DETROIT, Mich. — Industry sources tell Inside Line that Buick intends to import a large rear-wheel-drive sedan from General Motors' Holden subsidiary in Australia, to serve as its flagship passenger car in 2008. It's a trick GM already tried with the slow selling Pontiac GTO, which is based on the Australian Holden Monaro.

The sedan reportedly will fill a slot in the division's lineup that will be left by the impending demise of the front-wheel-drive Park Avenue.

Buick also is planning to introduce a rear-wheel-drive convertible, patterned after the Velite concept car it unveiled last year at the New York auto show. Although it is expected to share many underbody components with the new sedan, the two-door Velite reportedly will be assembled in North America.

Holden has already begun testing prototypes of the Buick sedan, which will also share its basic architecture and underpinnings with the next-generation Holden Commodore and Statesman sedans in Australia.

The Buick sedan has been designed to accept GM's 5.7-liter V8, which likely will be mated to a five- or six-speed automatic transmission.

What this means to you: Hopefully, Buick's attempt to import a near-luxury RWD sedan from Down Under will attract more American buyers than Pontiac's latter-day GTO has.

the caption underneath says this sedan will go after Lexus....*Laughing* Please GM,don't start whoring out the LS1.
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...icleId=104811#

 

HAHAHAH to lexus comment

t-riffic, grandma's with LS6's

 

All of this assuming that Buick still exists in 2008 ROFL

 

I think Buick is still doing quite OK compared to many other GM brands. Its quality is up there and it has a relatively loyal customer base (i.e. old people). If GM is ever gonna axe more brands in the next few years (which is quite likely), Buick will be one of the last to be considered IMO.

 

Good for Buick. WIth more traction control systems than ever, RWD is not a problem, it is THE choice for true luxury.

 

Another undeserved stereotype. This idea that Buick is only a Grandpa and Grandma car is sheer nonsense.....and an idea that has been perpetuated by so-called "enthusiasts".
You don't have to be taking Geritol to appeciate an easy-riding car over bumps, whether you're 18 or 80. In fact, even as a young man who grew up in the muscle-car age and honestly liked them, it was also N-I-C-E to cruise around in a soft-riding boat that didn't blast your ears off with noise. My dad worked for Philco-Ford at the time and would bring home big, massive, pillowy-riding Mercury Park Lanes and Lincoln Continentals from the office, and, because I was careful and considered a good driver for my age, could be trusted with them. He would toss me the keys, and after riding around in GTO's and Road Runners (note my new logo) I'd look forward to an nice relaxing evening in a plushmobile....sometimes with a date.

 

Here are some pictures from Holden's website of the Commodore - looks like a nice vehicle.

Commodore SS:



"Acclaim" sedan:



Statesman:



http://www.holden.com.au/www-holden/...allery?navid=4

M.

 

Yeah the folks on the GM boards been talking about this model for sometime now. They are greatly looking forward to this.

Is GM still thinking about getting rid of another brand??

 

Well, mag, the way things are going at Saturn GM might as well dump it. GM management has already stripped Saturn of almost everything that ever made it unique in the first place. The S-series, spin-off transmission filters, Saturn-designed engines, plastic body panels, customer perks....all of those are either gone or on their way out.

 

Saturn is getting 2 nice cars the Aura sedan and the Solstice based roadster which will be a little more nicer and refined. If those cars stay true to their concepts then I think they will be good sellers. I agree Buick has made some nice cars like the Riviera, Regatta, Regal Grand National, GNX, Park Avenue. If Buick can bring back these cars and maybe something else a little more sportier then I think they will get more younger buyers. Buick is known to be building well made reliable vehicles unlike many other GM brands so they have the quality reputation already. If one brand is going to go I would say Pontiac of GMAC. Pontiac has pretty much lost its reputation for being the sporty alternative for GM which goes to Cadillac now. All Pontiac models seem to be loosing money and are known for cheap plastics, poor build quality, unreliable, and being outperformed by the competition. The GTO should have sold very well given its performance and price yet it sits on lots with relatively no interest. Buick and Saturn are not using or phasing out the old pushrod engines for more high tech smoother motors and GM as a whole should do the same. The Corvette seems like the only car that can really take advantage of a pushrod so that should be the only car that uses it. Australia gets many of the good performance cars we don't like Holden, Twin turbo Ford sedans, Cosmo, Skyline, RX-7 until 1998, FTO, as well as few others. Guess if GM wants performance they go to Australia for Holden for many of its models.

 

Sell? Maybe.....but they won't be true Saturns. Neither of them have the plastic bodies, spin-off transmission filters, and exclusive Saturn powertrains that Saturns are SUPPOSED to have.

Read my previous post......GM management is turning Saturn into another Oldsmobile...perhaps to replace the one they ruined a decade ago.

 

We already had this vehicle,it was the Cadillac Catera . The recent GTO is also based on the 2 door version of these cars

 

That commodore that whip posted up looks pretty sporty.
See, when it comes to domestic(mmm sort of), the exterior looks great, but it's the damn (and I'm being pretty strong) interior that is such a turn off. If you're going to be cheap, at least make it look presentable, like Nissan (from what I keep hearing and reading) . OK that may be a low stab and unfair b/c I don't own a Nissan and can't say, but Nissan's interior looks good to me though.

 

This version of the Commodore that whip posted looks a LOT like the now-discontinued Saturn L-series. Is this supposed to be the foundation for the Buick V8 rear-drive car? If so, we aren't talking Park-Avenue or Roadmaster size here but Regal's instead.

 

A rear-wheel drive GM sedan? Law Enforcement and rental car fleets, rejoice!!!!

I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt, but The General has proven time & time again they can get it WRONG.