Paolino

Love it!

What I am getting at is the quality of Hyundai 20 years ago is not equal to the quality of Hyundai today. That needs to be taken into consideration.

The side impact reports for the Regal and Optima are the same. So now can we move on to long term durability? They may crash the same but the public preception will be different if they compare. Most people go by how things sound and feel vs how they rate. As for long term that is to be determind. Based on the past GM cars and Hyundai I would give GM an edge here. They may not all look pretty but many are still on the road 25 years later in the harshest weather areas of out country. When was the last time you saw a 20 year old Hyundai in the midwest? I mean even one that is just park in a drive way disabled? Now how many Corisca, Lumina's, Baretta's, GM H bodies etc to you still see rolling along? I have have several friends dump they Hyundais well before the warranty was out as they were just having too many issues with non warranty parts. Two lone dumped them for used HHR's and could not have been happier. Hyundia has improved over the early years but they do save cost in many areas and it does catch up with the cars. GM cut corners in the past with paint and interior. THey did invest well in drivetrains and the old cars show this as the interior looks like crap but the car keep on running and running with little issues. Well, only have experience with just the one, but I'm driving a Sonata with almost 90K miles on it now and the only problem it's ever been taken in for was the compressor went. I can't tell you how many "little" things the Lucerne has had to go back for in its 55K miles... including its most recent one, cables dangling by the rear wheels under the car on the driver side because a clip broke.

Congrats! Enjoy... MAJOR jealousy here!

Happy Birthday man!

While I agree with you that it'd make sense for all of those things to bring down the numbers, the Malibu with a non-direct injected 2.4 gets 22/33, and weighs over 3400 lbs. The Verano will have a DI 2.4 (which as I understand improves fuel economy and power slightly while reducing emissions), and weighs less at 3300lbs, so the numbers are perplexing.

I completely agree. New Buicks aren't anywhere near the floatiness of the older ones. The Regal handles nicely while the ride is not intrusive. Some say the LaCrosse is still too soft, but I like it. I think the Verano will feel solid and confident on the road. 180hp as a base engine in the little thing will definitely give it some scoot... with the turbo, the HiPer strut and a few tweaks, it may be damn near fun.

Price maybe, but the audience is completely different. You have a premium compact vs. your average family sedan. Different sizes, different equipment, etc.

I'd say good.

Interesting. I wonder what happens when they're stranded because their estimated range was off, and they miss their extremely important event? Guess they better have a Volt follow them.

Colombo

I may have been off in my month count... VP of Buick Sales told me he'd have the Verano in store in time to get them under the Christmas tree. Cool, can you hint that it'd be a very nice stocking stuffer for me?

I'm counting on it being "vault like" because honestly I HATE the sound of a 4-cylinder engine, and love a quiet car.

What really annoys me is the sensationalism behind this. The news the other night said, "NYC took a 6.0 and is relatively undamaged!" No. I can guarantee it didn't take a 6.0. Hundreds of miles away got a 6.0. And if NYC got hit by a 6.0, I'm thinking half the city would be leveled.

The 2013 Chevrolet Malibu is set to debut in January 2012. I doubt a Verano would come out and after and be called a 2012. The Buick website says "late 2011", so we'll see.

I thought the Verano was going to be introduced in the Fall. Five months from now is almost February... wouldn't that make it a 2013?

I agree, but if what Paulie posted is true regarding the lack of basic premium options (power passenger seat), then I'll be more cautiously optimistic. As far as I'm concerned, I don't care what size class it is, a luxury brand should offer power seats for both seating positions standard. But to not even offer that as an option? I'll just buy a Cruze and save a few grand. I'm hoping they edit the order guide and it's just an omitted line because as it stands right now, it shows no possible offering of a power passenger seat. Hell, I was surprised to see the driver's seat as an option, especially in a car that has creature comforts like remote start, dual zone auto climate control, a 7" LCD screen all standard.

Thanks ocn. My only qualm is that I LOVE bigger cars. And I LOVE a V6. It's been a long time since I've owned anything smaller than a midsize. And the second knee airbags came out I got concerned... I'm tall. In a small car my knees are at the dash. How hard does the airbag blow out? I'm sure they took into consideration tall people may drive the car though.

A 50mpg premium car that's not a hybrid would make a splash I think. SMK, I can totally see what you see regarding the headlights/side panels. I think though when seeing this car in person, the attention to detail within the headlamps and the blue halo will not make many see a cheap car though. That interior, in my opinion, is a winner as well. My ONLY gripe about the styling are the "eyebrows" on the rear.

I'm in a similar situation... Love the LaCrosse and could definitely see myself in one, but I will be starting a new job next week with a healthy commute, so I can't ignore that a more fuel-efficient car would be appreciated.

Someone answer me this: WHY DOES IT KEEP GETTING UGLIER? Why? People have to approve this. I don't understand it. It's ugly! And it'll be bought like crazy because it's a Camry!

2012 Buick Verano Order Guide Up August 24, 2011 - Paul Guastella - Cheersandgears.com It looks to be nicely contented. But it still leaves a little to be desired. PROS: 7" LCD Touchscreen, 18" wheels, 180hp 2.4L DI (up from originally announced 177hp), Dual Zone Climate Control, Bluetooth, Ambient Lighting, Express Down on all windows (Express Up on both front windows), Remote Start, four interior color options (cashmere, choccachino, ebony, medium titanium) CONS: Not many, but some big ones... 6-way power driver seat with manual recline standard, NO OPTION for power passenger seat. Only six exterior color choices: silver, white, white diamond, black, brown, red. More or less, I think it'll sell. I'm curious to see pricing... I'd be interested in this myself. I'm concerned that the base stereo is the same weak one found in other Buicks. The option is a 9-speaker BOSE with subwoofers. Link to Order Guide

1. Mid-twenties 2. We are an environmentally-aware group...i.e. we might go slightly out of our way but won't grossly inconvenience ourselves 3. We never fill the rear middle seat if we can help it because we need our rearview mirrors 4. HOV lanes on the freeways often move significantly faster when available Well, good for you. My comment was just for out there in general, not directed towards you. You may very well find that in a few years when all your friends are married off with children, carpooling is not an option when you have two car seats in the back. HOV lanes in Long Island are a joke. I frequently move faster than them in the left lane.

Honestly, the carpooling in bulk thing stopped in my early/mid-twenties. On the rare two-three times/year there's carpooling involved, someone is sitting in that rear center seat making an armrest totally unusable if it exists.

My friend in Manhattan actually was swaying pretty badly he said (he gets motion sickness easily), he's on the 18th floor. My parents felt it, and I was in the car at the time so missed it, yet another one.