2011 Buick Regal

[Leviathan]

Regal 2.0T 6MT CONFIRMED!!!

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/19/breaking-buick-confirms-2011-regal-2-0t-to-come-with-manual-tra/

Giddyup

[Mitlov]

Mitlov I wasn't comparing the trim level, I was just comparing the look, including the grill, it's just personal preference. I can compare whatever I like, I don't need your permission.

Easy buddy!  You don't need my permission to share your opinion, but I don't need your permission to respond.  It's the nature of a discussion forum.  I just said that I thought you made an apples-and-oranges comparison (saying you liked the look of the top-end-performance Opel over a base Buick); it's not like I insulted your mother.

[safristi]

  ...........

[vdk]

Are these out yet? Saw a silver one the other day.

[2hondas1BMW]

As much as I welcome the manual for the Buick, lets be honest here guys...a 6MT BUICK will not sell, regardless of how well it drives, because its a Buick. I am not trying to be a hater here, but name Buick = Grandpa's car. It will be hard to make people think this vehicle is "sporty". Sure, it gives us enthusiasts more choice, but it won't save GM.

How many MT 3 Series, A4s, etc. are sold? Not many, and those are "sports" sedans. I think this car would have been a great replacement for the Pontiac G6/Saturn Aura, but too bad they're both gone.

[articsteve]

You're putting it nicely.  It's simply preposterous; the manual.

However the big problem is the name.  I knew oh so well who were prior Regal owners and I can tell you that they have ALL left the building.

This car may indeed be a segment buster, but it needs to create a new following.  You don't want to handicap this vehicle with the Regal name because those past units were crap and ppl memories are not that short.

This just goes to reinforce what the critics are saying, namely GM is still under the direction of the same OLD men that ran it into the ground previously.

Buick REGAL!    

[Mitlov]

I like how ArticSteve is calling a turbocharged, manual-transmission, German-engineered sport sedan "business as usual" for Buick, all because he doesn't like the name.

In more important news, Jalopnik got their hands on the Regal 2.0T (in both manual and automatic transmission form) and LOVED it.  In short, the upsides are crisp transmissions, excellent steering feel, a lack of body roll, and impressive interior quality.  Downsides are modest torque steer and limited interior storage.  To me, that sounds luverly. 

We drove the European spec Insignia against the Regal and believe it or not, the Regal is better.

We drove Regals equipped with the 2.0 liter turbocharged inline four with both the six-speed automatic and the manual six speed. Off the line the car pulls hard with both the manual and the auto, squealing the tires through first, making use of all 220 HP and 258 lb-ft of torque on the way to a mid-seven second 0-60 MPH time. The transmissions are pretty respectable too, the manual shifts crisply and the engagement point is smooth, gears are well placed to work with the slightly heady engine and spirited driving is downright fun. The six speed auto isn't anything to sneeze at either, passing is a remarkably swift endeavor, it kicks down and away you go, pulling like a mule all the way. Steering under normal and spirited driving has an excellent on-center feel the thick-rimmed tiller has just the right weighty feel under turn-in and the car stays flat through hard sweepers. Potholes and heaves are soaked up though don't completely disappear, the car is tuned fairly stiff for a sporty communicative feel. If there's one thing we can fault in the Regal, it's the steering under hard acceleration, there is a tendency for the wheel to get light and darty, while it's not nightmarish vintage Saab-like torque steer, it's the one thing that could use improvement in the car. Did you catch that? One thing.

Everything about the car is solid, it feels overwhelmingly Germanic in nature. The build quality of the interior is on-par with modern VW's, the seats even look and feel like something out of Germany — firm, supportive, well bolstered and extraordinarily comfortable, they even have extending thigh supports. The leather is extremely high-quality but the cloth seats are nothing to sneeze at either. Buttons have a satisfying damped click, knobs are detented just right. The gauges are clear and communicative and the info center works without complaint. The car comes with all the latest gadgets like Bluetooth, satellite radio, navigation, and other widgets people seem to like. The entire layout is sculptural and quite handsome, though like the Buick LaCrosse, the sculpture results in storage that's somewhat lacking.

Full review here: http://jalopnik.com/5408766/2011-buck-regal-first-drive

[Careener]

Sign me up...

[Mitlov]

I am not trying to be a hater here, but name Buick = Grandpa's car.

Didn't people say "Hyundai=tame economy car" before the Genesis and Genesis coupe came along?  These things CAN change.  Heck, look at Cadillac.  Fifteen years ago it was a very different brand that appealed to very different people.  People would have scoffed at Caddys like the CTS, SRX, and Escalade, not to mention the M5-killing CTS-V.  "That'll never work, it's an old-man brand," people would say.

it won't save GM.

No one model will save GM.  What GM needs is a solid lineup of cars, with good cars in every slot.  In the past couple years, they've introduced a lot of good cars (from the CTS to the Malibu to the Cruze to the Equinox to the Acadia), but they don't have anything yet that would compete with the TSX, the Maxima, the CC, etc.  The Regal looks like it will do that nicely.

How many MT 3 Series, A4s, etc. are sold? Not many, and those are "sports" sedans.

True, but the availability of a manual transmission is important for the image of a sport sedan, even if only a few percentage that are sold have manuals.  This will be like the Lexus IS250...a few manuals will sell, but mostly, the availability of a manual will make magazines take it seriously.  And good magazine reviews mean more buyers overall (even if the majority of those additional buyers buy automatics).

But if I buy one, it'd be a manual.  I wouldn't buy the car with an auto, I think.

I think this car would have been a great replacement for the Pontiac G6/Saturn Aura, but too bad they're both gone.

I'm sure the non-turbo Regal will fit that exact niche.  Smaller, tauter, and more premium-feeling than a Malibu, but still pretty affordable.

[articsteve]

I like how ArticSteve is calling a turbocharged, manual-transmission, German-engineered sport sedan "business as usual" for Buick, all because he doesn't like the name.

Name this vehicle "REGAL"  and it instantly becomes the opposite of a German engineered sport sedan in the minds of Americans 23 years of ago or older.

On the flip side, for those ex Regal owners that still drive and actually liked the Regal this new version is not for them.  The old Allure should have been named the Regal.

However, GM's all time biggest name blunder was dropping the name "LeSabre".  That name still had a future.

[Mitlov]

Name this vehicle "REGAL"  and it instantly becomes the opposite of a German engineered sport sedan in the minds of Americans 23 years of ago or older.

On the flip side, for those ex Regal owners that still drive and actually liked the Regal this new version is not for them.  The old Allure should have been named the Regal.

Oh quit being such a negative nancy.  This car could be named the Buick Granny Panty and it'd still attract a younger, more fun audience than the Lexus ES.   

EDIT:  And for the record, Americans 23 years of age or older who remember the second-generation Regal don't hate the name. 





Besides, if the Insignia OPC is going to become the next Grand National, you kind of have to call the lower trim levels the "Regal."

[dougjp]

I found that Jalopnik "first drive" to be pretty shocking, in a very good way. While reading it, I was saying to myself "they are located in Detroit so they must have been paid off to say these things, they can't be true!" However no, that's not it. What GM did was exactly what we have been saying for years Ford should have been doing with the European Focus - bring it intact! Once December 3 arrives and the LA Auto show starts where this will be displayed, I'm sure everybody else's driving reviews will be available.

I could see myself getting a 2.0 turbo manual and, take a page from Hyundai Genesis sedan's book, remove the Buick insignia off the hood entirely and just have it plain. Except that I already own a superior car.

Gotta see what the pricing is.

[articsteve]

Oh quit being such a negative nancy.  This car could be named the Buick Granny Panty and it'd still attract a younger, more fun audience than the Lexus ES.   

EDIT:  And for the record, Americans 23 years of age or older who remember the second-generation Regal don't hate the name. 


Besides, if the Insignia OPC is going to become the next Grand National, you kind of have to call the lower trim levels the "Regal."

And for the record, Americans 23 years of age or older who remember the second-generation Regal don't hate the name. 

Those former owners are either dead, in nursing homes, bankrupt/homeless and for the survivors, an asian car. 

I made my wife drive a 84 RWD Regal Limited during the winter so the awful rural dirt roads wouldn't ruin her 88 Town Car when I lived in the sticks.  That set the bench mark for what I can't impose on her. 

This car could be named the Buick Granny Panty and it'd still attract a younger, more fun audience than the Lexus ES. 

Better not be priced anywhere the ES.

This is what PPL remember as the Regal, supercharged or not.

[Mitlov]

And for the record, Americans 23 years of age or older who remember the second-generation Regal don't hate the name. 

Those former owners are either dead, in nursing homes, bankrupt/homeless and for the survivors, an asian car. 

That's why Vin Diesel drives a Grand National in 2009's Fast and Furious.  And that's why a second-gen Regal appears in Pixar's Cars (as Chick Hicks).  Because everyone who knew the second-gen Regal are in nursing homes, bankrupt/homeless or in Asian cars 

Name aside, do you have ANY criticisms of the new Regal Turbo?

[vdk]

I agree that they should've changed the name. Insignia would do much better with younger buyers.
Congrats to GM, they're starting to get it.

[articsteve]

The 4th gen is what ppl remember together with it's cheaper clone the Century  .  So great it was they badged it as an Allure/LaCrosse and we all know how that worked out.

What's GM doing with this car?  Why do they even have Buick     Aren't ppl past that already?  Just as before they have way too many models.  You want a Regal, buy a Malibu.  What a new Impala, not that dinosaur they offer now, buy a "LaCrosse".

Name aside, do you have ANY criticisms of the new Regal Turbo?

Yes, what's the point.  FWD, auto, premium gas, lousy gas mileage, huge price .... appeals to whom in this environment  USA as well as this country, if we are lucky, will have very low grow for the next decade.  In that time, gasoline will soar, unemployment will be high and ppl will experience a significant decline in their standard of living.

Consequently, what a most useless car to bring to market if your company is on the verge of extinction.

The Regal should have been a car that competes with Ford's Fiesta which looks like it's gonna kick serious butt.  Build a car ppl can afford.  Put a small turbo in a car ppl can afford with a choice of manual trans if your gonna go down the Turbo road.

Why is GM trying to build another Passat. 

[Sir Osis of Liver]

We've already discussed replacing the Outback with a sedan. Our circumstances have changed a bit.

This, the Passat CC and the Fusion are on our list. Very, very nice. Manual transmission makes all the difference.

When people I know mention the Regal, they always are referring to the 80s models. And all have pretty fond recollections. A 28 year old coworker searched and eventually found a cherry 88 Grand National. I sent him a pic of the new one, he's pretty excited.

[articsteve]

A 28 year old coworker searched and eventually found a cherry 88 Grand National. I sent him a pic of the new one, he's pretty excited.

      

[Greg B.]

Name aside, do you have ANY criticisms of the new Regal Turbo?

For god's sake, why are you wasting our time asking Stevie such a question? It's like asking Admiral Yamamoto what he liked about the Americans in 1941.

[Juke1]

What is so exciting about the name Camry anyways, it's as bland as the car.  On the other hand the Regal is anything but bland.