New Buick Excelle Compact Sedan Scooped Totally Undisguised

New photos of the upcoming Chinese / North American market baby Buick have surfaced in China (courtesy of Autohome), and it doesn't look too bad. The small, 2010 Opel Astra-based sedan will be a fitting bookend to what may become the most attractive Buick lineup ever.

The worst view by far has to be the red profile shot (anyone else think it looks like a Neon?) with the car sporting a very un-sporty wing. Let's hope that doesn't make it over to the states. Same goes for the gaudy chrome eyebrows over the tail lamps.

Being a higher-end Chevy Cruze, expect similar engine/transmission choices but with an "upscale" feel inside. If we're lucky, it may even score the turbocharged 180-horsepower 1.6 liter from the current Astra or whatever the upcoming GSI/OPC model will be packing.

From what we gather, we'll probably see the Chinese version of the car named the Buick Excelle making its world premiere this year, with the North American version to follow sometime in 2011.

By Phil Alex

Via: Autohome.com.cn

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Baby Buick Sedan Based on New Opel Astra Scooped Inside and Out in Germany

We still don't know the name of Buick's all-new small sedan that will take its place right under the 2011 Regal in the carmaker's line up, but these latest spy shots from Germany give us our best look to date of the upcoming compact-sized model's exterior and interior design.

And if the styling looks familiar that's because Buick's baby sedan is in essence the North American version of the upcoming Opel Astra sedan.

From what we gather by looking at these revealing spy shots, the only differences worth mentioning aside from the badges concern Buick's signature waterfall grille and possibly, the styling of the tail lights.

As with the 2011 Buick Regal and the Opel Insignia, the small sedan's interior is identical to that of the recently revealed Astra hatchback.

There are no surprises under the sheetmetal as Buick's Opel-sourced model uses the same Delta II platform found on the Chevy Cruze.

Even though it's too early to know specific details about the powertrain options, we reckon that Buick's compact sedan will probably be offered with a similar engine range to the Cruze including a 1.4-liter turbocharged four-pot, and quite possibly, the Astra's more powerful 1.6-liter turbo with 180 ponies.

The big questions, is how U.S. consumers will receive Buick's smallest proposal that will compete head on with the VW Jetta and its like, especially after the failure of Saturn's version of the Astra.

Of course, the are many significant differences between Buick's and Saturn's Astra, the most important being that the Buick is based on the new and not the previous generation Astra, it will come with more powerful and modern engines and that it's a four-door sedan and not a five-door hatchback.

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Buick's "Premium" Compact Sedan Spied with Less Camouflage in China

Last week at the Los Angeles Auto Show, General Motors gave us a sneak peek of its, as yet unnamed, baby Buick sedan through a teaser sketch. And while we've already shown you spy pictures of the new Buick, which is poised to take the role of the firm's new entry-level model in the North American market, the compact-sized saloon has been caught again, this time with less camouflage in China.

The baby Buick is expected to be heavily based (if not just rebadged, remasked and retrimmed) on the next Opel Astra sedan which is also currently under development and shares its Delta II platform with the Chevy Cruze.

We suspect that the North American version of the Buick won't differ much from its China market sibling seen in these photos. Hopefully, one of the cosmetic changes will concern the removal of those ridiculous chrome "eyebrows" on the tail lights...

Photos: Sohu

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Buick Previews Official Sketch of Premium Compact Sedan [With Video]

During Buick's Los Angeles Auto Show press conference for the unveiling of the Opel Insignia-based 2011 Regal saloon, the company's product marketing director, Craig Bierly, showed a teaser sketch of the next addition to the Buick range, a premium compact sedan.

"And now, I have more exciting news to share with you; the first public showing of a rendering that includes our entire future sedan portfolio," Bierly said at the presentation.

"In addition to the new Regal, which you see on your right, you see our LaCrosse in the center and at the far left, an all-new premium compact sedan with the styling and craftsmanship of Enclave and LaCrosse plus the European-inspired driving dynamics of the Regal - and at a price that will make this Buick our new entry point to the brand.

"Is Buick's transformation complete? No … but we believe we're making steady progress," Bierly added.

While Bierly did not give out any specific details on the car, it's safe to assume that, like the Chinese market 2011 Buick Excelle hatchback, the four-door saloon will also be based on the new Opel Astra (sedan version), which shares the same Delta II platform with the new Chevrolet Cruze.

Our spies have already captured Buick's compact sedan testing in Germany, though at the time, it wasn't clear if GM was developing the car exclusively for China or also for the North American market.

In the States, the new Buick compact sedan will most likely be offered with a similar engine range to the Cruze including a 1.4-liter turbocharged four-pot, and quite possibly, the Astra's more powerful 1.6-liter turbo unit with 180 ponies.

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2011 Buick Regal Photographed During Testing in Germany, Sales to Start in the U.S. in Spring 2010

As well as releasing two pictures of a camouflaged 2011 Buick Regal Sedan on an engineering validation test drive that took place in Germany earlier this month, General Motors also announced that Buick's new entry-level saloon will come to the U.S. in the second quarter of 2010, which is earlier than most anticipated. Destined to slot in below the new 2010 LaCrosse, the newest member of the Buick family is a re-grilled and rebadged European 2010 Opel Insignia.

General Motors has been keeping most details under wraps, but U.S. buyers should expect to see the 2011 Buick Regal being offered with a variety of 4-cylinder turbocharged petrol engines as well as a larger-displacement and smoother in operation V6 that can be combined with all-wheel drive.

The recent introduction of the Opel Insignia OPC that packs an all-wheel drive system and a 325HP turbocharged V6 also leaves the door open for a sporty version of the Buick Regal in the future that could revive the GNX nameplate.

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2011 Buick Regal Spotted in Michigan During Photo Shoot

A few days after General Motors officially announced that it is planning to sell the Opel Insignia as the Buick Regal in the States, and a sharp-eyed FaceBook user spotted the mid-size sedan in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan as it was being photographed outside the Art Museum (or so the poster claims). The picture was then posted on Buick's official FaceBook page.

We can't be sure if this is the actual North American spec model that will go on sale within the next year or so, but we can say that it looks slightly different than the Chinese spec Buick Regal as this example is clearly based on the European Insignia featuring the same-shaped larger front grille and lower air inlets.

Although it is shares the same Epsilon 2 platform with the new 2010 Buick LaCrosse, the Regal is 7-inches shorter than the latter measuring 190-in. (4,830mm) in length meaning that when it goes on sale in the U.S. sometime towards the end of 2010 or early 2011, it will fit right under the LaCrosse in Buick's car range both size- and price-wise.

Source: Facebook , Via: Autoblog.com

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