From the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show, Cars.com's Mike Hanley takes a look at the 2011 Buick Regal.
Transcript
(upbeat music) <v Announcer>Cars.com auto review. (upbeat music) Hi, I'm Mike Hanley with cars.com, and I'm here at the Los Angeles Auto Show with the 2011 Buick Regal.
It's Buick's new mid-size entry luxury sedan, and it competes against the models like the Volkswagen Passat and Acura TSX. It's slated to go on sale middle of 2010. (upbeat music) The Regal is actually based on the Opal insignia from Germany. It's actually gonna be built in Germany initially, too. And it looks a lot like the insignia except for a Buick cues on the outside, like the different grill and styling around the back. Overall, it's an understated looking car, but a smart looking car too. The Regal continues GM's emphasis on interior quality as the Regal features pretty nice materials in the interior. There is this interesting feature on models with navigation. See this knob here kind of looks like Buick has gone the way of BMW with some iDrive like system. But it's really nothing of the sort. All it does is zoom in and out the navigation system, or tune audio stations. So much less involved. You still have a lot of buttons here if you want to make direct selections. The Regal will be offered with two four cylinder engines. There's a 182 horsepower base engine, and a 220 horsepower turbocharged four cylinder. And they team with six speed automatic transmissions. The turbo will also be available with a six speed manual. And I can't remember the last time a manual transmission was available on a Buick. (upbeat music) I was pleasantly surprised by the backseat of the Regal. It's actually pretty roomy for taller adults. I'm just over six feet tall, and I still have a little leg room to spare, even with the seat adjusted to where I would be driving it. Now, headroom is kind of on the limited side. It's dipping down with this roof line in the car, but overall for a car this size, backseat space is pretty good. (upbeat music) Pricing hasn't been set on the new Regal, but it's probably gonna come in around $25,000 considering the LaCrosse, the model just above it, starts at around $28,000. And for that kind of money, I think you get a lot with this Regal. But the question is, are buyers who are in this market going to consider a Buick? <v Announcer>For more car related news, go to cars.com or our blog, kickingtires.net.
