GM Teases 2013 Buick Encore

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by PeeBee

Well, yes, rebadged, as the Buick Regal

I thought it was kind of funny because you mentioned "platform sharing =/= rebadging"...

Is the Regal an Insignia rebadge? Yes.

Is the Insignia sold here as any other car besides the Regal? No.

Who cares if the car is rebadged if it isn't already sold here as anything else?

[JamesNoBrakes]

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Anyone who still thinks Buick builds old people cars are delusional and really need to go look at a Toyota dealership's lot.

Regal GS is boring, not up to the level of everything else. Yes, toyota builds boring cars, that doesn't excuse buick. Sorry, I just don't see any point to the brand.

[DGthe3]

Originally Posted by JamesNoBrakes

Regal GS is boring, not up to the level of everything else. Yes, toyota builds boring cars, that doesn't excuse buick. Sorry, I just don't see any point to the brand.

Because the point of Buick isn't to build the most exciting cars in the world. But that doesn't mean that they are boring either. Think classy, refined, elegant, smooth. Contrast that against Cadillac thats supposed be big, bold, brash & ballsy. The idea is to bookend both ends of the luxury segment.

[JamesNoBrakes]

Originally Posted by DGthe3

Because the point of Buick isn't to build the most exciting cars in the world. But that doesn't mean that they are boring either. Think classy, refined, elegant, smooth. Contrast that against Cadillac thats supposed be big, bold, brash & ballsy. The idea is to bookend both ends of the luxury segment.

Sorry, I think of Cadillac as refined, elegant, smooth, because I do not define cadillac by the CTS-V, I just think that it helps their position and impression. And although I may think of mercedes or BMW as more refined, etc, I think they are an example of why you don't need a seperate brand for your "softer" cars. Regular CTSs are plenty "soft", and now they will have another model to help with the branding. BMW makes their top performing cars "M"s, Cadillac "V", Mercedes "AMG". Why does GM need TWO seperate "high end/luxury" brands? Just doesn't make sense and I think defending this is simply trying to split hairs. Really? You're going to argue buick is "refined", but cadillac is not? (yes, I realize we're back to discussing relative to american cars, not euros), buick is "elegant" but cadillac is not? Sorry, it just makes no sense and seems to be one of the reasons the american car manufacturers have so much trouble. They try to keep these brands because they "think" american buyers want them, there's so much "heritage" and all of that, but they are just money-pits. Condensing the lines and then increasing the cadillac models would probably be a far better move for the company, except the UAW would never allow it. The problem is that to survive and be competative, a company needs to constantly change. They can never assume that they'll be able to crank out a certain model or brand into infinity, it just never works in practice. Someone comes out with something better or cheaper. If you can't change, you die. Ford is better in this regard, although I like cadillacs and GMs better.

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by JamesNoBrakes

Regal GS is boring, not up to the level of everything else. Yes, toyota builds boring cars, that doesn't excuse buick. Sorry, I just don't see any point to the brand.

You obviously haven't been paying attention to the GS reviews that have raved about the car's handling characteristics.

Buick prints money for GM. Every single model. That's in China AND North America. That's the only point you need.

[cab2g]

ok, my whole life I was never a fan of Buick. But hands down, if you compare a 2012 buick model to any 2012 toyota model, you'll walk away thinking toyota is the lamest brand ever... I'm not saying Buick is awesome, but I am saying that Toyota, today, is one of the least inspired and boring brands available.

If Cadillac didn't exist, I'd consider buying a Buick. However, for myself, I'd rather shell out a couple thousand more and get a Cadillac as I like the hard lines that Caddys have. But my wife on the other hand may love some of the Buicks coming out. They don't look to masculine. So I think she may appreciate them.

[JamesNoBrakes]

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

You obviously haven't been paying attention to the GS reviews that have raved about the car's handling characteristics.

Buick prints money for GM. Every single model. That's in China AND North America. That's the only point you need.

I did read some of the reviews, they said what I'm saying, it's a great car for buick, but compared to competitors it still falls short, but not by a huge amount anymore.

[PeeBee]

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Is the Regal an Insignia rebadge? Yes.

Is the Insignia sold here as any other car besides the Regal? No.

Who cares if the car is rebadged if it isn't already sold here as anything else?

I certainly don't care whether they rebadge the car as an Opel/Vauxhall/Buick/Holden, but it still defies my understanding why you make the remark that "platform sharing" doesn't equal "rebadging", when the original question was "so for the first time Buick does not get a rebadged Chevrolet." (which basically you prove to be wrong by saying the Buick Regal is indeed nothing but a rebadged Opel Insignia...)

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by PeeBee

I certainly don't care whether they rebadge the car as an Opel/Vauxhall/Buick/Holden, but it still defies my understanding why you make the remark that "platform sharing" doesn't equal "rebadging", when the original question was "so for the first time Buick does not get a rebadged Chevrolet." (which basically you prove to be wrong by saying the Buick Regal is indeed nothing but a rebadged Opel Insignia...)

Is Opel a Chevrolet now? I was not aware.

There is a Chevrolet version of the Insignia sold in SA, but the Regal was derived from Insignia far before the Chevrolet went into production.

That statement is even more wrong because even the last-generation Buicks were not rebadged Chevrolets. W-body LaCrosse =/= W-body Impala, H-body Lucerne - No Chevrolet counterpart.

[PeeBee]

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Is Opel a Chevrolet now? I was not aware.

No, Opel isn't a Chevrolet.

Neither is a Buick Regal a car that only shares it's platform with the Opel Insignia. It's rebadged (which was the point I was trying to make in above statement)

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by PeeBee

No, Opel isn't a Chevrolet.

Neither is a Buick Regal a car that only shares it's platform with the Opel Insignia. It's rebadged (which was the point I was trying to make in above statement)

Did you even read the post I was replying to? Did you even read my original post? The Regal isn't a rebadged Chevrolet. That's the entire point. There is no Chevrolet sold in the US that looks exactly like a Regal with a Chevrolet bowtie slapped on. It doesn't matter that the Regal is a rebadged Opel Insignia, it is NOT a rebadged Chevrolet.

I don't understand why this is so hard for you to comprehend.

Bottom line: No North American Buicks are rebadged Chevrolets. End of story. You cannot debate that fact further.

[DGthe3]

So ... about that Buick Encore ...

[King T]

I like my Regal

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Buick prints money for GM. Every single model. That's in China AND North America. That's the only point you need.

Pretty much. That's why Pontiac got the axe before Buick. Even though it would have been a better company to have as far as a variation in the GM lineup since it could have been marketed as more performance and sporty cars, Pontiac had been losing money since the 70's.

Plus for years now Buick has been a leader for GM in quality and reliability ratings, even besting Cadillac a couple of times. Even beating Lexus once!

This was from 2007
Buick ties Lexus for No. 1 in car reliability
Survey finds Detroit brands making headway against Japanese competitors.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- For the first time in 12 years, Toyota's Lexus luxury brand has to share its top rank in J.D. Power and Associates' annual Vehicle Dependability Study.

And it has to share it with an American car.

General Motors' Buick brand tied Lexus in the study, which measures the number of problems owners experience with their cars after three years of ownership.

Following Lexus and Buick in the rankings were GM's Cadillac luxury brand, Ford's Mercury brand and Honda's Honda brand.

Toyota's mass-market Toyota brand ranked sixth.

"Consumers don't necessarily need to pay premium prices to obtain high quality and dependability," said Neal Oddes, director of product research and analysis for J.D. Power and Associates.

"With three non-premium nameplates - Buick, Honda and Mercury - ranking within the top five," he said, "and particularly with Buick tying with Lexus for the top rank, consumers seeking a vehicle with strong dependability have good choices at various price levels."

J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study is based on responses from more than 53,000 original owners of 2004 model year vehicles.

Owners of the top-ranked Lexus and Buick vehicles experienced 145 problems per 100 vehicles. Owners of second-ranked Cadillac vehicles experienced 162 problems per 100 vehicles.

I'm interested to see how the Encore is going to turn out

[PeeBee]

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Did you even read the post I was replying to? Did you even read my original post? The Regal isn't a rebadged Chevrolet. That's the entire point. There is no Chevrolet sold in the US that looks exactly like a Regal with a Chevrolet bowtie slapped on. It doesn't matter that the Regal is a rebadged Opel Insignia, it is NOT a rebadged Chevrolet.

I don't understand why this is so hard for you to comprehend.

Bottom line: No North American Buicks are rebadged Chevrolets. End of story. You cannot debate that fact further.

I read very well and you seem to miss my point all along.

Buick Regal GS = rebadged Opel Insignia.

Your remark "platform sharing =/= rebadging"... What has it got to do with the cars you mention?

Platform sharing = ie. VW golf/Audi A3. Two different cars, with the same chassis setup. Not two almost identical cars with different badges/grilles.

SEOD.