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2008 Buick Lucerne Review

Smooth, spirited, well-engineered luxury sedans. by Staff, New Car Test Drive

Overview


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The Buick Lucerne is an attractive car, with clean lines suggestive of a fine European import while maintaining Buick traditions. Inside, the Lucerne is elegant, comfortable and easy. Underway, it's smooth and quiet, but with precise steering and a chassis that handles winding roads with aplomb. We find the Lucerne to be a plush, highly competent full-size sedan at a compelling price. It's Buick's flagship sedan and we recommend it.

The Buick Lucerne is a full-size, front-wheel-drive, four-door luxury sedan, and it comes in several models. The Lucerne CX is tuned as a traditional Buick, with the Premium Ride Suspension. The Lucerne CXL comes with a firmer Ride and Handling Suspension, and is positioned to compete with the Toyota Avalon and Lexus ES 350. It's a very enjoyable car to drive, with agile handling and plenty of performance. The CXL Special Edition is even quicker with its optional V8.

The Super is a new model with an old Buick name, dating back to 1940 and last seen in 1958. The V8-powered Super, which replaces last year's CXS, delivers even more horsepower and features Magnetic Ride Control, an adaptive sports suspension developed for the Corvette.

New for 2008 are two safety systems, Side Blind Zone Alert and Lane Departure Warning, available on all models. Side Blind Zone Alert uses radar to provide drivers with more information about vehicles in hard-to-see areas around the car. Lane Departure Warning uses a camera to warn drivers of inadvertent lane changes. StabiliTrak with Brake Assist is now available on CX and CXL. Also for 2008, XM Satellite Radio is standard equipment in all models, and some options and equipment packages have been revised.

Launched as a 2006 model to replace the LeSabre and Park Avenue, the Lucerne benefits from the structure and chassis hardware it shares with the Cadillac DTS. In this, Lucerne is not breaking tradition but confirming it. The biggest Buicks have shared body structure with Cadillacs since the 1930s, if not before; and they have shared significant chassis pieces since 1965.

Buick has a long history of innovative engineering, handsomely conservative styling, and premium luxury at below-premium prices. Lucerne follows these Buick traditions.