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Next Buick Regal to inherit styling cues from Opel Monza concept

Ever look at a concept car from a foreign auto marque like Opel and wonder what relevance it will have to you as an American consumer? Well, we'll tell you: at least as far as the Opel Monza concept goes, it could mean a lot.
Speaking with Automotive News at the Paris Motor Show, Opel chief Karl-Thomas Neumann said, "You will see the Monza when you see the next Insignia." And the Insignia, we needn't point out, is essentially ported over to American showrooms as the Buick Regal.
The relationship between the Regal and Insignia only stands to grow closer as Opel design chief Mark Adams has also been charged with tightening the bonds between the two automakers positioned on opposite shores of the Atlantic. Adams also intends to imbue the next Insignia with more "premium brand values" in order to "add polish to the brand." Which in turn means that the Regal will be designed to look more upscale, too.

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:

Best and worst car brands of 2022 according to Consumer Reports

It's that time again, Consumer Reports this morning lifting the curtain on its 2022 Annual Car Brand rankings and its 10 Top Picks in the car, crossover, and truck category. Drumroll, please: This year, Subaru climbs two spots to claim the winner's circle, having come third the last two years. Last year, Mazda climbed three spots from 2020 to take the crown. This year, Mazda slipped to second, BMW taking the last spot on the podium, also a one-spot drop from 2021. Six automakers in the top 10 hailed from Japan, which is one more than last year, and five luxury makers occupied the top 10, which is two more than last year. And South Korean representation didn't crack the top this year, after Hyundai managed tenth last year. The seven makes after BMW are: Honda, Lexus, Audi, Porsche, Mini, Toyota, and Infiniti.  The magazine and testing concern says its Brand Report Card "[reveals] which automakers are producing the most well-performing, safe, and reliable vehicles based on CR’s independent testing and member surveys," and that "Brands that rise to the top tend to have the most consistent performance across their model lineups." The domestics also took steps back among the 32 OEMs ranked on the 2022 card. Chrysler and Buick were the domestic carmakers who made last year's top 10 in eighth and ninth, respectively. This year, Buick dropped to eleventh, Chrysler to thirteenth. Dodge went from fourteenth to sixteenth. CR continues to ding Tesla's yoke steerer, the not-exactly-natural handhold responsible for the electric carmaker going from sixteenth last year to twenty-third this year.