2012 Buick Lacrosse with eAssist

[Drew Dowdell]

The North American International Auto Show starts tomorrow and for the trip up to Detroit, Buick has provided me with a 2012 Buick Lacrosse with e-Assist. For 2012, the Lacrosse has a standard a 4-cylinder engine with a light electrical assist and automatic stop.

The e-Assist system is somewhere between BMW's Efficient Dynamics auto-stop/brake regeneration system and Honda's Integrated Motor Assist in terms of the level of hybridization. E-Assist offers a 15 horsepower and 79 ft-lb of torque electrical boost to the gasoline engine where Efficient Dynamics offers none. The Honda IMA system adds 23 horsepower and 78 ft-lb of torque.

So how does it drive? Having driven a 2011 Lacrosse 4-cylinder without e-Assist the very first thing I noticed was the extra torque in the low RPM range. You won't be pulling stumps with your Lacrosse, but the electrical boost at low RPM gives the 4-cylinder a more V6 feel in terms of take off. The gear ratios are also tuned well to get you rolling up to speed swiftly. It is still a 4-cylinder, but in normal city and suburban driving, it will feel like a V6. Speaking of city and suburban driving, according to the computer, I'm averaging 26.6 mpg in that combination.

The transmission will keep the RPM higher when needed and Buick's QuietTuning does its job keeping engine noise out of the cabin. Full throttle acceleration isn't swift, but the tach will swing nearly all the way to 7,000 rpm without protest. Refinement of the 2.4 coupled with the electric motor is excellent, continuing with the nearly V6 feel displayed in city driving.

Those wishing for more power for drag racing would do best to check off the box for the 303 horsepower 3.6 liter V6 and be on their way, but the 2.4 with e-Assist will satisfy 90% of buyers out there who are more concerned with fuel economy than pink slips.

I have yet to test out the long distance highway fuel economy, but as soon as I click save on this post, I am getting in the car to start my 250 mile trip to Detroit where I'll pick up our friend Z-06. Send me your questions in the meantime.

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[Drew Dowdell]

First stop in Ohio and I'm getting over 36 miles to gallon... The computer tells me I have over 440 mile range after filling up.

[Drew Dowdell]

Second stop and still registering 36 mpg

[ocnblu]

If you have a chance and the inclination, check it with pen and paper as well. My Cruze had an optimistic DIC.

[CanadianBacon94]

is there a battery warranty or is it under powertrain, i don't want to be the downer here but how long are the batteries supposed to last?

[regfootball]

what is your average speed? 36.1 mpg= nice.....

[PurdueGuy]

Sounds great! As long as there aren't reliability/longevity issues, this should be a great product!

[pow]

Apparently the gear ratios, or rather, final drive ratio, are tuned for fuel economy rather than acceleration. The addition of eAssist allowed GM to keep the RPMs lower than before while still allowing for adequate acceleration.

Sounds like the electric assist more than made up for the reduced engine power to the wheels... nice. How often does it downshift on the highway? eAssist is supposed to reduce the need for that as well.

[CanadianBacon94]

Is their a noticeable fan noise like some critics have said?

[Drew Dowdell]

If you have a chance and the inclination, check it with pen and paper as well. My Cruze had an optimistic DIC.

28.9 on the first 1/2 tank (pen and paper) the first 1/2 of that was my city/suburban cycle

what is your average speed? 36.1 mpg= nice.....

I didn't look on the DIC, but I did 65 - 70 most of the way.

[Drew Dowdell]

Apparently the gear ratios, or rather, final drive ratio, are tuned for fuel economy rather than acceleration. The addition of eAssist allowed GM to keep the RPMs lower than before while still allowing for adequate acceleration.

Sounds like the electric assist more than made up for the reduced engine power to the wheels... nice. How often does it downshift on the highway? eAssist is supposed to reduce the need for that as well.

under steady cruise, only under a steep hill, but it will downshift twice when it does.

[Drew Dowdell]

Is their a noticeable fan noise like some critics have said?

I didn't know anyone had reported that. I've noticed no fan noise. It's as quiet as a Buick

[Z-06]

Not a car for my taste. But a big car with great fuel economy, smooth ride and semi-taut suspension - it would be a perfect car for eating miles.

[CanadianBacon94]

one website review mentioned it sounded like a vaccum under hard acceleration due to the fan at the back pumping air into the battery

[ocnblu]

Yes I read about the fan noise in the Malibu Eco too, but it was audible to rear seat passengers only. Those passengers likened it to an airplane taking off.

[CanadianBacon94]

To think of it they might have been talking about the Malibu, is the fan always on Ocnblu?

[Drew Dowdell]

I haven't heard anything like that at all.

[CanadianBacon94]

Well good to hear that Olds, they must have made strides to keep it extra quiet in the buick

[Drew Dowdell]

The Lacrosse goes back to GM in about 2 hours... and I'm really sad to see it go. I filled up the car the night before I left Detroit. A full tank gets you over 500 mile crusing range but I was a bit more hurried coming home and averaged 33mpg which cut the range back a bit.

Power is softer than one might hope under hard acceleration, but in normal situations, it still rolls with a V6-like feel.

The car that GM will be dropping off to replace it will be good for the Nor'easter that is predicted to hit here in the next 24 hours. Any guesses as to what it is?

[SAmadei]

You're not getting a Nor'easter. You might have a blizzard coming, but not a Nor'easter... a Nor'easter is like a weak winter hurricane... where the center of the storm is mostly over the ocean, and it heads northeast with the gulf stream. You're too far inland to get much Nor'easter weather.

You scared me, though... I had to drop my lunch and pull up the weather.

[Drew Dowdell]

We've had 'em

But, what did i get for it?

[z28luvr01]

[Drew Dowdell]

After the contacts I made in NAIAS this year, you guys aren't going to have such easy guesses soon ;-)

[ocnblu]

Is it by any chance a GMC Terrain?

[regfootball]

overall, did you pretty much get around 30 mpg?

[Drew Dowdell]

It was pretty much what the sticker says. Highway cruising (at legal speeds) got me 36 mpg. City I got 27.6mpg. Blend that to suit your driving.

[ocnblu]

A diesel LaCrosse would be less complicated, more long-lived, more torque-heavy, and get much better fuel mileage while having an uncompromised luggage area.

[pow]

A diesel LaCrosse would be less complicated, more long-lived, more torque-heavy, and get much better fuel mileage while having an uncompromised luggage area.

Modern diesels are pretty complex these days, arguably more so than most hybrids. You've got variable-geometry turbochargers, high pressure fuel pumps, twin balance shafts, particulate filters, SCR, etc. Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive and Ford's PowerSplit powertrains are among the most reliable out there; lots of taxis with 250K+ miles still going strong.

Passat TDI gets 4 MPG more on the highway, but it's also 600 lbs lighter. More NVH, too. Modern, downsized petrol engines with direct injection, turbocharging, and variable valve timing are closing the efficiency gap with diesels.

Edited January 20, 2012 by pow