My 2018 Buick LaCrosse, So Far, so Good.
#31
In a nutshell, unless any of you have more questions or comments, I'll wrap up my own comments in the thread by saying that my opinion has not changed on one issue....IMHO, even in spite of its Buick nameplate, this is the car that Cadillac should have replaced the DeVille/DTS with, and didn't. I've never liked the XTS, and, for the most part, still don't....the CT6 is an improvement in some areas, but not in others. The Lacrosse would have made a fabulous DTS replacement, and would have required little additional work or development-money spent beyond substituting Cadillac emblems for the Buick Tri-Shields, removing the traditional Buick portholes from the fenders, adding a few things inside like a wood-option for the steering wheel (the Buick Intellink system is already much better than Cadillac's CUE). In fact, I'll await further judgement until I see the upcoming Avenir (super-luxury) version of the Lacrosse....that will probably approximate what a Cadillac version would have been like. So, IMO, for those Cadillac traditionalists who still mourn the loss of the DTS (and there are plenty of them out there...I know some of them myself).....here's your car. Just get it with the 18" wheels, and avoid the 20s
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-14-17 at 09:49 PM.
#32
That's exactly the point, they don't want to serve that customer with the Cadillac brand, they want to serve them with the Buick brand.
#33
also, having driven most of the devilles and dts of that era, i don't think they were all you think they were. The ride was stiff and hard, and being fwd and very heavy didn't help either. the northstar engine was strong though, the cabin plenty roomy, and it was fairly quiet. but i bet your lacrosse is leaps and bounds better in every way.
#34
the dts has been gone for nearly 7 years. anyone 'still mourning' about it should probably seek therapy.
also, having driven most of the devilles and dts of that era, i don't think they were all you think they were. The ride was stiff and hard, and being fwd and very heavy didn't help either. the northstar engine was strong though, the cabin plenty roomy, and it was fairly quiet. but i bet your lacrosse is leaps and bounds better in every way.
also, having driven most of the devilles and dts of that era, i don't think they were all you think they were. The ride was stiff and hard, and being fwd and very heavy didn't help either. the northstar engine was strong though, the cabin plenty roomy, and it was fairly quiet. but i bet your lacrosse is leaps and bounds better in every way.
#35
That's an interesting way of looking at it, I'll admit....but then the question comes up if Cadillac really benefitted from that. Their sedan market is suffering, but then, you could say that about virtually all of the large GM sedans....yep, including the Lacrosse. They are on thin ice, and might not survive after another year or so. As has been emphasized many times, the SUV craze is clearly dominating the market.
I think, though, that, in the long run, though GM took some flak for it from enthusiasts and the auto press, the decision to ax the Oldsmobile and Pontiac Divisions, rather than Buick, will show to have been correct. Oldsmobile, under John Rock's leadership, had lost many of their former customers, who had migrated to Buick after Olds dropped the big 88 and 98 models. The Aurora, which replaced those models, simply didn't appeal to them (I didn't care much for it, either), and the rest of their line-up had deteriorated into some rather unrefined, unreliable, and unimpressive vehicles....certainly not what we had seen a few decades earlier. Pontiac, except for their impressive Holden-sourced GTOs and G8s (which, ironically, didn't sell), was just as bad, if not worse than Olds...at the time, their American-designed vehicles used ultra-cheap parts, with fit/finish levels that wouldn't fly at Walmart. Their non-Holden sedans and coupes overlapped too much with Chevy's, and a lot of their former customer base, as their incomes rose, had moved on to foreign brands. Buick, in the U.S., may have had a reputation as a Geezer brand, but at least the customers were there, they were loyal, they liked what they had, and, in China, the brand was growing by leaps and bounds.....the Chinese public simply loved them. Yep, in spite of many goof and flops, I think history will show that was one decision the GM marketers got right.
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-15-17 at 06:28 AM.
#36
also, having driven most of the devilles and dts of that era, i don't think they were all you think they were. The ride was stiff and hard, and being fwd and very heavy didn't help either. the northstar engine was strong though, the cabin plenty roomy, and it was fairly quiet.
Now...I will give you one concession. Though the DTS and its FWD probably had (all else equal) better winter traction than the RWD Town Car, neither one offered an AWD option for the Snow Belt. I never liked their XTS or MKS replacements, but both handled better than their predecessors, and, at least, offered the AWD option that their predecessors lacked.
but i bet your lacrosse is leaps and bounds better in every way.
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-15-17 at 06:56 AM.
#37
From the looks of it, the Buick Lacrosse is a sales dud, especially for a brand new redesigned model.
I would almost argue that the Impala and the LaCrosse are not big enough to be honest.
The Verano, Regal, and Lacrosse almost over lap each other from the left and the right of the Regal.
The last gen Avalon was a good size for seniors and older folks coming from those DTS models.
I think Buick should reconsider the sizing of the Lacrosse the next time around. Make it ever bigger
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-15-17 at 07:32 AM.
#39
The main forte of the DTS was comfort.
Now...I will give you one concession. Though the DTS and its FWD probably had (all else equal) better winter traction than the RWD Town Car, neither one offered an AWD option for the Snow Belt. I never liked their XTS or MKS replacements, but both handled better than their predecessors, and, at least, offered the AWD option that their predecessors lacked.
#40
I also don't remember Devilles riding exceptionally well. Certainly not as well as Lincoln Town Cars. If you read comparison reviews they mention that too.
#41
the dts has been gone for nearly 7 years. anyone 'still mourning' about it should probably seek therapy.
also, having driven most of the devilles and dts of that era, i don't think they were all you think they were. The ride was stiff and hard, and being fwd and very heavy didn't help either. the northstar engine was strong though, the cabin plenty roomy, and it was fairly quiet. but i bet your lacrosse is leaps and bounds better in every way.
also, having driven most of the devilles and dts of that era, i don't think they were all you think they were. The ride was stiff and hard, and being fwd and very heavy didn't help either. the northstar engine was strong though, the cabin plenty roomy, and it was fairly quiet. but i bet your lacrosse is leaps and bounds better in every way.
#42
Originally Posted by bitkahuna
but i'm in florida, land of retirees remember. i've never met one who mopes around mourning the DTS.
Anyhow, it's water over the dam. Like it or not, GM, for whatever reason, did not (as of yet) do a Cadillac version of this car....the steady introduction of Cadillac SUVs, plus whatever money is going into the (eventual) CT6 and CTS replacement, has probably eaten up most or all of the development budget.
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-15-17 at 03:07 PM.
#43
My neighbor at my Toronto place is on his second Buick. He is 82, he went from a Verano into a Buick Regal. Very nice initial quality, he went for black interior with a white exterior and it is turbo. I have never heard him talk about a DTS.
I never meant that there is DTS mourning. I meant that I believe Buick should of made the Lacrosse bigger. The Lacrosse is not selling, and neither is the Impala. So GM might as well give customers something they cannot get anywhere else. A really, really, big Florida Turnpike type of car.
Funny enough, I just looked up the Buick Lucerne, The dimensions of the Lucerne are identical to that of the Cadillac DTS aside for 4 inches in length. The Buick is actually wider, and taller. Same wheelbase.
you may be wrong, yes... can't speak for LexsCTJill, but i'm in florida, land of retirees remember. i've never met one who mopes around mourning the DTS. they've moved on, to avalons, mercedes, lexus, suvs, etc. and the "DTS" was just ONE of the former DeVille models..
Funny enough, I just looked up the Buick Lucerne, The dimensions of the Lucerne are identical to that of the Cadillac DTS aside for 4 inches in length. The Buick is actually wider, and taller. Same wheelbase.
#44
Just out of curiosity, what did he think of his Verano? As you know, I was quite pleased with mine, though Buick could have made the tires and suspension a little more compliant on rough surfaces, at least in cold weather when they tend to be stiff....and the 6-speed transmission had a few hiccups here and there on braking and low-speed acceleration.
I have never heard him talk about a DTS.
I never meant that there is DTS mourning. I meant that I believe Buick should of made the Lacrosse bigger. The Lacrosse is not selling, and neither is the Impala. So GM might as well give customers something they cannot get anywhere else. A really, really, big Florida Turnpike type of car.
Funny enough, I just looked up the Buick Lucerne, The dimensions of the Lucerne are identical to that of the Cadillac DTS aside for 4 inches in length. The Buick is actually wider, and taller. Same wheelbase.
#45
If you refer to the Buick logo routinely as the "tri-shield" I would say you worship the brand lol.
Not a lot of casual BMW owners refer to the logo as the "roundel".
Not a lot of casual BMW owners refer to the logo as the "roundel".