Saturday, March 13, 2010

Test Drive: Buick LaCrosse

2010 Buick LaCrosse CXS
By now you’ve seen the commercials where Buick calls out Lexus and claiming that their new LaCrosse is as good, or better, than the ES series. And not only is it better, that it’s cheaper, too. Sounds too good to be true, don’t it? We thought so too until we hopped behind the wheel of Buick’s new mid-sized luxury sedan. The car that was designed partly by GM’s Chinese arm—Buick’s are HUGE in China. Ask about ‘em—packs in a hell of a lot of luxury in a package that doesn’t look as if it was made for your grandmother. Read on to see if Buick latest offering is as good as they claim. Spoiler alert: it is…

PRICE: Base $33,765, As Tested: $36,560

POWER: 280 hp, 3.6L V6

MPG: 17 city/ 27 hwy

2010 Buick LaCrosse CXS
RIDE: The goal for the LaCrosse, as you can see by the commercials, was to go head to head with Lexus’ ES. But in order to do battle against their mid-sized, front wheel drive offering, they had to make sure the LaCrosse was just as comfortable to drive. And they’ve succeeded. The CXS we drove with the 3.6 L, 280 hp V6, was a smooth as any Lex we’ve driven. There’s a real sense of calm when you drive it. The six-speed automatic transmissions shifts smoothly, the road noise is kept to a minimum and the steering is nicely weighted to provide you with just the right amount of info. Not enough for you to confuse it for a sports sedan, but enough so you don’t fall asleep behind the wheel.

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