2015 Buick Lacrosse

The Buick LaCrosse enters 2015 building on the momentum of comprehensive updates introduced the previous year – attributes and features that helped it earn a Consumer Guide Best Buy award for 2014 – adding greater technology through new OnStar with 4G LTE and standard built-in Wi-Fi hotspot, IntelliLink with Text Messaging Alerts and Siri Eyes Free.

They enhance connectivity, giving customers a stronger wireless network and more options for the infotainment features that are increasingly part of everyday life.

OnStar with 4G LTE and standard built-in Wi-Fi hotspot provides a mobile hub for drivers and passengers to stay connected. The hotspot is on whenever the car is on and comes with a three-month/three-gigabyte data trial.

The 2015 LaCrosse is offered in front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive configurations and offers two powertrains: a 2.4L engine with eAssist light electrification technology (FWD only) or a 3.6L direct-injected V-6 (FWD and AWD). Each is paired with a six-speed automatic transmission.

Five trim levels are offered: LaCrosse 1SV (1SV), LaCrosse (1SB), Leather (1SL), Premium I (1SP) and Premium II (1SR). Standard equipment on all models includes:

• Eight air bags, including rear-seat thorax air bags
• StabiliTrak electronic stability control with full-function traction control
• Four-wheel anti-lock brakes with Intelligent Brake Assist
• OnStar (complimentary six months of Directions and Connections service)
• Premium audio system with AM/FM/SiriusXM Radio/XM Travel Link (with three months of service), Bluetooth, USB port, CD player, auxiliary input jack, steering wheel-mounted controls, Buick IntelliLink eight-inch color touch-screen radio
• Rearview camera system
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel
• Dual-zone automatic climate control
• Remote keyless entry
• Power windows with driver and front passenger express up/down
• Heated and power outside rearview mirrors
• Electric parking brake
• Eight-inch-diagonal, high-resolution full-color driver information center
• Auto-dimming inside rearview mirror
• Eight-way power driver seat in addition to four-way power lumbar
• Remote start
• Universal Home Remote.

Buick’s QuietTuning engineering process is standard on all models. It reduces, blocks and absorbs unwanted noise, making LaCrosse one of the quietest cars in the segment.

Additional changes for 2015 include three new exterior colors: Deep Garnet Metallic, Dark Chocolate Metallic and White Frost Tricoat.

Experience Buick Protection on all 2015 Buick models includes two years/24,000 miles of scheduled maintenance, including oil changes, oil filter changes and tire rotations. It complements Buick’s four-year/50,000-mile bumper-to-bumper limited warranty and six-year/70,000-mile powertrain limited warranty. Certain eAssist components are covered by an eight-year/100,000-mile warranty.

Expressive design

The LaCrosse’s appearance is instantly recognizable as a modern Buick, with light-emitting diode (LED) lighting elements that enhance its technologically advanced presence. The headlamp housings, for example, have a more angular appearance and LED signature accents. They are also positioned slightly outboard to reinforce the car’s presence.

Bi-Xenon high-intensity discharge (HID) headlamps are available on Leather and Premium I and II models. Their enhanced brilliance improves visibility, and they are energy-efficient and environmentally friendly (mercury-free). The HID headlamps are articulating, turning with the direction of the front wheels to enhance visibility around corners.

At the rear, a full-width chrome accent reinforces the car’s stance, while fully integrated exhaust outlets (3.6L models) are framed with a chrome finish within a new rear fascia. It’s a more integrated appearance designed to show Buick’s attention to detail. An integrated rear spoiler is incorporated in the trailing edge of the deck lid for greater aerodynamic performance, and wraparound LED taillamps provide a safety benefit by illuminating more quickly than conventional bulbs when the brakes are applied.

Additionally, ultrasonic rear park assist is standard on Leather and Premium I and II models.

Exterior color choices: Deep Garnet Metallic (new), White Frost Tricoat (new), Dark Chocolate Metallic (new), Midnight Amethyst Metallic, Quicksilver Metallic, Carbon Black Metallic, Summit White, Smokey Gray Metallic, Champagne Silver Metallic and Atlantis Blue Metallic.

Comfortable, inviting interior

LaCrosse’s interior has a warm, inviting ambience and supports the integration of Buick’s next-generation IntelliLink infotainment system. It also has a flowing, organic design that mixes contemporary colors, complementing trim and premium soft materials that reinforce Buick’s attention to detail.

The instrument panel houses a configurable eight-inch color driver information and cluster display, with the chrome-framed “center stack” integrating the eight-inch color touch screen for the IntelliLink infotainment system, as well as dual-zone climate controls that feature capacitive-touch operation. The center stack flows into a center console that offers generous storage and a comfortable armrest.

New, four-way adjustable front headrests are designed to provide a great range of comfort, particularly for taller drivers, while rear-seat headrests fold down to enhance rearward visibility. The front headrests are now fully wrapped, enhancing the luxury of soft-touch materials throughout the cabin. LaCrosse also offers a heated steering wheel that’s standard on Premium models and available on Leather models.

Four interior color/trim combinations are available:

• Light Neutral seating / Cocoa interior accents, offered with cloth or Soleil Keisel leather seats and Kyoto Maple wood-style décor
• Ebony, offered with cloth or Soleil Keisel leather seats and Cellini wood-style décor
• Choccachino seating/ ebony interior accents, with Soleil Keisel leather seats with contrast stitching and Phantasm wood-style décor.
• Sangria seating / Ebony interior accents, with semi-aniline full leather seats and authentic Tamo Ash wood trim (Ultra Luxury Interior Package).

The available Ultra Luxury Interior Package – offered on Leather and Premium I and II models – adds a synthetic suede headliner and pillar coverings, semi-aniline full leather seats, console and door armrests, as well as authentic Tamo Ash wood trim.

LaCrosse’s use of Buick’s unique QuietTuning engineering helps make it one of the quietest passenger environments in the segment. Specific QuietTuning features include acoustical laminate on the windshield and front side glass; expanded baffles in the roof pillars; extensive use of melt-on sound deadeners throughout the entire lower body structure; and sound-absorbing material throughout LaCrosse’s engine, passenger and cargo compartments.

IntelliLink and OnStar with 4G LTE

LaCrosse’s standard, next-generation IntelliLink system gives customers the best of both worlds when it comes to infotainment. It provides easy, intuitive operation of basic functions, yet it is also highly customizable and capable of linking up to 10 devices such as smartphones and MP3 players, giving users more ways of staying connected.

Enhanced connectivity and convenience includes a new Text Messaging Alerts feature for smartphone users with Bluetooth profile (M.A.P.), which reads incoming texts through the vehicle’s speakers, and Siri Eyes Free for iPhone iOS 6 and iOS 7 users to enhance connectivity and convenience. Each enables voice-controlled connectivity, to help keep phones safely stored and hands on the wheel.

In addition to icons covering everything from navigation to phone to Pandora, IntelliLink is designed to accommodate new features and enhancements and be highly customizable. It also incorporates natural language voice recognition that allows customers to safely place calls, enter destinations, browse media, play music and control other functions simply by telling the vehicle what to do.

The IntelliLink system’s eight-inch-diagonal color touch screen also serves as the display for the standard rearview camera system and available navigation system, as well as the controller for LaCrosse’s audio system. An available, premium Bose^® Centerpoint^® audio surround system with 11 speakers is optimized for LaCrosse’s refined interior acoustics.

Complementing IntelliLink to enhance LaCrosse’s connectivity is new OnStar with 4G LTE and standard built-in Wi-Fi hotspot. It provides a mobile hub for drivers and passengers to stay connected. The hotspot is on whenever the vehicle is on and comes with a three-month/three-gigabyte data trial, after which the owner can purchase additional data. Seven devices can connect with the Wi-Fi system at the same time.

4G LTE is the most current and fastest mobile data network – 10 times faster than 3G and 100 times faster than the previous generation of OnStar hardware. And with OnStar, it also offers stronger, broader coverage than smartphones on the same network and it’s easy to use: If the vehicle is on, the connection is on.

At the time of purchase, six months OnStar Directions and Connections includes all of OnStar’s advisor-based safety and security features, including Automatic Crash Response and Stolen Vehicle Assistance, as well as turn-by-turn navigation.

Five years of OnStar Basic Plan includes RemoteLink Key Fob Services, allowing owners to remotely start and lock/unlock a car (if properly equipped), and activate the horn and lights from anywhere with a data connection. It also includes OnStar Vehicle Diagnostics, which runs monthly checks of a vehicle’s engine, transmission, anti-lock brakes and more, and Dealer Maintenance Notification, which sends a diagnostic report directly to a preferred dealer to simplify service scheduling.

Efficient, refined driving experience

The LaCrosse is equipped with a choice of two efficient engines: the standard 3.6L V-6 rated at 304 horsepower (227 kW) and a 2.4L four-cylinder engine with eAssist light electrification technology, rated at 182 horsepower (136 kW). Each is matched with a six-speed automatic transmission.

LaCrosse with eAssist uses a lithium-ion battery system and electric motor-generator to enable regenerative braking capability. Instead of providing all-electric propulsion, the system provides power assistance to the internal combustion engine. The eAssist system also allows the engine to shut down fuel delivery in certain deceleration situations, or at a stop, which saves additional fuel.

A range of 17-, 18-, 19- and 20-inch tires, along with finely tuned chassis and suspension elements, contribute to strong handling, while premium wheel designs complement the driving experience with style.

LaCrosse is also available with an advanced Haldex all-wheel-drive system with electronic limited slip differential (eLSD) that automatically decides how to distribute torque based on vehicle speed, throttle position and individual wheel slip. It also contributes to a refined driving experience, with minimal torque transferred to the rear wheels when all-wheel-drive traction isn’t required, for a quieter, smoother ride.

Available on 3.6L front-wheel-drive models with 19- or 20-inch wheels is real-time damping and Sport Mode Selectivity, which uses four electronically controlled dampers to constantly “read” the road and make adjustments within milliseconds. It also features Buick’s HiPer Strut front suspension, which enhances ride and handling by reducing torque steer, delivering more linear and communicative steering through improved camber control and delivering improved impact isolation on bumps and rough surfaces.

Electric power steering is standard on models with the 2.4L engine, as well as 3.6L-equipped front-drive models. This technology helps save fuel by drawing energy only when the wheels are turned. It also contributes to the LaCrosse’s driving experience with variable assistance at different vehicle speeds.

Safety and security

The 2015 LaCrosse employs radar- and camera-based safety features with carefully developed directional alerts to help drivers quickly identify potential crash situations so they can react. They are offered in two Driver Confidence packages:

• Driver Confidence 1 package includes forward collision alert, lane departure warning, lane change alert, side blind zone alert, rear cross-traffic alert, following distance indicator, HID headlamps with articulating headlamps, fog lamps and head-up display.

• Driver Confidence 2 package adds Collision Preparation (with collision mitigation braking), full-speed-range adaptive cruise control and the safety alert seat.

The collision mitigation braking feature can intervene in certain crash-imminent situations, automatically triggering emergency braking if the driver fails to respond to a previous alert. The safety alert seat vibrates on the left or right side, or both sides simultaneously, depending on the direction of the crash threat.

The LaCrosse also offers lane change alert, which warns the driver of fast-approaching vehicles in the next lane that are up to 230 feet (70 meters) behind the car.

Additional safety features include a standard rearview camera system, eight standard air bags – including rear-seat thorax air bags – StabiliTrak, traction control and four-wheel disc brakes with ABS and intelligent brake assist.

Content and images provided by: General Motors