QOTD: How Can Buick Be Cool Again?
A social-media ad from Buick that seems to compare the current Buick Envista crossover to the legendary Buick GNX is getting some attention -- none of it good.
Our friends at rival Jalopnik sum it up well -- the Envista isn't a bad vehicle, but no one will think of it as cool, like they did the GNX. The GNX was cool back in the day and it's still cool now. But the Envista is just another anonymous crossover. I don't even notice them in traffic.
Some will argue that Buick hasn't been cool in a very long time. For folks my age -- elder Millennial -- it was the "old man" brand. Indeed, my grandparents drove Buicks, at least right up until my uncle talked my grandmother into getting a 2006 Chevrolet Impala SS (hello, torque steer). One of those Buicks, a 1996 LeSabre, ended up in my father's possession and I got to drive it a bit during my high-school years. Quicker than you'd think in a straight line, couldn't turn, rode as soft as a pillow. Big comfort and the bulletproof 3800.
But cool? No. Not even with wire wheels and whitewalls.
Before it become a crossover-only brand, Buick tried to foist other moving slumberware like the LaCrosse and Lucerne on us. That didn't work, and if it weren't for the Chinese market, it would've been Buick not Pontiac that GM took out back and shot during the bailout mishigas.
To its credit, Buick/GM tried to fix things about a decade or so ago with the Regal GS -- available with three pedals at one point -- and the Regal TourX wagon. Neither was bad -- I'd rock a GS in a heartbeat, and the TourX was more fun than it should've been -- but neither was really, truly cool. At least not to the masses -- a few car enthusiast dorks drooling over a wagon doesn't help.
Social-media missteps aside, what can Buick do to be cool again? Soup-up a crossover? Slap an appearance package on one of its SUVs and call it a day? Or maybe the brand needs a sports sedan?
If I knew the answer, I'd submit my resume to GM and prep a moving truck for the new HQ in downtown Detroit. But I don't.
Maybe you do. Sound off below.
[Image: Buick]
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Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.
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So the Envista is actually one of the less snooze small SUVs. To me it looks like a raised modern 70s Skyhawk.
If you accept that we are primarily a crossover/truck market now there are two essentials for brand identity.
A) One of the brands has to focus on tall car crossovers and one on more truckish. In GM, Buick should be crossovers and GMC should be more the Bronco/4Runner/Wrangler competition
B) One of the divisions prob the crossover one, needs a sedan for the 20 percent or so traditional buyer.
Today's Buick might not have a "cool" factor, but the products are not totally bland oatmeal, either. The vehicles have distinct design features, and there is cohesiveness on the showroom floor. Any of the models could wear a Mercedes badge, and be mistaken for one, in a parking garage. In particular, Envista offers a dramatic profile and glamorous vibe, at a value price point.