BUICK LACROSSE

The controversial name of this Buick was probably inspired by that of the 1951 LeSabre concept car, named after the F86 Sabre jet fighter, with a definite (masculine) article in front of the French noun. This time, crosse with the feminine article in front means crosier, though several other meanings exist. Lacrosse is based on games played by various Native American communities, and is Canada's national summer sport.

The first generation was inspired by the LaCrosse concept car, revealed at the 2000 Detroit Auto Show and replaced the Century/Regal in North America in the autumn of 2004. This LaCrosse was sold as Buick Allure in Canada, where this generation was built, as were the Century and Regal. Sales of the LaCrosse dwindled to two-thirds within two years, while those of its Pontiac Grand Prix sibling, just as the Pontiac marque on a much higher level, stayed on four-fifth level, but (Chinese?) Government Motors decided to opt for Buick, rather than Pontiac, once the auto industry leader in styling, image, innovation, and performance.

The Chinese apparently didn’t like the rounded appearance of the body, and let it redesign at PATAC with help of the Italian I.De.A. Institute, to be released in the winter of 2006, with a 2.4 or a 3-litre engine. Its Chinese name is Junyue. The bold looks of this car were also appreciated in Taiwan where it was assembled by Yulon GM. The 4-speed automatic in the 2.4 changed into a 6-speed in February 2008, but not for the ECO-hybrid model that arrived a half year later.

Buick LaCrosse China (E11/16) July 2009, USA August/September 2009, South Korea (Alpheon) August 2010

The second-generation Buick LaCrosse was developed from the Invicta concept car, displayed at the Beijing Auto Show in April 2008. It was unveiled at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show and designed at PATAC by Justin Thompson, and in America also succeeded on the LeSabre’s successor Lucerne.

This generation sold in China some 92,000 per month vs 53,000 in the United States. In China, one out of every eight was a 2-litre turbo, the rest a 2.4, of which 700 hybrids, and another 3% were 3-litre models, that stopped in 2014.

The American LaCrosse was now built in Kansas, USA, and some weeks after its introduction it was decided to abandon the Allure name for Canada, allowing them to use the same marketing tools as in the USA, and regrettably resulting in halving its production share.

This time, Roewe, one of the Chinese marques of SAIC, straightened the outer panels, eliminating the sweepspear and of course the waterfall grille and hood portholes, and sold it as Roewe 950. The entry-level model initially used the GM alloy 2-litre engine without a turbo. With a couple of thousands per year, this car was selling much less than the LaCrosse. When the plug-in Roewe e950 was introduced in May 2016, it sold better than the pure gasoline model, and lasted till 2019.

In South Korea, some 33,000 Alpheon (a make on its own) were sold from 2010 until 2015, when it was superseded by the imported Chevrolet Impala. The 2.4 model without eAssist comprised half of this number, with one out of every seven of the remaining the 2.4 with eAssist, the others the 3.0 engine.

platform:

Epsilon II

LaCrosse

rear suspension:

4-link independent, coil springs

Opel/SAIC

awd, optional fwd:

5-link independent, coil springs

SGE

L850

HF6

curb weight from:

1695

4 cyl.

wheelbase (cm):

283.7

DOHC

length from (cm):

500.1

cc:

1399

1998

1998

2384

2997

3564

width (cm):

185.7

dir. inj.

injection

dir. inj.

injection

dir. inj.

turbo

market:

USA/CDN

August 2009

10-16

09-10

09-16

export to Mexico

fwd

fwd/awd

136+11

188-190

209-227

182+15

252-255

280-304

11: eAssist

China

July 2009

10-16

09-10

11-16

09-14

fwd

162-184

125

134+11

190

220-250

170

182+15

258

12-15 + eAssist

South Korea

Alpheon

August 2010

10-15

fwd

136, 133+11

193

185, 181+15

263

11: + eAssist

China

Roewe 950

May 2012

16-

12-16

12-15

length from (cm):

499.7

fwd

ECVT

112+56

108

137

190

152+76

147

186

258

e950

replaced by SAIC engines

Buick LaCrosse China (E2LB) March 2016, USA August/September 2016

Developed from the Buick Avenir concept by GM Australia’s lead exterior designer Warrack Leach, unveiled at the 2015 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, this generation LaCrosse came from PATAC design executive director Holt Ware, and was restricted to three markets worldwide, and nowadays limited to China only, as its American production stopped in February 2019 after sales halved there, possibly due to its fastback shape (without a hatchback). Buick had experienced this forty years earlier with their downsized Century model.

When the Chinese wouldn’t have liked Buick, GM (Government Motors) better had saved Pontiac in April 2009, selling about twice in the preceding years, and offering more economical cars.

Plush Avenir models were added to the LaCrosse, Regal and Enclave line in the United States, and to the LaCrosse, Enclave and GL8 in China.

This generation sold in China almost five times better than in the United States. In China in 2017, the 1.5 turbo sold twice the 2-litre turbo, but in 2018, sales were equally divided with the share of the hybrids increasing from 2% to over 5%. In early 2019, the active fuel management long-stroke (tri-power) 2-litre turbo was released selling for the price of the 1.5 turbo, superseding this engine that was mated to a 7-speed dual clutch transmission, and reducing LaCrosse sales with 40% to 40,000 in 2019.

In late April 2020, the designation was changed from 28T into 652T with the first number 6 representing the engine torque output range being 350 Nm or greater, the second number 5 rather casually standing for the 9-speed automatic transmission, the third number 2 meaning the eConnect 2.5 car networking system, and the final letter T stands for Turbo pressure models. The decision was made not to use engine displacement so that the badges could also be applied to future electric vehicles. The flagship Avenir didn’t get this designation.

By July 2020, the 1.5 turbo was re-entered in National 6b emission mode, and now with the 9-speed automatic, as 552T (250 Nm), selling one out of every four LaCrosse, increasing to four out of every six in the first half of 2022. 32,000 were sold in 2022, and 28,000 in 2023.

platform:	E2LB	Buick LaCrosse
rear suspension:		5-link independent, coil springs			Opel/SAIC	Opel	GM	GM	GM	GM
		wheelbase (cm):	290.5		SGE	MGE	CSS	L850	L850	HF6
		length from (cm):	501.7		4 cyl.	4 cyl.	4 cyl.	4 cyl.	4 cyl.	V6
		width (cm):	186.7		DOHC	DOHC	DOHC	DOHC	DOHC	DOHC
				cc:	1490	1796	1998	1998	2457	3649	cc
					dir. inj.	dir. inj.	dir. inj.	dir. inj.	dir. inj.	dir. inj.
					turbo	hybrid	turbo	turbo	eAssist

market:
USA/CDN		August 2016							17-19	16-19
		curb weight from:	1583	kg					fwd	fwd/awd
									6A	17: 8A>9A
									145+20	231	kW
									194+27	310	hp

China		March 2016			*20:* 20T > 552T	30H	28T > 652T*	28T
		curb weight from:	1510	kg	16-19, 20-	16-19	19-	16-19
					fwd	fwd	fwd	fwd
					*20:* 7DCT > 9A	EVT	9A	*17:* 6A>9A
				net kW	*20:* 120 > 119	91 + 45	172 > 169	187			net kW
				hp	*20:* 163 > 162	124 + 61	234 > 230	254			hp
				l/100 km	*20:* 6.2 > 6.5	4.7	6.9	7.5			l/100 km
				WLTC	6.96		7.42
							* or Avenir

Buick LaCrosse China May 2023

A model with new sheet metal, using the same 2-litre engine, but now with the 48V mild hybrid system, which reduces WLTC fuel consumption from 7.42 to 6.59 l/100 km, was launched on May 15, 2023. The 1.5T model, was added in August 2023, featuring another derivative of the dual fast cam phasers 4-cylinder 1498cc engine with a net output of 127 kW, mated to a CVT gearbox, and with a hidden exhaust design to enhance the sense of unity at the rear. Thanks to the long wheelbase of 2905 mm, the new generation of LaCrosse has significantly improved rear head, knee and leg room compared with the previous generation model on the same wheelbase. Among them, the knee space has increased by 32%. Hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions will be launched in the future.

platform:	E2LB	Buick LaCrosse			SGM	GM
rear suspension:		5-link independent, coil springs			'8th gen.'	CSS
		curb weight from:	1560	kg	4 cyl.	4 cyl.
		wheelbase (cm):	290.5		DOHC	DOHC
		length from (cm):	499.6		1498	1998	cc
		width (cm):	186.6		dir. inj.	dir. inj.
					turbo	turbo
						mild hybrid

China					25T	28T, Avenir
					23-	23-
					fwd	fwd
					CVT	9A
					127	169	net kW
					132	174	rated kW
					173	230	net hp
				WLTC	6.28	6.59, 6.69	l/100 km

Net output data are approximate.

with thanks to carsalesbase.com and www.goodcarbadcar.net

For recent specifications on Buick cars built in China, see:
On a Global Mission: The Automobiles of General Motors International

Malibu vs Regal vs LaCrosse

Far East Auto Literature

27 January, 2024