Behind the Wheel: 2006 Buick Lucerne: So Shipshape the Portholes Seem to Fit April 23, 2006
It looks good. It rides and handles well. It’s quiet, comfortable and well finished. And is likely to be reliable. And, go figure, it happens to be a Buick.
In the intervening decades, Buick’s portholes have come and gone, and they made a brief appearance on the Park Avenue as that big sedan faded away. They are back on the Lucerne, which replaces both the Park Avenue and the less expensive LeSabre in Buick’s lineup, with three portholes on each side of V-6 models and four per front fender denoting a V-8 ? the first such engine in a Buick passenger car since 1995.
On the overstuffed Park Avenue, the added trim came off as an affectation. It seems more fitting on the Lucerne, a respectable large sedan that accomplishes two seemingly contradictory feats: it feels contemporary, yet it is unmistakably a Buick. Of course, General Motors has struggled in recent years to redefine Buick for generations who came to think of it as bland, bourgeois and old-fashioned ? a brand of cars that your great-grandparents might drive before they check into the retirement home. The Lucerne represents a considerable step toward changing that image.
The design is fresh and modern, with a simplified almost-oval grille, raked-back windshield and jaunty roofline. The beltline, running along the lower edge of the side windows, is high in the current fashion, and rises toward the rear for a sporting look.
Despite Buick’s dowager image and dismal sales ? down by two-thirds over 20 years ? the division’s reputation for quality has been one bright spot. Recent Buicks have received high ratings from both J. D. Power & Associates and Consumer Reports magazine; the Detroit-Hamtramck plant that assembles the Lucerne is rated among the country’s best.
The Lucerne is advertised as “beyond precision but not beyond your reach.” Precision, in Buick’s lexicon, involves tight manufacturing clearances ? the goal is just 0.5 millimeter between adjacent surfaces in the upper instrument panel, for example. The body panels must fit tightly, too.
Based on my testing of two Lucernes, I’d say Buick has met its goals. Further, the car’s overall driving dynamics are as solid as its main competitors’. This is not an agile sport sedan, of course, but it seems to be a satisfying family car in the $30,000 range.
Like the defunct LeSabre and Park Avenue models, the Lucerne is a full-size front-drive sedan, though this biggest Buick is now based on the upscale architecture of the Cadillac DTS. In a nod to Buick’s many older customers, the car can be bought with front and rear bench seats that accommodate a total of six adults, though Buick caters to baby boomers and import-car fans by offering individual front seats with a center console.
The two lower trim levels, the CX and CXL, have a 3.8-liter V-6 engine; this 197-horsepower power plant, an old-style pushrod design, is familiar to millions of people who have owned various G.M. cars. Optional on the CXL and standard on the top-line CXS is the acclaimed Northstar V-8. Borrowed from Cadillac, it displaces 4.6 liters and makes 275 horsepower.
Standard across all lines is G.M.’s ubiquitous four-speed automatic transmission, and this is one area where the Lucerne does not measure up. Five- or six-speed automatics are now expected in this class (and even among cheaper sedans).
But the expected safety features are here: advanced air bags that deploy in different ways depending on how one is seated; inflatable curtains that protect the front and rear seats; electronic stability control to prevent spinouts; and antilock brakes with emergency brake assist, which apply full stopping power in a panic situation. Recent front-crash tests by the government gave the Lucerne the top (five star) rating for both the driver and front passenger. Side crash tests are yet to come.
- Posted in : Buick,Uncategorized
- Author : arnold
Comments»
no comments yet - be the first?