1993 Buick Skylark - Only 58,000 Original Miles on 2040-cars

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Little-bit-bigger 2020 Buick Encore GX gets two three-cylinder engines

Ford broke the ice on selling three-cylinder engines in the U.S. with the 2014 Fiesta, then followed up with the EcoSport. Buick is about to widen that supermini-sized crack in the ice with the 2020 Encore GX. The semi-subcompact crossover will come in three trim levels that mix-and-match two turbocharged three-cylinder engines, two transmissions, and two drivetrains. The smaller engine is a 1.2-liter three-pot with 137 horsepower and 166 pound-feet of torque. This comes in one horse and 18 lb-ft of twist beyond the 1.4-liter four-cylinder in the smaller Encore. This engine will only be paired with a CVT and front-wheel drive in the Preferred, Select, and Essence trims. The meatier motor is a 1.3-liter three-cylinder with 155 hp and 174 lb-ft. That's down on the 163 hp and 177 lb-ft that the same engine produces in the Chinese-market version of the Encore GX. However, it gets buyers close to the 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that used to be optional on the smaller Encore, producing 153 hp and 177 lb-ft. This engine can be optioned on the front-wheel drive Select and Essence trims, where it would be mated to the CVT. The 1.3-liter three-cylinder is standard on all trims optioned with all-wheel drive, where it gets paired with GM's nine-speed automatic. GM does say the horsepower figures are estimates at the moment, so don't be surprised at any slight changes before deliveries begin next year. The Encore GX will serve buyers who would love it if the Encore had a bit more room but don't want to step up to the Envision. For a price GM hasn't announced yet, the Encore GX will reward those buyers with five more feet of cargo space, and some extra power for all those who decide to level up further. The junior Encore weighs just over 3,200 pounds, it's likely the Encore GX will shade that some. The Encore GX does ride on GM's new VSS-F platform, though, so the advanced architecture could provide an overall superior experience even with the lesser three-cylinder. GM has also said that the Encore GX will come standard with safety kit like forward collision alert and lane keep assist with a lane departure warning, features that are cost extras on the Encore. The Encore GX will also include automatic emergency braking, which can't be had on the Encore at any price.

Junkyard Gem: 1962 Buick Electra 225 4-Door Sedan

Buick built its first Electras as 1959 models, with Electra production continuing unabated through 1990 (after which the Park Avenue trim level took over as the model name, much as the Malibu trim level designation had shoved aside the Chevelle model name in 1978). Some of the handsomest Electras were the second-generation models, built for the 1961-1964 model years, and today's Junkyard Gem is one of those cars. I'd always assumed that the Buick Electra took its name from the daughter of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon in Greek mythology, because the people who named cars back then were forced to read Euripides and Sophocles as undergrads. In fact, the car was named after Electra Waggoner Bowman Biggs, a Texas heiress and sculptor who married the brother-in-law of Harlow Curtice, who ran the Buick Division before being promoted to president of General Motors in 1953. How did she feel when the last Electra rolled off the assembly line in 1990? The junkyard is full of history, if you know where to look. The 1959-1960 Electra had enormous tailfins, angled something like the ones seen on the same-year Chevrolet Impalas. This Electra generation ditched the fins but kept much of the general Space Age spirit of its predecessor. The Electra lived on the same platform as the Cadillac DeVille and Oldsmobile 98 from start to finish, and it was the most expensive Buick available in 1962. The MSRP of this one was $4,051, or about $41,462 in 2023 dollars. The engine in this one was present when it arrived at U-Pull-&-Pay, but a junkyard shopper grabbed it within a couple of days of arrival. It would have been a 401-cubic-inch (6.5-liter) "Nailhead" V8, rated at 325 horsepower and a whopping 445 pound-feet of torque (keep in mind that these are gross, not net, power numbers). The Nailhead's small valves meant that it wasn't much good for high-rpm use, but its big torque was perfect for moving two-ton land yachts. The final Nailheads were installed in 1966 Buicks. Every production Electra ever built came with an automatic transmission, and the 1959-1963 models received the extremely smooth and alarmingly inefficient Dynaflow (known as the Dual-Path Turbine Drive for 1962). Originally developed for use in the 1943 M18 Hellcat tank destroyer, the Dynaflow was considered a two-speed automatic but drove more like a CVT with two selectable drive ranges.

2013 Buick Encore nets strong IIHS, NHTSA safety scores

After being crushed from every which way and rolled over like a labrador, the 2013 Buick Encore has been named a Top Safety Pick by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. To earn the accolade, a vehicle must achieve the highest rating of "Good" in each of the institute's four main crash tests: Front Moderate Overlap, Side, Rollover and Rear. The Encore aced those four tests with "Good" ratings, but missed out on the coveted Top Safety Pick+ designation by receiving a Poor rating in the institute's new Front Small Overlap test. To be named a Top Safety Pick+, the Encore would need to score at least an "Acceptable" rating in the new test, as well as "Good" in all four original crash tests.
Despite the miss, the Encore joins the Enclave, LaCrosse, Verano and Regal as Top Safety Picks all. If you count only the Encore with all-wheel drive, then all five Buicks have also earned five-star overall ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Adminstration, making Buick one of the few manufacturers to offer a full lineup with high scores from both safety rating organizations.
The front-wheel-drive Encore, despite performing equally as well as the all-wheel-drive version in NHTSA's crash tests, only earned four stars overall. As far as we can tell, the discrepancy between the two is because some safety equipment, like Forward Collision Warning and Lane Departure Assist, are optional features on the FWD Encore and standard on the AWD model.