mmarshall

Several times.....in several different threads......I've said to give Bob Lutz a little more time at GM before writing them off....and that big Buicks were not just for geezers. ( In fact, along with a couple of sportier cars as well, I had one myself as a teenager ).

So...not having seen the car yet or test-driven it, I will not comment on it any further except to say that this car, like several others, is currently on my review schedule. Anyhow, here is AUTOWEEK's ( a very respected auto publication) write-up on it after comparing the new Lucerne to an Avalon and an ES330.

http://www.autoweek.com/article.cms?articleId=103482

ST430

sorry but i have to laugh...

On sale: Now
Base Price: $27,715
Powertrain: 3.8-liter, 197-hp, 227-lb-ft V6; fwd, four-speed automatic
Curb Weight: 3764 lbs
0 to 60 mph: 8.4 seconds (est.)
Fuel Mileage (EPA combined): 22 mpg

5 bucks says this car will be discontinued after 2 years....

xioix

from the looks of it, I like the Avalon in every category

mmarshall

A Northstar-derived V8 is available.....they generally turn 6-7 second 0-60 times.......and for only 5 bucks, you don't sound very confident, especially considering the LeSabre has been in production since the early 1960's.

mmarshall

Yes, the Avalon overall is a nice car....I did a review of it last spring.......but IMO the interior quality and design leave a lot to be desired. The car's best feature, far and away, is the drivetrain.
Toyota, IMO, should have left the Avalon basically the way it was from 1995-2000...the first-generation car. The last two generations, even with their better drivetrains, were nowhere near as nice inside or out as the first one was.

xioix

the V8 option sounds intresting, but the Avalon does do 6 flat and has pretty good gas mileage, unless the Northstar can get equivalent times and gas mileage

mmarshall

Yes, like I said before....the Avalon's best feature is the drivetrain. It was the only thing I was really impressed with when I drove the car. The ES330, though...that was a different story.

I have a high opinion of AUTOWEEK, though...as I do Car and Driver. My feeling is that if they like the Lucerne, that tells you something.......and NOT they have just become a bunch of geezers themselves.

xioix

I like the design of the interior

mmarshall

Opinion here at CL seems to be about 50 / 50 on the interior between those who like it and those who don't. I, of course, respect those opinions.
And...while the Avalon's interior isn't quite my cup of tea, it sure beats some of the stuff Chris Bangle has come up with at BMW.

Threxx

Oh man, the Lucerne is about the most laughed out "new" car coming out to date. It sits on nearly if not exactly the same chassis as the 1995 Old Aurora did. Yeah, the discontinued car that was discontinued for a reason.

4-speed automatic? Still? Come on GM, the 6L80E is long overdue. Hurry up with it, especially in "all new" cars at this price range.

The 3.8L is old news - to put that motor in an "all new" car is about as laughable as it gets. Scott Settlemire told me it's only to use up the remaining supplies as the factories wind down and after that we'll probably see the 3.9 which will be a more respectable base motor.

The Northstar is cool and all but initial acceleration figures have actually shown the Avalon to be as quick or even a hair quicker than the Northstar V8 powered Lucerne, which well equipped comes in at over 40 grand. Sorry but for GM to stick a 40k dollar sticker price on that car with a straight face is insane; that's approaching where a base GS300 starts out at. Not even remotely in the same class.

The only thing I really like about the Lucerne is the magnaride suspension. Really cool concept with even more potential than has been demonstrated to date, I'd like to see all of GM's higher end cars with it standard or at least optional within the next couple of years assuming they can prove its reliability.

I like the exterior looks on the lucerne OK but the interior looks typical GM piece-mill. I wouldn't complain much about it on a mid-20k dollar car like you could probably get the base Lucerne for, but the Avalon interior still looks nicer IMO. And again, when you load the lucerne up and get a 40k price tag, that interior looks flat out horrible in the light of competition.

RNM GS3

That car does nothing for me. The interior and exterior are very plain. I predict this will be another BIG mistake...................Buick has to come out with a car that sets it apart from the other cars both in styling and performance, like Chrysler did with the 300C.

My father used to have a 1981 Buick Riviera that i used to love, it had a great interior and a powerful distinctive exterior with a huge grill. The car just looked IMPRESSIVE. .............Its pretty sad what has happened to American cars, there is hardly any that I would consider to purchase.

ST430

v8 fwd...uh huh...can u say olds aurora reincarnated?

le sabre lol...what a pos...sorry. images of my buds hoopti just popped in my head over and over.

buick yup sure, okay i'll spot up 10 bucks, happy?

Threxx

Heh... as I mentioned in my last post it is the Olds Aurora chassis from 11-12 years ago almost unchanged.

To its credit they also used it in the previous gen Caddy DTS, though that wasn't exactly the hot kid on the block, either.

mmarshall

OK...I respect all your opinions here.....that is why I posted this thread.

I will wait until I look at the car throughly and test-drive it before posting mine in detail.
One opinion I WILL post now, though. Even without seeing it yet in person, I disagree with ST430's comment about it being gone in 2 years. I highly doubt that will happen. Buick has too loyal a following and customer base.

ST430

dont take that too literally...just a slight poke at a trend that gm has been doing with their cars and their need for consolidation because of massive revenue shortage. having the new chevy impala ss having similar specs cannot make this situation better.

honestly i thought the aurora was going to be a great car when it introduced. i thought it was going to be the NEXT GM. unfortuantely customers never warmed up to it, even when the V8 was introduced.

Its great to see Lutz finding his way around new projects at GM, like the Solstice, but I dont know if he has the knack to do huge mass production everyday cars, and not sports / niches.

edit: okay actually this car sounds perfect for rental fleets!