See the Buick Terraza unveiled live December 4 at noon (EST).

[BUICK RACER]

DETROIT - General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) announced Terraza as the name of the new Buick crossover sport van (CSV) entry that will debut as a 2005 model. Delivering an optimal blend of mid-van versatility with SUV-like attributes, the new Buick Terraza will take the segment in a new direction.

The Terraza will be the third entry in Buick's truck portfolio. Terraza will complement Rendezvous and Rainier by delivering another premium, refined experience that blends some of the best qualities of Buick sedans with the utility that today's marketplace demands. Terraza will compete at the upper end of the segment and continue the trend started with Rendezvous to pull new customers into the Buick showroom. Terraza was selected after consumers said the name has a luxurious, yet rugged image and conveyed a strong vehicle with comfort features.

"The crossover sport van will be different from anything available today in the mid-van category," said Anna Kretz, GM vehicle line executive overseeing the new entry. The new vehicle will combine outstanding ride and handling, compelling styling, and convenient features such as power sliding doors. Production will begin in the fourth quarter of 2004.

See the Buick Terraza unveiled live December 4 at noon.

[Guest greg72monte]

It is good to see that that someone is still using names instead of these alpha-numeric combinations. I am still waiting for a new "car" from Buick to replace my 95 Park Avenue in a few years.

[Centurion]

The Terraza is apparently something different, then, from the Lambda platform sport wagon that Buick will introduce in about 2007. Based on another article that Roberta posted within the last week, I'm guessing that the Terraza might be based on the updated GM minivan platform.

Roberta, if you have opportunity to find photos of the Terraza at its unveiling tomorrow, I'm sure that we would all like to see what it looks like.

[BUICK RACER]

See the Buick Terraza unveiled live December 4 at noon at this web page

[Dave@Moon]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> See the Buick Terraza unveiled live December 4 at noon at this web page </div></div>

Or right now!

[Dave@Moon]

Please, whatever you do, don't call it a mini-van. I'm begging you! PLEASE!

I like how pretty much everything has to be a "truck" now. It's a good thing nobody actually has sex, or else there'd be no use for these psychological penile implant language games.

[BigFella]

ok it's too easy...

MINIVAN!!!

[Guest greg72monte]

What's new???

It looks like a re-hash of my 2000 Chevy Venture.

It still looks like a minivan, not that there is anything wrong with that.

[Redrob]

Wow, a totally new, totally different take on the minivan.

Exvept it looks exactly the same. *yawn* Did I miss something here?

It's a shame the words 'minivan' and 'station wagon' have such bad vibes, since everyone wants to build them!

[Guest greg72monte]

Hey, you can't beat the versatility of a minivan..........

but I would rather drive a Roadmaster Wagon!

Now, if they would only build those again???????

[Redrob]

Hey, I hear you, Greg. That's why my wife's car is a 1994 Caprice wagon with the LT1! We're going to drive that car until the wheels fall off!

[Guest greg72monte]

In my New Jersey area, clean 95-96 Roadmaster Wagons are

selling in the $10,000-$14,000+ range, if you can find one.

People like you are not letting them go. If I had one, I would not part with it either. In speaking to my local Buick dealer,

he says if they get one on their lot, it is sold within hours!!!!

Even though I love my 95 Park Avenue, in hindsight I think I should have bought a Roadmaster Wagon.

[Redrob]

I won't let it go, it's the last of the breed! With only 132,000 miles, that car is still a spring chicken! It's the anti-minivan!

[Guest greg72monte]

Redrob,

Is that a 65 Sportwagon on your post, I can't tell. An elderly friend has an original 65 Skylark 4dr sedan, 37,000 miles I have been trying to get him to part with. He is the original owner, and the slipcovers are still on the seats from new. I peeked under, and the cloth upholstery is pristine. The chrome sparkles, or I imagine it will, under the dirt & dust. He promises that when his wife agrees to sell it, I will have first crack at it. It will be a prime candidate for HPOF. I first looked closely at it 2 years ago, even thought I have known the car for 20 years. I am still waiting & hoping..............

[Redrob]

Greg,

Good eye on the Sportwagon. It's my brother's car, but I'm the part time 'keeper'. It's a 1965 Sportwagon custom 3 seat, 300 engine with 4 bbl carb. He bought it in California and we drove it home a few years ago. It's the exact model we grew up with and I learned to drive on. We took the wagon to the 100th anniversary Flint show. I wouldn't hesitate to drive that car anywhere, any distance. Not show perfect, but a great car! I figured it was time to put it in as my avatar.

[HurstGN]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> Please, whatever you do, don't call it a mini-van. I'm begging you! PLEASE! </div></div>

OK Dave...I'll not use the "M" word.......

<sarcasm>Oh JOY!! Another <span style="font-weight: bold">[color:\\"red\\"] J [color:\\"green\\"] E [color:\\"orange\\"] L [color:\\"blue\\"] L [color:\\"purple\\"] Y [color:\\"yellow\\"] B [color:\\"pink\\"] E [color:\\"brown\\"] A [color:\\"#666666\\"] N !!</span> </sarcasm>

Now there's a movie idea for you..."The Jellybean that saved Buick" ... oh, wait, that was "The Fish that saved Pittsburgh". Somehow I don't feel like I've been saved yet. <sigh>

[Guest my3buicks]

As someone that has had a few minivans and currently a Rendezvous I have to give it a thumbs up. It looks good going down the road on as shown in a video I watched and it looks very upscale for that market segment. It looks like another shot in the arm for Buick sales and lowering the Buick buyers age bracket. I live and work in an upscale "yuppy" area and I can see this vehicle fitting right in. Now we have the truck type vehicles, lets get the new cars on the road.

[Gene Brink]

Talk about minimum differences between rebadged vehicles. Slightly different one piece bumper/grill surround and grill (with badge - whee!). Wonder what the back end and interior look like (and how does everyone like a Buick looking so much like a Saturn)? Anyone have any information on engine, etc? Next month will be time for my annual visit to the L.A. Automobile Show so I'll be able to check it out to see for myself.

[Centurion]

I found it very helpful to watch the virtual launch of these vehicles on GM TV. (See the link that Roberta included on her second post on this thread, and click on the item at the bottom of the screen regarding the December 4 unveiling.)

On the basis of the photos alone that Dave@Moon provided, I was disappointed that the Terraza was basically a re-badged version of the Chevy Venture/Pontiac Montana/Oldsmobile Silhouette minivan. After watching the virtual launch and the presentations by Bob Lutz and Roger Adams, however, I realized that these vehicles have been substantially changed from the current minivans. The most serious criticism I had heard regarding the existing vans related to the front end crash protection, and the Pontiac Montana in particular had ranked poorly in this regard. From the presentations, it is evident that the entire front-end crumple zone has been re-designed with the goal of achieving the best crash protection in the class. How well the engineers succeeded remains to be seen, but at least GM heard and responded to concerns about the older models.

The interior lay-out looked impressive, and I think this vehicle looks very appealing. Yes, I'm disappointed that Buick and Saturn will have nearly identical vehicles, but, unfortunately, that's the reality of the industry. You will see that Honda/Acura and Toyota/Lexus do the same thing with some of their SUV's.

[Dave@Moon]

Finally had a chance to watch the presentation. I've never seen so many low angle 3/4 views of a car in 30 minutes. Did get 20 seconds of the Saturn's tailights, but I'm not sure if there <span style="font-style: italic"><span style="font-weight: bold">is</span></span> a rear end to the Buick.

Minivans are what most families should be driving. I know that they have a bad image. There are plenty of those out there who think that it's worth burning an extra $900 per year in gas <span style="font-style: italic">(actual difference--15K miles, $1.50/gal, 11 vs. 20 mpg)</span> to drive that Yukon for the extra 2 inches in penis length the Yukon provides. <span style="font-style: italic">(Suburban commutors only, save us the defensiveness if you're living in a log cabin in the upper Northwest Territories hauling gravel trailers with your Yukon.)</span> And as such, these minivans look to be good ones. They're not too big, and should be reasonably economical to drive. <span style="font-style: italic">(Although they never seemed to mention what engine these things used!)</span> The interiors were especially pleasing. <span style="font-style: italic">(But I can picture my 7 year old snapping off the mount hooks on that roof-rail storage system in short order.)</span>

<span style="font-weight: bold">But what wasn't mentioned once in the whole program was the issue of durability!</span> Minivans are run to death. Trying to find a low milage Odyssey or Caravan is a fool's errand. Where GM mini-vans have long fallen short in their brief history has been in long term reliability. Bob Lutz can brag all he wants about J.D. Powers <span style="font-style: italic">Initial</span> Quality Survey numbers, it's the quality of a 7 year old, 125K mile example of GM's mini-van output that has been off-putting to me. Save the woeful Ford Windstar, GM's mini-vans have been the consistent and exclusive bottom dwellers in the <span style="font-style: italic">Consumer Reports</span> reliability surveys for a generation. I heard nothing about improving that aspect of these (otherwise impressive) retreads.

[Centurion]

Actually, the presentation did indicate that the vehicles will use 3.4-litre (or maybe it was 3.5-litre) V6 engines that received internal improvements.

[NTX5467]

I didn't watch the launch program, but did go into the Buick.com website and see the virtual tour pictures. Dang Swanky in there!!!! Looks good as a total package too!!!

"Minivans" typically don't have a hood as long as the Terraza or Relay. It might still be an upgraded Rendezvous/Aztek/Venture/Silhouette platform, but it should be much easier to work on with those longer front fenders and a real hood. I perceive the "look" to be more or a crossover utility than a "minivan" as crossovers are the "in" thing now.

We had a Chevy Venture van as a shuttle vehicle at work. It really worked pretty well compared to a Tahoe or Suburban. Easier to get into and out of plus better seating leg room. It also had a better "zip around" factor due to the lighter weight. No durability issues either. Now, we've got a "Mini" Blue Bird bus.

Lots of people like to quote the beloved J.D.Power survey results. In general, there might be some truth to them, but when a Plymouth Breeze and its model companion Dodge Stratus scored very differently on the same survey (same car, same factory, different price point), it makes you wonder about the accuracy and how it relates to the particular model's clientel. Sometimes, you have to read between the lines and also position the results against the general selling division's sales and service CSI ratings (generated independently from data received from the corporation's own surveys) to get the real picture. There are now other rating surveys out there now too, but JDP is the "premier" one of the bunch and the one most quoted.

It would be nice if the Terraza had a stompin' V-8 that would pull a big boat, but that's not what it was meant to be.

Enjoy!

NTX5467

[BigFella]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> I perceive the "look" to be more or a crossover utility than a "minivan" as crossovers are the "in" thing now. </div></div>

Hmmm, I think it may be "labeled" a crossover, but it *is* a mini-van. It's just *not* the "in" thing to call a vehicle right now since it brings up the soccer mom image. Which really is not a bad image and would bring the Buick age down a bit, no? :-) Thirty-somethings shuffling kids around in a Buick calls to an age from the past...a good one that we all remember...and keep asking for again! Now we just need the market to agree!!

Now even if I do not want or need a mini-van/crossover, it does perk up my interest as it seems Buick is moving to expand it's overall lineup including competing with other GM vehicles. They adopted the big SUV from Olds and now they shoot out this. It's a step in the direction all of us have been asking for...now they need that full-size convertible before Mercury does it!! :-)