the Chevrolet Traverse upon which it is based, the new Enclave is bigger than the vehicle it replaces but considerably lighter, by about 400 pounds. "We told every engineer, 'get your job done, but then take the weight out,'" said engineer Rick Spina as we hovered next to his larger yet lighter creation. His team therefore set about taking a little bit of weight out from just about everywhere, from using additional aluminum in the suspension to varying the thickness of the frame (thicker in places that needed to be stronger, thinner and therefore lighter in places that didn't). Only about 100 pounds came out of the body with the rest coming from elsewhere. Not only will the reduced weight improve fuel economy (Buick-estimated at 19 mpg combined with FWD versus 18 for the 2017 model) and presumably the old Enclave's rather ponderous handling, but it should only make things easier for the new powertrain: General Motors' now-familiar 3.6-liter V6 and its latest nine-speed automatic. With 302 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque, Buick says the new engine will need 7.2 seconds to reach 60 mph with FWD or 7.5 seconds with AWD. That's a second quicker than before. Besides acceleration, towing is also bumped up by 500 pounds to 5,000. For those models with all-wheel drive, the Enclave has the same basic system featured on range-topping versions of the Buick LaCrosse. Besides power being sent front and rear, it can also differ from right to left in the back, although Spina is quick to point out that capability is for traction-enhancing purposes rather than sporty, handling-enhancing torque-vectoring ones. Buick owners already appreciated the Enclave for its quietness so the engineers decided to take it that much further. This included altering the exhaust, improving body sealing (there are triple door seals), including active sound deadening and utilizing advanced materials that absorb sound as opposed to simply being thick, dense and heavy enough to keep it out.

Next Buick Regal coming in 2017, could be imported from Germany

The Buick Regal is based on the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia, a pair of sedans from General Motors' European and British outfits. In fact, over 46,000 Regals from model years 2010 and 2011 were screwed together on the same lines as the Insignia twins, before GM's Oshawa, Ontario factory took over production fully. Considering this closeness, rumors that claim the next-generation Regal - due for 2017 - could move back to Europe aren't terribly surprising. Here's why, according to Automotive News.
Oshawa is home to three other vehicles, aside from the Regal - the Chevrolet Camaro, Impala rental queen and the Cadillac XTS. We already know next-gen Camaro production is headed to Lansing, MI, and that the fleet-only Impala will (finally!) die in 2016. As for the XTS, as AN explains it, sales are so slow that GM will either kill it or just shuffle its production volume elsewhere.
Taken along with the fact that Unifor, the Canadian labor union repping workers at the Oshawa factory, claim GM hasn't made any guarantees about future production at the nearly 60-year-old factory, it seems fairly clear that the Regal's current factory is going to be put out to pasture.

GM slashes prices in China as sales falter

Buying a vehicle from General Motors' stable of brands might be a lot cheaper in the near future – at least for customers in China. The effort comes as GM hopes to keep sales there growing, and the decision alludes to yet another sign that the Asian country no longer has the booming auto market of past years. GM and its Chinese joint venture partner SAIC are slashing prices by as much as the equivalent to $8,700 on 40 models from Buick, Chevrolet, and Cadillac, according to The Detroit News. Across all of automaker's nameplates, the overall sales dipped in China in April by 0.4 percent to 258,484 vehicles. Among the drops, Buick was down 8.5 percent, and Chevy shrunk 5.6 percent. Caddy's numbers increased 4.6 percent for the month, though. Buick remains a popular brand in the minds of Chinese consumers, but according to The Detroit News domestic automakers there are starting to eat into the dominance of foreign companies in the market. The country remains important for GM, though. Late last year, it outlined a future strategy that included China as a major pillar, including a $14 billion investment to build five new factories and boost sales. News Source: The Detroit NewsImage Credit: Alexander F. Yuan / AP Photo Buick Cadillac Chevrolet GM Car Buying Car Dealers saic