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China-market Buick Envista rumored possible replacement for the Encore

Buick currently sells four crossovers, the Encore, Encore GX, Envision, and Enclave. That number will soon be whittled to three, the Encore expected to end production after this model year. If speculation provided by GM Authority is correct, there could be changes afoot in the middle of the line in time for the 2024 model year. Buick has said it will maintain four ICE-powered crossovers, so the brand will need something to fill the coming gap. GMA sources suggest the China-market Buick Envista could get the nod. Buick launched the coupe-esque model across the Pacific in August, a relation to the Chevrolet Seeker that appeared on the Chinese market in April. The Envista debuted the brand's latest design language inspired by pure-electric concepts like the Electra-X and WIldcat. Thin, angled headlights frame a wide, low grille, leading back to a roof that slopes into a high back and double spoilers. GM applied to trademark the Envista name in the U.S. in early 2019, then maintained it with extension requests until earlier this year. Then, in September 2022, the automaker abandoned the application, which could bode ill for whatever chance there was, if any. Another snag could be that the Envista is 182.5 inches long, 71.5 inches wide, and 61.6 inches high on a 106.3-inch wheelbase. Various reports have pitched the Envista to fill the (small) space between the Encore GX and the Envision; however, the Envista falls just 0.10 short of the Envision's length, and it's three inches smaller in every other dimension. On the other hand, the Envista is 11.1 inches longer and 0.1 inch wider than the Encore GX, with a wheelbase 4.1 inches longer. That makes a lot of overlap in the dimensional Venn diagram. Were the Envista to come as-is, it wouldn't so much be a replacement for the Encore as be a different kind of compact SUV from the Envision on a more modern platform. Further speculation from "sources familiar with the matter" says a U.S.-market Envista could get the Avenir treatment. Avenir marks the ultimate in Buick luxury, an appellation currently restricted to the Envision and Enclave. According to a separate report, the Encore GX is also headed into the Avenir club with the compact crossover gets refreshed for the 2024 model year. An Encore GX Avenir would adopt some exterior tweaks like 18-inch alloys, and turn a load of optional equipment available for the Encore GX Essence trim into standard equipment. Related video:

News anchor swaps his Roadmaster for a custom Buick Enclave Woody

Dennis House, self-proclaimed car buff and Connecticut news anchor, thinks that with the impending launch of the Jeep Grand Wagoneer, woodies will make their grand return to the car scene in modern fashion. House wanted to get ahead of the potential trend and decided to create a one-of-one woody wrap for his Buick Enclave. On the rear quarter panel of the custom SUV, an aftermarket badge reads "Enclave Estate Wagon." It's a direct call back to one of the vehicles that has inspired House's love of wood-paneled family haulers, the Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon. House owns two Roadmasters, a black 1996 model and a 1995 woody. In making room for the Enclave, House has decided to sell the '96, which looks spotless and only has a bit more than 71,000 miles on the clock. According to GM Authority, who spotted House's Enclave, the look was achieved with a vinyl wrap. After exploring the idea of a first-gen Enclave woody or a Regal TourX woody, House decided the application worked best on a current Enclave. The mock-ups were done on the computer, and Scranton Cadillac Buick GMC completed the work. The wrap starts just beneath the headlights and wraps around the entire vehicle. Furthering the theme, House took a photo of the woody with a surfboard. For now, the woody look is not a factory option, but House hopes General Motors takes notice and considers offering the choice on future models. If not, just take your ride to Scranton Motors, and they could probably help you out.            View this post on Instagram                   What a cool new 2019 Buick Enclave for CT’s own Dennis House! We couldnÂ’t be happier to have you as a part of the Scranton Motors family!! #scranton_cadillacbuickgmc #scrantonmotors #dennishousetv #carbuyingshouldbeeasy #buick #buickenclave #2019buickenclave #woodpanelingforthewin A post shared by Scranton Cadillac/Buick/GMC (@scranton_cadillacbuickgmc) on Apr 19, 2019 at 10:18am PDT

As GM readies Alexa convenience for vehicles, we ponder its dark side

SEATTLE — On the 30th floor of AmazonÂ’s glass tower, in a room with a breathtaking view of downtown Seattle, thereÂ’s a beautiful bed that nobody sleeps in. ItÂ’s near a kitchen nobody cooks in, a living room couch that no one crashes on, a kitchen table that doesnÂ’t host any family meetings. ItÂ’s AmazonÂ’s Smart Home Lab, a place where every Alexa-enabled gizmo the company or its partners can produce is crammed into the same space, ostensibly for Amazon to test. The company invited us there to show us the companyÂ’s vision for consumer products to leverage AlexaÂ’s voice interaction software before taking us down to a demo of its latest implementation in a Buick Encore GX. In this eerie simulacrum of a fantastic luxury apartment, however, nothing went right the first time. ItÂ’s a challenging environment for Alexa to work correctly, our hosts noted, pointing to the fact that there were six wifi networks available for the devices to connect to. In a normal home, one wifi network controls all the devices, who can theoretically sort out for themselves which one youÂ’re actually trying to activate. In the Smart Home Lab, any unmuted Alexa device thinks itÂ’s in charge. Even so, the connected toaster wouldnÂ’t connect. The Fire TV Cube wouldnÂ’t play a song. Our handlers futzed with everything, muting and unmuting devices, repeating commands, making us feel better about our own struggles with similar technologies. If it doesnÂ’t work right at Amazon HQ, maybe itÂ’s not just us! ItÂ’s telling that down on the faux lawn, in between the gleaming Amazon spheres that host a billionaireÂ’s tropical garden and the Day 1 building that the Smart Home Lab resides in, the BuickÂ’s Alexa implementation doesnÂ’t use a “wake-word” at all. The familiar Push to Talk button on the steering wheel, which normally activates General MotorÂ’s own proprietary voice command system, can be set to default to Alexa when that rolls out to GM vehicles in the first half of 2020 via an over-the-air (OTA) update. Given the reluctance of Alexa to respond to its wake-word in the comfort of AmazonÂ’s own lab, we hoped that this was by design. Drivers are already familiar with Push to Talk, and a physical button is more reliable than the vagaries of contemporary voice recognition – not to mention the privacy and accuracy issues involved with always-on mics. Our experience with the not-ready-for-primetime Mercedes-Benz MBUX system is illustrative.