The 2014 Buick LaCrosse, which is described as a "landmark luxury sedan", has been unveiled, ahead of its debut this week at the New York Auto Show.
Set to go on sale this summer, the updated LaCrosse will be offered with two different engines. The entry-level 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine with eAssist light electrification technology develops 182 hp and 233 Nm of torque, while the 3.6-liter V6 engine produces 304 hp and 358 Nm of torque. Both are mated to a six-speed automatic transmission.
For full details, you can check out the press release after the jump.
Buick introduces the new 2014 LaCrosse
NEW YORK – Buick today introduced the new 2014 LaCrosse, the evolution of the landmark luxury sedan that established the brand’s modern sedan lineup with design leadership and technological innovation.
- Elegant sedan featuring refreshed exterior with wing-shape LED lighting
- New interior design with new seats and available Ultra Luxury Interior Package
- New advanced technologies: next-gen IntelliLink, standard eight-inch color display instrument panel, camera- and radar-based safety features that work with General Motors-patented Safety Alert Seat
The full-size LaCrosse offers new interior and exterior design cues, advanced safety technologies and enhanced in-vehicle connectivity. New front and rear styling, featuring signature wing-shape LED daytime running lamps and LED wraparound tail lamps, complements its sculpted exterior design. The interior is more contemporary, with new seats, enhanced materials, redesigned central instrument panel and console – and an all-new, available Ultra Luxury Interior Package. The cabin also incorporates Buick’s next-generation IntelliLink infotainment system, with intuitive controls and natural voice recognition.
New radar- and camera-based safety features help surround the new LaCrosse with protection. They include Side Blind Zone Alert, Lane Change Alert, Lane Departure Warning, Forward Collision Alert, Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Automatic Collision Preparation. GM’s patented Safety Alert Seat works with these features, providing seat vibration pulses indicating the direction of a potential crash threat.
Adaptive Cruise Control is also offered. It senses traffic in front of the LaCrosse to adjust vehicle speed, including stopping the vehicle in heavy traffic and accelerating again.
“We evolved the interior and exterior design, increased luxury amenities and materials, and enhanced the safety and personal technologies to give customers more reasons than ever to rediscover Buick,” said Tony DiSalle, U.S. vice president of Buick Marketing.
Globally, LaCrosse sales have exceeded 500,000 since its 2009 introduction and U.S. sales topped 57,000 in 2012, making it more popular than many other full-size luxury sedans, including Lexus ES, Acura TL and Lincoln MKS.
The 2014 LaCrosse is offered in front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive models and offers two powertrains: a 2.4-liter engine with eAssist light electrification technology or a 3.6-liter direct-injected V6. Each is paired with a six-speed automatic transmission.
All models feature Buick’s QuietTuning engineering process that reduces, blocks and absorbs unwanted noise from the LaCrosse’s cabin, making it one of the quietest in the segment.
The new LaCrosse makes its public debut at the New York International Auto Show, where it will be on display March 29 to April 7. It goes on sale this summer.
A more expressive design
LaCrosse's flowing, sculpted styling helped redefine Buick’s design language at its introduction in 2009. The 2014 LaCrosse introduces a more expressive interpretation of that successful design, with elements and cues that enhance the car’s well-planted, wide stance. Highlights include:
- New front fascia, sculpted hood and more prominent waterfall grille
- Lower front active grille shutters are included on every model and close at highway speeds to reduce aerodynamic drag
- New headlamp designs, with available Bi-Xenon High-Intensity Discharge lamps (HID), Active Forward Lighting and LED wing-shape signature lighting
- New rear fascia design and wraparound tail lamps with LED lighting.
The LaCrosse's new appearance is instantly recognizable as a modern Buick and the LED lighting elements enhance its technologically advanced presence. The headlamp housings, for example, have a more angular appearance and LED signature accents that echo a familial appearance introduced on the 2013 Enclave crossover. They’ve also been positioned slightly outboard to reinforce the car’s presence.
The new Bi-Xenon headlamps incorporate new technology with enhanced brilliance that improves visibility, is energy-efficient and environmentally friendly (mercury-free). Active Forward Lighting is paired with these HID lamps, turning them with the direction of the front wheels to enhance visibility around corners.
At the rear, a full-width chrome accent reinforces the car’s stance, while fully enclosed exhaust outlets (3.6-liter models) are framed with a chrome finish within a new rear fascia. It’s a more integrated appearance designed to show Buick’s attention to detail. An integrated rear spoiler is incorporated in the trailing edge of the deck lid to help improve aerodynamic performance and new LED taillamps – in all-new, wraparound housings – provide a safety benefit by illuminate more quickly than conventional bulbs when the brakes are applied.
In the front and rear, LaCrosse's new LED lamps continue the wing-shaped signature appearance that distinguishes Buicks day and night.
Ultra Luxury Interior Package
Sangria seating color and Ebony accents, with semi-aniline leather seats and trim, along with Shadow Tamo Ash wood décor, represents LaCrosse’s new Ultra Luxury Interior Package.
“The warm color combinations, premium interior materials and advanced technology in the 2014 LaCrosse provide the interior environment our discerning luxury customers are seeking,” said Ven Lai, Buick creative designer for color and trim.
The new Ultra Luxury Interior Package features premium semi-aniline leather. It covers the seats, console armrest and door armrests and is complemented by synthetic suede on the headliner and door pillars. The Sangria contrast color with the Ultra Luxury interior is exclusive to LaCrosse.
New safety features
The 2014 LaCrosse employs new safety features with carefully developed directional alerts that help drivers quickly identify potential crash situations so they can react. They include radar- and camera-based features offered in two Driver Confidence packages:
- Driver Confidence 1 package includes Forward Collision Alert, Lane Departure Warning, Lane Change Alert, Side Blind Zone Alert, Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, High-Intensity Discharge headlamps with Active Forward Lighting, fog lamps and Head-Up Display.
- Driver Confidence 2 package adds radar-based Forward Collision Alert, Collision Preparation (with Collision Mitigation Braking), full-speed-range Adaptive Cruise Control and the Safety Alert Seat.
The Collision Mitigation Braking feature can intervene in certain crash-imminent situations, automatically triggering emergency braking if the driver fails to respond to a previous alert. The Safety Alert Seat vibrates on the left or right side, or both sides simultaneously, depending on the direction of the crash threat.
The LaCrosse is one of the first vehicles to offer Lane Change Alert, which warns the driver of fast-approaching vehicles in the next lane that are up to 230 feet (70 meters) behind the car.
LaCrosse's safety features also include eight standard air bags, including rear-seat thorax air bags, StabiliTrak, traction control and four-wheel disc brakes with ABS and Intelligent Brake Assist. A rear-vision camera is available.
