Will A Four Cylinder Engine Work With The LaCrosse?

A 2.4L I4 engine will find its way into the Buick LaCrosse early 2010. But can this engine move all that metal and occupants too safely and efficiently?

Last week, General Motors announced that its 2.4L ECOTEC I4 engine would be finding its way into the Buick LaCrosse during the first quarter of the new year. That engine, smaller than the two six cylinder engines now offered, is being made available to help Buick raise its fuel economy numbers.

GM believes that customers will be attracted by the engine’s high fuel economy, estimated to be 30 miles to the gallon on the highway, three mpg boost over the smaller V6.

Not Enough Power?

But will the new engine be too small for drivers accustomed to having more power at the ready with their six cylinder motor? Right now, drivers can choose the 3.0L V6 offering 255 horsepower and 217 pound feet of torque or they can select GM’s popular 3.6L V6 which is found in the Chevy Camaro and Cadillac CTS among other models and produces 280 horsepower and 259 pound feet of torque.

That makes for two tons of car being moved which means even with a smaller, lighter engine, the still heavy Buick LaCrosse may be a bit slow off of the mark.

GM says that the smaller engine will produce 182 horsepower and 172 pound feet of torque. What’s more, the automaker’s research indicates that one-quarter of LaCrosse buyers will opt for that engine which is able to gain more power thanks to direct injection. Paired with its fuel saving six speed automatic transmission, the lighter LaCrosse will be equipped by an engine that GM says is not even offered by its competitors.

But maybe there is a reason for that.

Plodding Sedans of Old

Buick owners are generally much older than Chevy drivers, with many of them remembering the underpowered cars built by GM and others in the late 1970s through much of the 1980s. Those cars were heavy, had smaller engines, and they were slow off the mark.

You’d step on the gas and be underwhelmed by what was returned which wasn’t much. If had the misfortune of trying to enter an interstate, you prayed to God asking that a tractor trailer wouldn’t bear down on you as you sought to get up to speed.

Fully Occupied, But Slow?

Fuel injection, turbocharging, and other technology advancements have improved things since, but you’re still moving a lot of metal without taking into consideration as many as five adult occupants who could easily add as much as one thousand more pounds to the LaCrosse. That means that the four cylinder engine will have to work extra hard to move 4500 pounds under some conditions.

Honestly, I can’t see this engine being a viable option for anyone other than the solitary driver who occasionally has passengers. Certainly not for business people who take their clients to lunch and are accustomed to getting the power they want when they need it.

GM has set the four cylinder equipped LaCrosse’s price at $26,995.

Source: GM Corp.

No Reprieve For Pontiac G8

The Pontiac G8 will go away when the Pontiac brand is retired, in contrast to rumors that Chevrolet would sell the Australian made sports sedan as the Caprice. GM CEO Fritz Henderson put to rest a suggestion by Bob Lutz that the Holden built model would become the flagship car for the Chevy brand, dashing the hopes of some.

With GM deciding to keep the Holden Commodore (Pontiac G8) out of the US, hopes that the automaker would bring the Chevy El Camino back have been dashed too. GM had announced months prior to the shutting down of the Pontiac brand that the Holden Ute would not be sold as the Pontiac G8 ST as originally planned. Enthusiasts wanted GM to call the truck the "El Camino" but GM scotched that idea too.

Problems with the 2010 Chevy Camaro have recently surfaced. Camaro SS models equipped with the manual transmission are temporarily on hold as GM investigates a problem when drivers used the Launch Control feature, including failure of the output shaft. GM hasn't issued a recall of the car, instead has decided to issue an "in production review" to determine just how serious of an issue it is. Once GM's review is complete, a recall order may be in the offing.

GM says that the Cadillac CTS Coupe, a concept car introduced at the 2008 auto show in Detroit, is still a go. The CTS franchise currently includes the sedan and V-Series sedan model and will be joined later this summer by a CTS wagon. The CTS line will likely become the standard bearer for GM's luxury brand with both the DTS and sTS slated to be replaced by one model within the next few years.

Buick's all new midsize sedan, the 2010 LaCrosse (Allure in Canada) is now arriving in showrooms across North America. Early reviews of the sedan have been good, providing a much needed boost for the Buick line. GM is expected to soon announce a fourth Buick model which may share the upcoming Chevy Cruze's platform. No word yet what GM plans to do with its full size sedan, the Buick Lucerne. The Enclave SUV is the other model that rounds out the Buick line.

Photos Copyright GM. Corp.

See Also — Fuel Efficiency Adviser Helps Drivers Conserve

Mitsubishi Galant Likely To Be Retired At Life Cycle’s End

The midsize car market is a brutal segment in the automotive industry, one that is dominated by the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord with both the Chevrolet Malibu and Ford Fusion also making a strong showing. Virtually every automaker is represented in this segment, consisting of over twenty different models for consumers to choose from.

With such a crowded field, some models are getting squeezed more than others, putting pressure on automakers to pour money into updating one or more entries, and taking resources away from other products.

Mitsubishi, who has long fielded a midsize model of its own, the Galant, will likely depart this segment when the ninth (and current) generation Galant ages out in four years. Built at the company’s sole U.S. Plant in Normal, Illinois, the Galant along with the Endeavor and Eclipse contributed only 80,000 sales for Mitsubishi for the most recent model year just ended. The plant’s capacity is 240,000 vehicles but only needs to produce 100,000 units annually in order to turn a profit.

Falling short by 20,000 units, Mitsubishi is looking to replace the Galant with a better selling model, perhaps its compact Lancer or its small Outlander SUV, maybe both. Both vehicles could be built in the US with excess capacity shipped overseas.

Mitsubishi recently completed an agreement with the United Auto Workers to keep the plant open for at least four more years in exchange for employee concessions. A move to smaller, more desirable vehicles could ensure that the plant’s life is extended well beyond that time frame.

To help maintain product build, Mitsubishi has begun to export the Galant and Endeavor, but isn’t seeing that much success. Like so many other automakers stuck with excess capacity, shipping products abroad is being a much more competitive undertaking, one that is falling far short of expectations.

For consumers, finding a great deal on most any midsize car is easy to do thanks to heated competition. The Hyundai Sonata, Pontiac G6, Chrysler Sebring, and Buick LaCrosse have all been heavily discounted this year, making the midsize market a car buying extravaganza for savvy shoppers.

(Source: Motor Trends)