1975 Buick Electra Limited 4 Door Hardtop on 2040-cars

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We record Autoblog Podcast #310 tonight, and you can drop us your questions and comments regarding the rest of the week's news via our Q&A module below. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.
Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #310
Buick GN and GNX will return

2016 Buick Cascada First Drive

Florida became a state in 1845. It is the third most populous state in the United States, home to the most-visited theme park in the world. It is where you'll find every convertible ever sold in the United States, be it a pasty white Infiniti M30 or a Lamborghini. And soon, many examples of the 2016 Buick Cascada will call it home. Florida is full of Buicks. Wonder if anyone bought a Rendezvous Ultra? It's in Florida. The Buick Reatta, the company's last convertible before this? Also there. Buick, however, is eager to get those who better remember Bush vs. Gore than Nixon vs. Kennedy to ask, "That's a Buick?" Which is how we arrive at the Cascada. The Cascada isn't so much a new Buick as a car that's new to Buick. It's been on sale for about three years as the Opel Cascada in Europe, along with badge-engineered siblings sold by Vauxhall and Holden in other parts of the world. Buick took that time to make several hundred changes to the Cascada for US consumption and then found it without many rivals. The Chrysler 200 convertible, Volkswagen Eos, and Volvo C70 would all be prime targets for the Cascada here, were they not all dead now. Buick's gamble is that these Chrysler, VW, and Volvo (also Saab, for that matter) customers are looking for somewhere to go next. The Cascada isn't so much a new Buick as a car that's new to Buick. One thing is certain: the Cascada is eye-catching to Floridians. I had no fewer than six people in Miami and Key West walk up to me and ask what kind of car it was, or even say, "That's that new Buick convertible, right?" Despite being three years old, the Cascada's looks have aged pretty well. And it's been spared many of the tacked-on details, like fake portholes and chrome wheels, that were adhered to the Regal when it made its trip over from Opel-land. Top up or down, the Cascada is attractive. Unlike the Audi A3 or BMW 2 Series convertibles (the former being the Buick's prime target), there's no abruptness to the design, no sharply ending lines. The Buick looks relaxed in a Palm Beach or Palm Springs way, even on the inside with the convincingly stitched dash top and standard heated leather seats (one of the pieces redesigned for the Buick). That being said, the pattern on the seat material is a misstep, looking like it was inspired by Aunt Flora's 1972 patio furniture. Then it's surprising that you don't exactly sink into the Cascada. While the seats are mounted low, they're not pillow soft.

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.