New color options add modern hues to Cascada palette
DETROIT — This fall, Buick will expand the Cascada’s color palette by adding more options based on customer feedback and advanced color trending analysis. Building on a proven color strategy, Buick will add three new exterior colors and two new convertible tops and expand the Sport Touring Dark Effects Package with two additional exterior colors, enhancing customers’ ability to express their personal style on the road.
Buick’s three new jewel-toned exterior colors — Rioja Red Metallic, Dark Moon Blue Metallic and Carrageen Metallic — align with customer preferences and color trends showing up globally in other industries, including interior design and fashion.
“Color is back,” says Catherine Black, lead designer of Buick’s Color and Trim Studio. “While 80 percent of the exterior colors purchased globally are neutrals — black, silver or grey — many customers are starting to move away from these neutral tones and have an appetite for entirely different colors like dark navy and maroon.” In a segment with limited options, Cascada combines luxury features and additional on-trend color options at an attainable price to give style-conscious buyers more reasons to reconsider Buick.
The coordination of Cascada’s newest color palette with larger global color trends is the result of an ongoing advanced color and trim trend analysis from Buick’s Design Color and Trim Studio. Looking at multiple industries, Buick Color and Trim creative designers research, analyze, design and develop interior and exterior colors and materials three to four years in advance of a vehicle debut.
“Our Color and Trim designers possess a specialized skill set and acumen for knowing which trends have lasting power and interpreting them for automotive so the choices remain fresh, modern and relevant,” says Sharon Gauci, global director, Buick Design Color and Trim.
New color options have also expanded to the Cascada’s convertible top. Sweet Mocha and Malbec are the two new available convertible top options on the Premium trim, joining Ebony.
Carrageen Metallic will be offered exclusively on the Cascada’s Sport Touring model.
Summit White and Ebony Twilight Metallic join Sport Red as available exterior colors on Sport Touring with Dark Effects package.
In addition to more color options, standard 20-inch twin-spoke black-painted wheels are now standard on the 2018 Sport Touring model and navigation is included on all 2018 Cascada models.
Since launch, the Buick Cascada has outsold the BMW 2 Series convertible as well as Audi’s A3 and A5 convertibles combined. It attracts almost 7 out of 10 buyers from outside Buick and other GM brands. Since launch, fleet sales account for less than one percent of total Cascada sales.
2018 Buick Regal GS premium sport sedan offers all-new 310-horsepower V-6, nine-speed transmission and intelligent AWD with active twin clutch
DETROIT — Where spirited driving meets attainable luxury and sleek, sporty design meets modern usefulness, you’ll find the 2018 Buick Regal GS – a car for commutes that are anything but common. As the brand’s most dramatic expression of design and dynamics, this all-new model balances these key characteristics to provide customers excellent driving performance every day and in every season.
The 2018 Regal GS advances the nameplate with 51 more horsepower than the model it replaces, more refined transmission and AWD technology, all-new, heated/cooled and massaging performance seats and the added functionality and style of a five-door sportback design. Starting at $39,990 with destination charges, the Regal GS offers luxury features at a price more attainable than competitors from Audi and BMW.
“This is a sport sedan designed for everyday driving, but one that makes every drive special,” said Duncan Aldred, vice president, Global Buick and GMC. “The new Regal GS is in the sweet spot of the market: more refined and luxurious than the mainstream, more value for the price with style and premium features on par with higher-end competitors, and with standard features like AWD with active twin clutch and a rear sportback design that will surprise customers with its usefulness.”
Regal GS Highlights:
New 3.6L V-6 with 310 horsepower and 282 lb-ft of torque featuring direct injection, cylinder deactivation and stop/start technology
Standard nine-speed automatic transmission and intelligent all-wheel drive (AWD) with active twin clutch for improved vehicle control, and five-link rear suspension
GS-specific, AGR-certified, performance seats that are heated, cooled and massaging with adjustable seat and seat-back bolsters as well as thigh support
Second-generation Continuous Damping Control (CDC) capable of 500 adjustments per second and Interactive Drive Control with GS and Sport modes
Unique sport front and rear fascias, side skirts and rear spoiler
Standard 19-inch wheels
Performance brakes with Brembo front calipers
Sport-tuned exhaust system
Sport flat-bottom steering wheel and metal pedals
Available head-up display
Buick’s most advanced new propulsion components come standard on the new Regal GS. With 310 horsepower, its refined 3.6-liter V-6 provides more power than an Acura TLX A-Spec or a Lexus IS350 F-Sport but offers seamless auto stop/start technology and can cruise on four cylinders. The V-6 engine is complemented by a sport-tuned dual exhaust system.
Regal GS’ intelligent AWD system with an active twin clutch can precisely transfer torque between the rear wheels for more refined and efficient performance, and the GS receives one of the first applications of the nine-speed automatic transmission in the Buick lineup that’s mated to AWD. This advanced new transmission will soon be offered across five different Buick models.
Every Regal GS also features Buick’s Interactive Drive Control, allowing the driver to tailor the car’s dynamics based on different drive experiences through a standard setting or Sport and GS modes selected via the center console. Interactive Drive Control utilizes Buick’s second-generation Continuous Damping Control (CDC), which is able to adjust suspension damping up to 500 times per second.
Versus a standard 2018 Regal Sportback, the GS also has standard Brembo brakes for more confident stopping power.
“With the all-new 2018 Regal GS, we set out to make a driver-focused, engaging and entertaining sport sedan without sacrificing the smooth ride and refined character expected of any modern Buick,” said Martin Hayes, chief engineer for the Buick Regal GS. “Our new V-6 and nine-speed transmission, intelligent AWD and CDC all work to deliver excellent driving performance.”
Outside, Buick’s signature sculptural beauty presents the car’s sporting nature in an understated way with aggressive front and rear fascias, standard 19-inch wheels, a rear decklid spoiler and GS badging front and rear. Full LED headlamps are an option.
Inside, the Regal features unique perforated GS-specific performance seats with integrated headrests and adjustable lumbar and thigh support bolsters. The seats are heated and ventilated and come standard with a massage function. The interior also features a standard heated flat-bottom sport steering wheel and GS-specific pedals and sill plates.
The 2018 Regal GS offers a cohesive and connected infotainment experience with an 8-inch diagonal touchscreen and 8-inch diagonal reconfigurable instrument cluster as standard equipment. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility both come standard. A full-color head-up display is available with an optional Driver Confidence II package that also includes several safety features including Front Pedestrian Braking, Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, Forward Collision Alert and Adaptive Cruise Control with Forward Automatic Braking.
The Regal GS is a highest performance expression of the 2018 Buick Regal GS Sportback. Other Regal Sportback models will offer a standard 2.0T engine and sleek new design at a starting price — $25,915 – that’s approximately $2,000 lower than the 2017 Regal.
The first-ever Regal TourX, which combines car-like handling and SUV capability, launches with limited availability of select higher trim levels later this year. TourX models with a starting price of $29,995 are expected to be available at dealers in February 2018.
Every Regal also comes equipped with a 3 month/3 gigabyte trial of OnStar 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot[1] and access to an unlimited data plan for $20 per month[2], as well as five years of the OnStar Basic Plan[3] at no additional cost. Among other benefits like the myBuick app[4], this connectivity plan features OnStar Smart Driver, an opt-in service designed to help Buick owners maximize their vehicle’s overall performance and become better drivers.
All prices above exclude tax, title, license and dealer fees.
Buick’s technology flagship just got more sophisticated
DETROIT — The Buick LaCrosse expands its technological credentials by adding eAssist light electrification for the 2018 model. The combination of an electric motor with Buick’s latest 2.5L four-cylinder engine delivers quiet, refined and spirited efficient performance backed by the value and customer experience expected of Buick.
This new eAssist system, when coupled with the four-cylinder engine, has a 19 percent increase in city fuel economy compared to the LaCrosse’s advanced V-6 and leverages a compact lithium-ion battery pack to provide select benefits found in fully electric vehicles, such as torque-assisted launch, energy-saving regenerative braking and exceptionally smooth stop/start. It will be the standard powertrain for the 2018 LaCrosse, which goes on sale this fall.
“Executing innovative technologies in an approachable and meaningful way is core to Buick,” said Duncan Aldred, vice president, Global Buick and GMC. “By adding the eAssist system to the LaCrosse, our technology flagship, we are making electrification accessible to our customers as we chart our course to the future of mobility.”
Compared to previous Buick eAssist executions, this newest iteration is more sophisticated, powerful and compact. With its 9 percent increase in overall torque, drivers get the responsiveness expected from a full-size sedan. In addition, the newest eAssist system is discreetly packaged to maintain the LaCrosse’s fold-down rear seat and ample trunk space.
The new standard 2.5L four-cylinder with eAssist is the perfect complement to the powerful V-6 that launched on the 2017 LaCrosse last September. With the introduction of this new standard powertrain, the 2018 LaCrosse starting price will be lowered to $30,490. The 3.6L V-6 will be an available option on select trims.
Other notable updates to the 2018 Buick LaCrosse include expanded availability of AWD and an all-new nine-speed automatic transmission for V-6 models that will provide customers with a smooth and refined shifting experience. By this time next year, five Buick models will offer this advanced transmission. In response to customer demand, Buick’s intelligent AWD with active twin clutch is now available on the Essence trim level.
In addition, the 2018 LaCrosse will have three new exterior color options: Satin Steel Metallic, Dark Slate Metallic and Red Quartz Tintcoat.
About eAssist
Buick’s eAssist propulsion system combines a compact electric motor and an advanced 24-cell air-cooled 0.45kWh lithium-ion battery pack with the 2.5L four-cylinder gas engine to enhance efficiency and maintain refined performance through:
1. Motor Generator Unit (MGU): Replaces the traditional alternator and acts as an electric motor to assist the engine when needed. It also acts as an electric generator providing the energy stored in the lithium-ion battery pack.
2. Electric Assist: The MGU’s electric motor function provides a power boost for an extremely smooth launch from the Auto-Stop mode. It funnels additional torque to the engine when needed to optimize overall driving performance and efficiency.
3. Regenerative Braking: When braking or coasting, some of the energy normally lost is converted to electricity through the MGU and stored in the lithium-ion battery pack.
4. Lithium-Ion Battery Pack: The 86V lithium-ion battery pack, which has been repackaged to be more compact, stores energy captured during regenerative braking. This energy powers the electrical system when the vehicle is in Auto-Stop mode. It also powers the MGU to provide a smooth launch from Auto-Stop mode or additional torque to the engine as needed.
5. Seamless Stop/Start Technology: Contributes to added fuel savings3 by seamlessly turning off the engine when in Auto-Stop mode (e.g., at a stoplight or in heavy traffic) and restarting when the foot lifts off the brake pedal or presses the accelerator.
6. Aero Improvement: Upper and lower active aero shutters in the front fascia close under certain driving conditions to help maximize aerodynamics and contribute to improved fuel economy.
