Overview & Reviews

Owned by General Motors, Buick is one of this country's oldest brands, with a rich tradition of innovation that dates back more than a century. Though long known for catering to retirement-age customers with its full-size sedans, the automaker's lineup now includes SUVs and sport sedans designed to bring younger buyers into the showrooms of Buick dealers.

The company was founded in 1903 by David Dunbar Buick, a Scottish industrialist. He built his first car in 1904; called the Model B, it had a two-cylinder engine with an advanced-for-its-time overhead-valve cylinder head design. In 1907, Buick unveiled its first four-cylinder production car, dubbed the Model D. The following year, the Flint, Michigan-based Buick Motor Company was bought by William C. Durant as part of a new company called General Motors. By 1914, all Buicks were built with six-cylinder engines and purchased primarily by upper-class professionals, thus earning the nickname "doctor's cars."

The manufacturer proved itself a trailblazer in the early 1920s when it introduced four-wheel brakes. This technology had been seen before on custom-built cars, but Buick was the first to figure out how to successfully apply it to mass-produced vehicles. Eight-cylinder Buick cars emerged in the 1930s and became immensely popular; these advanced engines received steady improvements for several years. The '30s also saw Buick's introduction of the industry's first rear turn signal to use a flasher.

Models such as the Estate Wagon and the ever-popular Roadmaster kept Buicks happily ensconced in driveways all across the nation in the 1940s. In 1948, Buick introduced Dynaflow, the first torque converter-type automatic transmission offered in U.S. passenger cars. The 1950s and 1960s witnessed Buick continuing to zoom ahead of the curve; it was among the first to offer vehicles with power brakes and steering, and 12-volt electrical systems. The marque was also behind the introduction of the first American V6 passenger car engine and introduced the Riviera personal luxury coupe in the early '60s.

On the whole, though, Buick had made its name as a manufacturer of stately land yachts such as the Electra 225. To meet the changing times, the automaker downsized its full- and midsize models during the 1970s and began offering compact and midsize sedans for the 1980s. During the latter period and into the '90s, Buick changed things up by introducing the Regal Grand National muscle car and Reatta luxury coupe and convertible. But its core product continued to be luxury sedans aimed at an older audience.

Today, Buick specializes in sedans and crossover SUVs and is modifying its philosophy in the hopes of attracting younger buyers. Luxury and class are still common themes, but newer models have European influences in their handling and ride dynamics. As such, many modern Buicks, such as the compact Verano sedan provide a more entertaining drive and more contemporary styling than people might expect from this "old" nameplate.

User Reviews:

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  DO NOT BUY - 2011 Buick Enclave
  By ROGER GIROIR - December 16 - 4:07 pm

  HAD TO CHANGE MOTOR MOUNTS TWICE IN CAR. A/C BROKE IN FIRST MONTH. OVERPRICED. BEEN IN THE SHOP OVER TWENTY TIMES AND GMC DOES NOT STAND BEHIND THEIR PRODUCT.

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  Stay away from this vehicle - 2003 Buick Rendezvous
  By lori - November 23 - 4:29 pm

  Always needs work. As soon as one thing is fixed, something else goes wrong.

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  Most trouble prone car Ive ever owned - 2005 Buick Terraza
  By Mike I - October 7 - 7:49 pm

  Let me start by saying that I have owned some of the most unreliable makes on the road. Fiats, Alfas, Jaguars, etc. The Buicke Terraza, which we purchased new in 2005, has been the worst by far. It now has 145k miles on it. I would have unloaded it years ago but after each expensive repair you think, "what else can go wrong?" The Terraza never fails to answer that question. In the years since we have owned it, lets see. It has had the transmission fail twice. It has used about a quart of oil every 1,000 miles since it was new. GM says that is is within normal usage parameters. Hmm, I have had other vehicles with 300k on the odometer that use essentially nothing every 3k miles. Have replaced every single suspension component, front and rear, at least once. Front brake rotors are essentially an annual replacement. Dow not matter what brand rotor or pads, the rotors eventually warp. Lets look at the components driven by the serpentine belt. Water pump, AC compressor, alternator, power steering pump. Yup, every one of those has been replaced. All sorts of electrical issues almost since new. CV axles. Yes. This as well. Exhaust. Ok, that lasted a long time so not too bad. Heater core leak. Been there, done that. Leather cracking at front seats and arm rests. Yes, also a crack in the dash. Steering rack. Yes. Last month as a matter of fact. Engine mounts. If your Terraza has lots of noise and harshness, these arprobanpy shot. I maintain all my vehicles extremely well and they tend to last a very long time. Frequent fluid changes, interior / exterior detailing, etc. Who knows what other problems this lemon would have if not maintained It is reaonably quiet. Engine is harsh and could use a few more HP. Highway mileage is decent, around town about the same as my V8 SUV. Front seats are comfortable, rear seats have terrible leg room, third row is difficult to access. Front cup holders fall apart, few poor outlets poorly located. Even though we now have a "new GM" my experience with the Terraza has left me saying, never again.

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  I feel like the assembler - 2005 Buick Rendezvous
  By Bernice - September 13 - 9:24 pm

  I bought this car and immediately had to basically rebuild the whole car under the hood. The whole cooling system failed the computer went bad, had to replace many parts to the engine, the battery holder, the windows quit working and i had to rebuild the transmission. No go for me i would never get another👿

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  vacation killer - 2010 Buick Enclave
  By Paul Urnise - August 7 - 2:05 am

  You will more than likely have costly air conditioning issues in excess of 1,100 When you will need it most like perhaps your dream vacation, it will more than likely fail you. Tried to drive it to Florida from Missouri and we made it to Tennessee and what do you know, electrical issues. Ruined our dream vacation. Do yourself a favor and look elsewhere, and when I say elsewhere I mean stay away from GM products.

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  Buick lights - 2009 Buick LaCrosse
  By carhawk77 - February 19 - 10:20 am

  There is a problem with the lights circuity design. You can find many stories of the problems. It relates to low beams not working and also daytime lights also fail at the same time. Model years affected, 2006 thru 2009. After a massive number of complaints, Buick had no choice to post a recall notice. So even though officially recalled, Buick has not yet found a fix. The problem is where they located the relay box. It actually gets so hot that it melts down at which time you are left only with your high beams. "GM Recall N 140291 issued 11/25/2014. Title: Low Beam Headlamp". :Recall Status: Remedy Not Available as of 02/16 2015". So why arent dealers telling potential buyers about this??

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  Poor visibility - 2012 Buick LaCrosse
  By kccarib - November 13 - 7:26 pm

  I love cars....new cars, antique cars I love all cars. I enjoy driving any type of car. My parents have a new Buick Lacrosse and the visibility is nothing short of awful. I absolutely do not like driving it. There are blind spots everywhere. I cannot believe that a car company would design a car that is unsafe to drive. If I am at a stop sign several seconds pass before I have visibility of a full sized car or truck coming from my right. I have to lean forward and backward to avoid that blind spot. There is no way of viewing a car when merging or changing lanes except with the side mirror. If I look over my left should all I see is the b pillar and the c pillar and a tiny slit.

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  Do not buy this car! - 2014 Buick Encore
  By alexusxix - October 15 - 7:52 pm

  I have Encore base for 7 months and it has about 6K miles now. It is a comfortable car, but all positives ends here. Performance is mediocre. Driving it is a nightmare: I experience automatic transmission issues at times. Gears are switching erratically and incorrectly, the car is shaking. Dealer is reluctant to do anything: they just cannot duplicate the problem. Build quality is horrible: I did have a problem with shock absorber, it took me 4 visits to dealer to fix it. Do not buy this car under any circumstances!

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  Full of issues-American made POS - 2006 Buick Rendezvous
  By 1stmeridian - September 4 - 2:17 pm

  Its really too bad we have to take so many shortcuts in the USA with cars. I have had more problems with US made vehicles than any foreign vehicle Ive owned. This car has multiple major issues: Power windows fail, often due to wiring shorts and breakage. LIghter/phone charger fails also due to faulty wiring. Fuel indicator failure and the part is in the tank so extremely difficult and expensive to fix. Tachometer intermittent failure.

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  Dissatisfied with Encore, GM, and the Dealer! - 2014 Buick Encore
  By dissatisfied32 - September 3 - 11:50 am

  We purchased our Encore brand new. After an initial "honeymoon period", we started having reliability issues. The car has now been repaired three times for suspension noise. It has gotten so bad that the Dealer & GM proposed a "Trade Assist" as they suggested we get rid of the car. Unfortunately the assistance wasnt much. We are very dissatisfied - we have spend endless time on the phone with GM and at the Dealer. I would highly recommend you consider another manufacturer!