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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  1999 Buick Park Avenue PLEASE MAKE THIS CAR AGAIN!!!! - 1999 Buick Park Avenue
  By WPB66 - June 9 - 8:30 pm

  We were the second owners of our Park Avenue. It had 72,000 miles when we purchased it. We added approximately 175,000 miles. This was THE most comfortable car I have ever been in. My sisters BMW and Lexus didn’t even come close. My husband has a bad back. This was his favorite ever. We’re in a Buick LaCrosse now. It’s no Park Avenue.

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  We got a great deal - 2000 Buick Century
  By Alexander Walker St Laurent - November 17 - 11:17 pm

  I have had this car for about a couple months and we paid only $350 for it. I did not forget a zero, I mean 350. It has around 155k miles and starts up every time, ac works great, radio works. Dash lights do not really work neither do 3 window motors but that does not matter considering the price. The fuel gauge and engine temperature gauge do not work either but it has never overheated and I just fill it up every so often so that is not a problem. This car has been great, we have spent about a thousand to flush all the different parts and that was it. It should last us another 50 to 100 thousand miles. That is really good considering how cheap it was, just an old man who didnt need it.

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  Awesome First Car - 2002 Buick LeSabre
  By macy - August 27 - 11:09 pm

  PROS: -I have the titanium blue color and its so pretty. -HUGE trunk. -very roomy -pretty good gas mileage -motor hasnt failed me once -nice steering wheel -comfy seats CONS: -for some reason the parking lights wont turn off automatically, you have to press the "twilight" button twice -steering is difficult at first -very low to the ground. speed bumps are brutal -Seatbelts are a little funky -radio has said "clean player" from day one haha. still works fine though. -driver power window broke overall nice car though given its age and use

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  The land roamer - 1991 Buick Roadmaster
  By Haefen - January 13 - 7:26 pm

  This is a fantastic car to own if you need to seat as much as an SUV, tow as much as light to medium duty trucks, and drive on long trips comfortably. The only real problem with the 1991 model is the 5.0L V8 as it is under powered for such a big heavy car, but the 5.0L was also in trucks and vans from the age so they suffered the same issue. But besides that I have no trouble getting up to 75 mph and driving all day in it, I bought it in Denver, Colorado, and drove it 3 hours home, including on a dirt road with old tires, as the last owner did not replace them, and it handled it like a champ, Ive had it for 5,000 miles now, driving it 100 miles a day in the middle of Wyoming winter, and it just handles wonderfully, it doesnt give me any trouble and even at 191,000 miles that I bought it at I havent had to do any major work, and I dont see signs of anything major, besides the water pump, being replaced. I would recommend this vehicle to anyone who loves big wagons.

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  Steering - 2006 Buick Lucerne
  By D Berwald - January 13 - 1:23 pm

  If you wish to make a U turn, make sure you have enough room as turning radius does not allow for real sharp turns. It is still a stylish vehicle. It does well on long trips as far as comfort and economy. I have consistently experienced 24 miles per gallon on a long trip.

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  My 15 year old friend - 2001 Buick LeSabre
  By steve white - January 12 - 9:20 am

  Over all, this car has been a good one. Its handles great in snow. Comfortable to drive (Im 6 2" its got plenty leg room in front) Ive had to replace 3 electric window motors (this is a common defect in this car) and the air condtioning. (This too is a common issue with this model.) A few of the ellectric display lights are out, but this is not a major thing for me. The car has 200k and has been driven from CT to Fla many times over the years. Still gets me from point A to B without many issues over the years.

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  Comfort and Classy - 2010 Buick Enclave
  By Enclave Love - January 2 - 12:56 am

  Love my Enclave. This has been a great vehicle for me. Love the AWD and traction control. Only real issues have been the many recalls. Dealerships have been wonderful to fix, but too many.

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  When bettercars are built Buick will build them! - 2015 Buick LaCrosse
  By Harold T Williams - December 30 - 12:31 pm

  Great ridding, quiet, good performance, nice fit of all body panels, great paint, great handling really like the fold down rear seats, makes up for the small trunk space, impressive interior, heads up display in windshield great feature, short turning radius a plus. On the down side, poor job on the steering wheel adjustment, needs more telescopic ability, speedometer is hard to read if wheel is adjusted to my liking. Cannot see the hood, makes it hard to judge distance when parking, front of car will not clear all curbs, easy to damage front of car on these tall curbs and parking blocks. I have owned a 95 Buick Road master and a 2007 Lacernne in recent years and I believe this LaCrosse is going to beat the quality, fuel mileage and performance of both the other Buicks.

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  donalds review - 2015 Buick Encore
  By donald - December 26 - 5:53 pm

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  Long Term Review - 2002 Buick Regal
  By Ryan - December 17 - 9:31 pm

  My family owned this car for around 9 years. It was my first car and I took a lot of pride in it as it is a car to be proud of. We had a special edition style and handling package with two tone paint and firmer, more reactive suspension. While the car isnt particularly special in the curves, it felt awesome until you near the limit and realize how front heavy it is. The engine was plenty powerful to have fun with, and consistently gave me 29 mpg HWY without fail. ABS worked great. Traction control worked surprisingly well even in deep snow up to the bumper. Never got my car stuck in the winter except for once when it was practically buried overnight. We did have some problems over the course of the ownership. The worst one was the ignition switch which shut the car off in heavy traffic. Other than that, we also had to replace the swaybar, a window motor, window switches, AC clutch, 3 wheel bearings, fender rust and well thats about it. Pretty good car, but still nickle and dimed over the years. Probably cost less then 2k for everything over 9 years. It was really built well though. Maintained it perfectly and it was still driving like new at almost 170k. There were no weird squeaks, rattles or anything which is amazing considering how high quality the monsoon radio and speaker system was. YOU WANT THE MONSOON! The only wear it showed were a few chips on the aftermarket hood, some fine cracks in the leather, and a light tick from a lifter in the bullet proof Buick 3.8L until she warmed up. Car was broke in but showed no signs of slowing down. I trusted it fully to the day I sold it. It wasnt babied either. Maintained and serviced well was not used lightly. Ditched during winter twice, but no damage was ever taken.