For many people, part of the charm of a luxury car is how it allows you to show other people that you can spend more on a car than you really need to.
But many other people looking for the comforts, performance and convenience of a luxury car would rather not spend any more money than they have to, choosing instead to spend those dollars that pay for ''prestige'' on things like their house or to feed starving children or even their own children's education.
These are the folks that John Larson, the newly minted general marketing manager of GM's Buick division, has his eye on as he oversees the launch of the 2006 Lucerne sedan.
Buick is going for ''the smart level of luxury,'' Larson says. That's why he also likes to call Lucerne a ''premium'' car. ''Premium, but attainable. It's a smart person's luxury car. It's not the most expensive model, but it shows you've done well.''
In old Buick terms, Lucerne is a replacement for the full-sized Park Avenue, but with enough of an equipment range over three trim levels (CX, CXL and CXS) to reach down to cover some of the crowd that used to buy LeSabre (which also departed the Buick stable) as well.
Lucerne's style, fittings and performance are right there with more expensive sedans, Larson maintains, but will cost less. He likens it to what GMC is doing with trucks, providing ''professional'' vehicles offering all that you need without the luxury sticker price.
While this car won't then appeal to those folks who must spend too much money on a car, it should speak very clearly to the crowds of people who don't feel the need to pay too much.
Those folks should also like the sound of Larson calling the front-wheel-drive Lucerne a ''no excuses'' car, Larson believes, since that's probably the way most of them lead their own lives.
Larson promises that when Lucerne arrives later this year it will have an ''elegant design, a premium interior, and exceptional levels of power, comfort, quietness and quality.''
Pictures of the Lucerne may not show how big the car is, but it's a spacious, full-size model by anyone's measure. It has an overall length of 5,180 mm on a 2,934-mm wheelbase, and is 1,880 mm wide and 1,473 mm high, all of which weighs 1,700 to 1,820 kg, depending upon the equipment level.
You'll have to wait some time to see Lucerne for yourself, since it won't appear in Canada until the Vancouver auto show on April 1 and won't be in dealerships until this fall.
Style is a totally subjective affair, so make your own decision on the next exterior design cues. Larson is genuinely enthusiastic about Lucerne's ''graceful and elegant'' look, adding that people who see it in the sheet metal are particularly impressed.
As well as being stylish, Lucerne's shape is also supposed to convey a sense of quality. Quality's a big deal with Larson because it's a big deal with luxury car consumers, and he wants them all to know that Buick's scores on independent quality surveys are superior to those of everyone else on the market, including much more expensive import brands from Germany and Japan.
The real payoff with Lucerne comes when you're inside the car, since this is where that ''no excuses'' claim will be put to the test. Larson is sure that people will look around the car's spacious interior and be pleased at the quality of the materials and impressed by the way they fit together.
But many other people looking for the comforts, performance and convenience of a luxury car would rather not spend any more money than they have to, choosing instead to spend those dollars that pay for ''prestige'' on things like their house or to feed starving children or even their own children's education.
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| 2006 Buick Lucerne (photo : General Motors) |
Buick is going for ''the smart level of luxury,'' Larson says. That's why he also likes to call Lucerne a ''premium'' car. ''Premium, but attainable. It's a smart person's luxury car. It's not the most expensive model, but it shows you've done well.''
In old Buick terms, Lucerne is a replacement for the full-sized Park Avenue, but with enough of an equipment range over three trim levels (CX, CXL and CXS) to reach down to cover some of the crowd that used to buy LeSabre (which also departed the Buick stable) as well.
Lucerne's style, fittings and performance are right there with more expensive sedans, Larson maintains, but will cost less. He likens it to what GMC is doing with trucks, providing ''professional'' vehicles offering all that you need without the luxury sticker price.
While this car won't then appeal to those folks who must spend too much money on a car, it should speak very clearly to the crowds of people who don't feel the need to pay too much.
Those folks should also like the sound of Larson calling the front-wheel-drive Lucerne a ''no excuses'' car, Larson believes, since that's probably the way most of them lead their own lives.
 |
| 2006 Buick Lucerne (photo : General Motors) |
Pictures of the Lucerne may not show how big the car is, but it's a spacious, full-size model by anyone's measure. It has an overall length of 5,180 mm on a 2,934-mm wheelbase, and is 1,880 mm wide and 1,473 mm high, all of which weighs 1,700 to 1,820 kg, depending upon the equipment level.
You'll have to wait some time to see Lucerne for yourself, since it won't appear in Canada until the Vancouver auto show on April 1 and won't be in dealerships until this fall.
Style is a totally subjective affair, so make your own decision on the next exterior design cues. Larson is genuinely enthusiastic about Lucerne's ''graceful and elegant'' look, adding that people who see it in the sheet metal are particularly impressed.
 |
| 2006 Buick Lucerne (photo : General Motors) |
The real payoff with Lucerne comes when you're inside the car, since this is where that ''no excuses'' claim will be put to the test. Larson is sure that people will look around the car's spacious interior and be pleased at the quality of the materials and impressed by the way they fit together.