Driving Impressions:
Text and photo by Greg Cavanaugh
2012 Buick Verano
Buick’s
LaCrosse
G i v e s
Birth 2012 Buick Verano
T
ry to wipe away images of: the 1982 Cadillac Cimarron, a rebadged* Pontiac Sunbird, the early 2000’s Jaguar X-Type, a rebadged Ford Mondeo/ Contour, and of course, the Buick Rendezvous, a rebadged Pontiac Aztek (or was that an upgrade?).
The first two came to mind immediately as two of the most egregious rebadges in automotive history. A quick search revealed I was right, as all three showed up on Time magazine’s “50 Worst Cars of All Time.” So how does this relate to this month’s test-drive, Buick’s fresh-offthe-transport-trailer, new premium compact car, the Verano? As it turns out, in spite of GM’s past woes with rebadging, the Verano is indeed Buick’s rebadged take on its kissing cousin the Chevy Cruze. So has GM learned anything over all these years? Having never driven or even sat in the new Chevy Cruze, I can’t speak to the substantive changes Buick made to the Cruze to create the Verano and separate the two. I have, however, read several reviews on the Cruze that indicate Buick chose a great vehicle on which to slap on some lipstick. The Verano is, like many new compacts, breaking away from the American stigma that small equals cheap. The Verano features extensive sound deadening, special laminated glass to reduce noise, distinctive but tasteful looks and, of course, a fancy interior. On these fronts, Buick has made a nice car. Its exterior styling matches nicely with the rest of the Buick line and looks very little like the Cruze, although the front appears a bit long for the rear and the non-functioning hood vents seem a little out of character. The interior, like the Regal, LaCrosse and Enclave, uses nice wood inserts, sharp gauges, and a flowing and fluid design language that looks and feels nice. The extra steps to make Buick’s quiet, “Quiet Tuning” as they call it, work. At highway speeds, quiet, contemplative discussions were library-like.
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While billed as a compact car, today’s compacts are yesterday’s midsize. The Verano doesn’t seem small, particularly in the front, and its smaller size is only evident in shoulder room with two larger occupants. The second row is spacious enough for two, but does feel a bit closed in. The trunk by comparison is especially large, easily shaming many vehicles that have “utility” right in their designation.