After a week driving the 2005 LaCrosse CXS, it’s obvious why so many retirees love their Buicks. Up front are wide, thickly-padded, leather-clad seats that, thanks to a total lack of side bolsters and a nearly perfect hip point, are easy to slide onto. Those comfy but flat seats are great for runs to the senior center or the local Wal-Mart, but make for a virtual slip-‘n-slide on curvy roads. The seat bottoms are sufficiently long, though need some extra cushion on the sides to prevent the occupants from sliding around – yet another benefit of wearing a seatbelt. The seatbacks add a bit more foam to the sides, but the seat’s recline feature is manual whereas all other functions, including lumbar, are power-operated. Grandma would probably trade a fresh apple pie or two for a power reclining seat in a $33,000 car.

Rear seat passengers also ride along on well-padded, comfy seats, with a handy fold-down center armrest. Headroom is at a premium for taller passengers, who may also find their knees bumping up against hard front seatbacks. Shorter rear-seat passengers shouldn’t have a problem. The door panels include a soft armrest that curiously narrows where an elbow will want to rest, right where support is needed the most.

Front seat passengers bask in warmth or cool air from an easy-to-use dual-zone automatic climate control system. With red arrows for warmer temps and blue for cooler, there is no threat of misunderstanding the climate controls. Our 2005 Buick LaCrosse CXS tester’s heated seats warmed up quickly, though it was odd that one click of the heated seat button made the seats hot, while two clicks made them warm – it seems that the seats should go from warm to hot rather than vice versa. What grew annoying over time was the need to repeatedly press various controls, such as the band button on the radio, to get them to work.

Featuring basic knobs and buttons, and offering XM satellite capability, the LaCrosse’s radio was a cinch to reach and operate. Steering wheel controls added to the usability, but the volume buttons mirrored the climate control buttons, and we often confused one with the other.

The remaining interior controls go almost without criticism. One steering wheel stalk controls the wipers and signals, with headlight and fog light controls placed on the left side of the dashboard. Power window and mirror buttons are on the driver’s door, as expected. The trunk unlock feature is incorporated into the power door button, also located on the driver’s door. Interestingly, the trunk only unlocks after depressing the button for an extended period, which means that all of the doors get unlocked, as well.

Using handy pull down tabs, the fully lined, illuminated trunk of the 2005 Buick LaCrosse can be expanded by folding the available split rear bench seat. Added cargo-toting features include a storage net and built-in storage hooks. Placing items into the trunk can be a challenge due to the lofty liftover height, but an integrated grab handle aids closing the decklid.

Interior storage is plentiful for front seat occupants, less so for those in the rear. Rear seat passengers get two cupholders and front seatback pockets. Up front there are large door pockets, a rubber-lined cubby under the radio, a roomy center console, and two adjustable cupholders.