Buick's LaCrosse sedan is worth knowing

Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews also can be seen on the Business page of The Sacramento Bee’s website – via the “GALLERY: Reviews of new cars” link at www.sacbee.com/business

Sacramento, California – Buick has been bombarding the TV airwaves with commercials insisting that the public really doesn’t “know” the General Motors division.  Some ads show puzzled folks standing in front of a gleaming car that they’re quite sure is not a Buick.

I guess the iconic Buick logo the approximate size of a Frisbee on the front grille didn’t tip them off.

Anyway, I get it.  Yes, Buick has made changes, and it made some pretty big ones for its 2014 LaCrosse full-size sedan.

Change is good in this case.  I confess that I liked the LaCrosse as it was, feeling it was a relatively well-kept secret in a market where most buyers’ eyes seemed drawn to all those shiny Lexus, Infiniti, BMW and Mercedes-Benz sedans.

The 2014 LaCrosse was redesigned inside and out.  On the front end, a seriously imposing grille (Buick calls it a “waterfall” grille) can be accented by saucy-looking LED lamps.  The wrap-around lamps on the tail end look pretty sharp as well.

Inside, the interior layout of controls – a reworked center stack is part of the new package – is much easier to learn and use from the driver’s seat.

The LaCrosse has a ton of tech goodies on the menu, including warning systems overseeing lane changes, blind spots and potential collisions front and rear.  Yes, some of these can be sensitive and jarring, but for the most part, they function appropriately enough so as not to disturb the pleasure of driving.

Figuring out the alphanumeric-named trim levels of the current LaCrosse lineup might throw you off course, but in simple terms, my tester was a LaCrosse Premium with front-wheel drive.  It was incredibly dressed up with extras, which pushed the manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $39,755 way up the ladder to $49,235.

Say it with me: WOW!

Considering the full-size crowd of cars that the LaCrosse must compete with, I suppose that explains the sticker jolt to some degree.  Needless to say, prospective buyers should carefully consider the option packages being offered on the LaCrosse.

Power on my ride was provided by a 3.6-liter V-6 with 304 horsepower.  The power plant was responsive and capable in all situations, and on-demand, high-end power rushed to the fore quickly when asked.

Fuel mileage is so-so at 18 miles per gallon in the city and 28 mpg on the highway.

Overall, this LaCrosse holds its own amid the feature-loaded, glittery competition.  It’s a solid “B” or “B-plus” of an American sedan.

Is this Buick worth knowing?   Absolutely.  If you haven’t test driven a Buick passenger car in a long time, this LaCrosse is a ride worthy of your time.

 

Infiniti coupe is a sweet-handling dream

Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews also can be seen on the Business page of The Sacramento Bee’s website – via the “GALLERY: Reviews of new cars” link at www.sacbee.com/business

This review originally appeared in the June 2014 edition of the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News published out of Folsom, California – mg

Sacramento, California – I recently received a 2014 Infiniti Q60 Coupe Journey with a significant amount of ho-hum.

Don’t get me wrong, I like Infiniti’s passenger car lineup.  Like it a lot.  It’s just that I had been in and out so many sporty, peppy, luxo Infiniti cars over the years that I was feeling, well, jaded.

Shame on me.  The Q60 designation might be new to some of you, but let me assure you, you’ll never forget it if you spend a little time in it.

Right off the bat, it looks good. It’s aerodynamically smooth from nose to tail, and Infiniti’s double-arch grille sure hits the right style spot.  Big fenders on the backside are accentuated by an impressive display of LED taillights.  The car looks super-sporty just sitting there.  My ride’s “Venetian Ruby” paint job surely added to the eye-candy factor.

Driving it, the heart rate goes up in a hurry.  The 3.7-liter V-6 is rated at 330 horsepower, and my Q60 was matched to a seven-speed automatic transmission.  Here’s a marriage made in heaven.

I was putting the Q60 through its paces on level ground early on, and it quickly became apparent to me that the gear-to-power-to-suspension equation was so well matched that I could put the car anywhere I wanted in a snap … without even coming close to cutting off a trailing car.

Significantly impressed, I started whipping the coupe through heavy traffic at a fairly aggressive pace.  As I headed up into the Sierra Nevada foothills, I tried to get the back end of the car to loosen up a little bit.  Not a chance.  It was rock-solid.

Five miles up the mountain road, I was just showing off.  The Q60 whipped through high-speed turns with single-minded stability, and it instantly responded in short passing zones, blazing past stragglers three at a time with just a short blip on the accelerator.  Yeah, the $40,000-and-change starting price is worth it when you’re having this much fun.

Alas, my ride was incredibly juiced up with a Premium Package (rear sonar and a power/tinted glass moonroof were part of that deal), a Sport Package (19-inch aluminum alloy wheels and a sport-tuned suspension), a Technology Package (intelligent cruise control might not be loved by all), a Navigation Package (with Zagat Survey restaurant guide, for crying out loud) and an Interior Accents Package (high gloss maple touches did look nice).

All this helped bring the bottom line to $50,405.  So, there, you’ve been warned.

Worth noting: Gas mileage was actually pretty good for a hot V-6, coming in at 19 miles per gallon in the city and 27 mpg on the highway.

For me, the bottom line with this Q60 was that it was a great “Fantasy Week” car, which is a short way of saying I enjoyed every minute motoring around in a machine that is beyond the reality of my household budget.  The Q60 might not be as instantly recognizable as, say, a Corvette or a horsepower-laden Mustang or a Camaro, but it offers comparable levels of exhilaration and fun that you get in those sporty rides.

Ho-hum?  Not even a little bit. 

California Automobile Museum's 6th cruise coming soon

Sacramento, California -- This column will be on the road next week, but before I go, a reminder that one of the Sacramento area's biggest annual car events is coming up Aug. 9: the sixth annual California Automobile Museum Car Cruise.

Cruisers of all ages and cars of virtually every stripe will start assembling at California State University, Sacramento, in the early afternoon.  At 4 p.m. the colorful car parade will start making its way toward Fulton Avenue.  The museum expects 400 cars to be parked along Fulton, which will be blocked off between El Camino and Marconi avenues, by 5 p.m.

From 5 to 8 p.m., the on-the-street party includes live music at multiple venues, a wide selection of vendors, plenty of beer, food trucks and much more, plus access to the services of the diverse food and retail merchants along Fulton Avenue.  There is no charge for spectators.

A soup-to-nuts list of cruise awards at the Fulton Avenue staging area will wrap up the event.

Haven't signed up?  Need more info?  Here's where you need to go: www.calautomuseum.org/event/6th-annual-cam-car-cruise.

VW Jetta SEL reviewed in latest Cruisin' News

Check out my review of the 2014 Volkswagen Jetta SEL in the latest, July 2014, edition of the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News, published out of Folsom, California, by John Sweeney and Evonne Sotelo.

The “Hot Laps” reviews, along with my "Oil Drips" observations on anything with wheels, appear monthly in the publication.

To subscribe to the Cruisin’ News, visit http://www.cruisinnews.com, call (916) 933-0949 or send an e-mail request to cruisinnews@mac.com. Mailed requests for information should be sent to Cruisin’ News,P.O. Box 1096, Folsom, CA 95763-1096.

Feel the power in the upscale Infiniti QX80 sport-ute

Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews also can be seen on the Business page of The Sacramento Bee’s website – via the “GALLERY: Reviews of new cars” link at www.sacbee.com/business

Sacramento, California – OK, I’m weary these Infiniti QX small guys, the 50, 60 and 70 versions.  Give me something big, something I can sink my teeth into…

And, whoa, maybe I can’t handle it!

Look at this 2014 Infiniti QX80 AWD sport-utility vehicle monster they gave me for a week.  Wow, what a brute. It’s a rolling sovereign nation.  Starting price: $64,450.  Mine with a generous portion of luxurious goodies came to $70,095 on the bottom line.

Yes, we’re in the rich fantasy class here, and once I was driving the QX80, I quickly adopted the attitude of, “I’ve got it and I’m flaunting it.”  Nobody had to know that I was test driving it for only a week.

Good times?  Let me tell you, mashing the accelerator linked to that 5.6-liter V-8 engine with 400 horsepower was a power trip worth remembering.  You get just a little push in the back and a mighty roar does eventually make its way into the cockpit, but the real charge is the feel of this much machinery moving that quickly.

Given that the front end of the QX80 looks capable of knocking down a herd of charging bulls, nobody dares get in the way.  I could get used to this.

From the cockpit, I’m surrounded by a sea of comfort/convenience features and technology mind-blowers.  Voice-recognition, heated 10-way power driver’s seat, power moonroof, blind-spot detection, triple zone climate control (it can seat up to eight, by the way) and the absolutely-must-have Zagat Survey Restaurant Guide so I can zero in on the shortest route to by my next $100 steak dinner.

Yeah, you start to think like that after you’ve been in this SUV for awhile … five minutes in my case.

I’m also impressed with lengthy list of safety and security features.  The QX80 has enough of these to make you wonder how anybody could get hurt driving the thing.  And prospective SUV-stealers, don’t even think about it.  This Infiniti is going nowhere without the fob-holding owner inside it.

Two things that were not impressive: fuel mileage of only 14 miles per gallon in the city and 20 mpg on the highway, plus a way-too-sensitive lane departure-warning system.  I know I’m getting grumpy-old as I’m increasingly losing my patience with various systems warning me that my driving is about to cause a disaster.  But hey, can you give me a break when I’m just easing onto a freeway exit ramp?

Bottom line, this QX80 is a giant-size luxury liner of the highest order…royalty if you will. And while it might not be for me – or even within purchase reach by throwing in my life savings – it is pretty incredible for what it is.  For the big luxo SUV-loving set, it has earned an “A” grade for sure.

And spoiler alert: Infiniti already has unveiled the 2015 QX80, sporting a new exterior design and some interior refinements as well.  Just so you know, the 2015 version remains large.