Buick

History

Buick was founded in 1899 by David Dunbar Buick as Buick Auto-Vim and Power Company, producing engines for agricultural and marine use. The company built its first automobile in 1903 and was acquired by William C. Durant in 1904, who used Buick as the foundation for forming General Motors in 1908.

Buick has been the near-luxury division of General Motors throughout its history, positioned between Chevrolet and Cadillac. The brand has a strong reputation in China, where Buick is one of the most successful foreign automotive brands, with models designed specifically for the Chinese market that are not sold in North America.

In North America, Buick has undergone a demographic transition from a brand associated with older buyers to a younger, more fashion-conscious audience through modern design and SUV-focused lineup. The brand retired the last Buick sedan, the Regal, in 2020 and now sells exclusively SUVs: the Encore GX, Envision, and Enclave.

[Note: Buick has a disproportionately strong position in China. In 2023, Buick sold approximately 60 percent of its global volume in China. The brand reliance on the Chinese market makes it vulnerable to geopolitical tensions and shifts in Chinese consumer preferences toward domestic brands.]

Innovations

Buick introduced the first mass-produced overhead-valve (OHV) V6 engine in the 1962 Buick Special, a 3.2L V6 that was lighter and more compact than the Chevrolet inline-6. This engine design was later used by Jeep, and the 3.8L version was widely used across GM. [Note: The OHV V6 design is simpler and cheaper than overhead-cam designs but uses pushrods, which some consider less advanced. The 3800 V6 was named one of Ward 10 Best Engines multiple times.]

The Buick Riviera (1963), designed by Bill Mitchell, was a personal luxury coupe with distinctive styling features including stacked headlights and a sharply creased body. It is considered one of the most influential American car designs of the 1960s.

Buick pioneered the use of turbocharging in a mainstream American car with the 1978 Buick Regal V6 turbo, featuring a carbureted turbocharged V6 that preceded the more famous Grand National. The 1987 Buick Regal GNX (Grand National Experimental) was limited to 547 units and produced 276 horsepower from a turbocharged intercooled V6.

Buick offered the first production vehicle with a rain-sensing windshield wiper system in the 1990s, and the Buick Lucerne (2006) introduced the first active noise cancellation system in a production vehicle.

Buick introduced the Avenir trim level in 2017 as a sub-brand for Buick highest trim levels, offering unique styling and premium materials. The Avenir name was historically used by Buick in the 1970s for show cars.