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2016 Buick Envision might be your first Chinese-built crossover

At the Detroit Auto Show, the new Envision crossover flips the traditional Buick paridigm on its head. We've been hearing for years about strong sales of the Buick brand in China, but now we'll see if North America is ready for a Chinese-built (but, as GM is very quick to point out, American-engineered) CUV. The Envision rides on the latest version of the Delta 2 platform that underpins many GM vehicles. It'll slot between the tiny Encore and the cavernous Enclave, which is a nice sweet spot for volume sales in the hot crossover market. Gas is cheap, and Americans are eating these vehicles up – in a market like this, does it really matter where the Envision was actually screwed together? The powertrain package is surprisingly compelling – perhaps there will be some life to the driving experience. Motivation is provided by a 252-horsepower turbo inline-four and a six-speed auto, and in a first for a Buick crossover, it'll feature the torque-steer fighting HiPer suspension, which splits up steering and suspension duties in a way that'll tidy up the front axle's manners under power. A few other neat tricks make it into the Envision, like active grille shutters to squeeze some extra efficiency out of the CUV, and available park assist. The 2016 Buick Envision goes on sale later this year. Buick Introduces Envision Luxury Crossover DETROIT – The 2016 Envision is an all-new luxury compact crossover with segment-challenging driving dynamics, advanced technology, connectivity and Buick's trademark interior acoustics. It is a global vehicle, designed from the ground up as a Buick luxury compact crossover. It goes on sale in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2016. "The all-new Buick Envision is a modern, confident and responsive luxury compact crossover that combines the brand's core characteristics with great performance features like our HiPer strut suspension," said Duncan Aldred, vice president of Buick.

Is Buick America's most daring mainstream car brand?

Considering Buick as an adventurous automaker seems a little odd at first thought. But with little fanfare over the last several years, the marque is transforming itself from a brand often associated with elderly drivers to a nameplate willing to take chances in niche segments. The gamble is already paying off with 2014 sales up 11.4 percent in the US to 228,963 cars. Given recent product launches, this experimentation is only likely to continue. The key to the transformation at Buick is its willingness to explore the so-called white space, according to Automotive News; the term refers to niches in the market without rivals as a challenge. In addition, the brand's position in the near-luxury space means that its products are cross-shopped by a large swath of customers. Without having a specific competitor, Buick has more room to experiment within its segment. "Designers love designing Buicks because it's not a paint-by-numbers brand," said Andrew Smith, director of design at Buick and Cadillac, to Automotive News. The company's strategy of going where others haven't is best exemplified by the Encore. The subcompact, luxury crossover came to market early, and Buick found serious success with it. The tiny CUV was the automaker's fastest growing model last year with a 53 percent gain and 48,892 units sold. With the test a triumph, the Encore recently got a sibling in the US in the form of the Chevrolet Trax. The upcoming Cascada is taking a similar approach. The non-sporty convertible segment is practically empty in the US, and this slightly redesigned product from Opel has the opportunity to become a leader in its niche. Of course, Buick's biggest recent surprise was the Avenir concept at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show. The car's swooping shape and use of materials earned it two EyesOn Design Awards against some tough competition. While the company's intentions for this flagship sedan aren't entirely clear yet, the vehicle does "test some of the future design language that will come on the next generation of Buicks," according to brand boss Duncan Aldred to Automotive News, which is definitely something to look forward to. Featured Gallery Buick Avenir Concept: Detroit 2015 View 12 Photos Related Gallery Buick Avenir Concept View 23 Photos News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Live photos copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Design/Style Buick Convertible Crossover Luxury buick encore buick cascada buick avenir

Jeep Wrangler EcoDiesel, Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid and Tesla Cybertruck | Autoblog Podcast #606

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder and Associate Editor, Joel Stocksdale. With their powers combined, they create a great episode full of driving impressions from the Jeep Wrangler EcoDiesel, Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid and BMW X6 40i. They return to the topic of the Ford Mustang Mach-E before diving into the Tesla Cybertruck and a future without Buick sedans. Finally, they help a listener choose a new, sporty sedan in the "Spend My Money" segment. Autoblog Podcast #606 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we're driving: 2020 Jeep Wrangler EcoDiesel 2019 Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid 2020 BMW X6 40i Ford Mustang Mach-E (Watch the ride-along here) Tesla Cybertruck Bye to Buick sedans Spend My Money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: