cars part review: 2014 Buick LaCrosse Review MPG and Price

Buick brought in its seasoned flagship for a little dry-dock work, To spice things up for the 2014 Buick LaCrosse model year. Appearance updates include a new front fascia with a waterfall grille and sculpted hood, plus headlamp housings that have been massaged for a more angular appearance. Wing-shaped LED daytime running lamps and articulating HID headlamps are optional. Base cars receive a wing-shaped LED light pipe and DRLs in the lower front fascia. Astern, the 2014 Buick LaCrosse gets a reworked rear fascia wearing a full-width chrome accent, wraparound LED taillamps, and a new trunklid with an integrated spoiler. Behind the cosmetics, all 2014 Buick LaCrosse get active grille shutters that close at highway speeds to smooth aerodynamic flow and aid fuel efficiency.

the 2014 Buick LaCrosse had been flying so far below our collective radar it was sharing air space with hang gliders and crop dusters, virtually invisible. And this observation doesn’t bother Buick in the least. A quick look at the sales numbers reveals that Buick has peddled more than half a million LaCrosse sedans worldwide (including a sizable number to 30-somethings in China) since its 2009 introduction and 57,000 in the U.S. in 2012 alone.

2014 Buick LaCrosse Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, front- or 4-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

BASE PRICE: $34,060

ENGINES: DOHC 16-valve 2.4-liter inline-4, 182 hp, 172 lb-ft; AC induction electric motor, 15 hp, 79 lb-ft; 0.5-kWh lithium-ion battery pack; and DOHC 24-valve 3.6-liter V-6, 304 hp, 264 lb-ft

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 111.7 in
Length: 197.0 in
Width: 73.1 in Height: 59.2 in
Curb weight (C/D est): 3900–4100 lb

PERFORMANCE (C/D EST):

Zero to 60 mph: 6.5–8.9 sec

Standing ¼-mile: 15.2–16.9 sec

Top speed: 113–134 mph

FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):

EPA city/highway driving: 17–25/26–36 mpg

2014 Buick LaCrosse Body Styles, Trim Levels, and Feature

Four trim levels are available: the base model, the literally labeled Leather edition, and the Premium I and Premium II. Standard features include dual-zone climate control, a high-res center screen, remote start, next-generation IntelliLink connectivity, and an eight-way power driver’s seat. A redesigned center stack ditches the smorgasbord-like layout of the previous car, reducing the number of infotainment hard controls from 17 to a mere seven. It’s still a bit weak on storage cubbies, however, with most personal items—keys, phones, etc.—fighting for space in the two cup holders.

To make life easier for buyers who want it all, there’s the Ultra Luxury package, which pairs Buick-exclusive Sangria (code for deep purplish) and Ebony leather on the seats and door and console armrests with a synthetic suede headliner. The treatment makes for a pleasing, but dark, environment. Turn up the color intensity a few notches, and it could pass for the interior of Prince’s tour bus.

Buick has worked hard to keep the cacophony of the harsh outside world at bay, employing acoustical laminate on the windshield and front side glass, expanded baffles in the roof pillars, and melt-on sound deadeners throughout the lower body, essentially creating a rolling anechoic chamber. Buick calls it QuietTuning, and the deafening silence was only occasionally penetrated under hard acceleration or on particularly broken pavement.

2014 Buick LaCrosse Engine Powertrains and Performance

Two direct-injected engines carry over for 2014 Buick LaCrosse: the 182-hp, 2.4-liter four-cylinder with electric eAssist mild hybridization and a 304-hp, 3.6-liter V-6. We drove the latter, in front- and all-wheel-drive guises. The V-6 car’s acceleration is best described as adequate; if it’s raw performance you are seeking, you probably have other vehicles on your wish list. The tone from the V-6 car’s twin exhaust outlets is pleasant, if not refined, until about 4100 rpm, when the engine NVH increases. The ruckus isn’t overwhelming, but it is more prominent than, say, the sound of the 3.5-liter V-6 in the competing Lexus ES350. Shifts from the six-speed automatic are enacted with no fuss, just soft transitions from gear to gear. Note: When shifting manually in Sport mode (it comes with V-6 front-wheel-drive models equipped with Premium packages I and II), the transmission will hold a gear up to the 6800-rpm redline before interfering with a shift of its own.

Our front-wheel-drive Premium II test car had the HiPer-strut front suspension, which helps tame torque steer that would otherwise come with big throttle inputs. The HiPer struts also help make the steering feel more linear and less twitchy just off-center than that of the previously mentioned ES350. The Premium LaCrosse also offers electrically controlled dampers and, in Sport mode, gives tightened-up electrically assisted variable-effort power steering and quicker throttle response. Long, gentle highway sweepers are the LaCrosse’s forte, tracking true through repeated 80-mph bends with a level body and stable footing. An engineer riding shotgun explained that the strut mounts have been reworked in an effort to maintain precise steering while providing for a slightly smoother ride. In-town maneuvers are handled with equally drama-free capability.

2014 Buick LaCrosse Safety and Reliability

All-wheel-drive cars make do with standard struts in front and trade the rear four-link suspension for an H-arm setup to package the rear differential. Although the overall personality of the driveline is similar, we preferred the hydraulically boosted steering feel of the all-wheel-drive car and the chassis of the front-driver.

Also new for 2014 Buick LaCrosse is the arrival of a 20-inch wheel option, only available on the front-wheel-drive Premium II LaCrosse; 17-inch wheels are standard on the 2.4-liter eAssist, and 18- and 19-inch wheels are available on V-6 models.

Although the brake hardware might be nothing special (12.6-inch vented rotors up front, 12.4-inch vented rotors aft), Buick seems to have paid particular attention to finessing the setup for smooth, linear operation. The brakes are firm but never grabby, and in terms of pedal travel to vehicle deceleration, what you give is what you get. Nice, predictable action for a nice, predictable vehicle, but we’ll reserve final judgment until we record some stopping-distance numbers.The Buick 2014 LaCrosse stays true to the roomy, quiet, smooth-riding sedan Buick introduced for the 2009 model year, but it now sports a little more shine. View Photo Gallery 2014 Buick LaCrosse bellow.