Georgian Pontiac Buick GMC

The LaCrosse is a completely new design next to its predecessor. The Allure was built on GM's W-Body platform, while the LaCrosse shares its Epsilon II underpinnings with the forthcoming Saab 9-5 and Europe's Opel Insignia. The second-generation LaCrosse is GM's first global midsize car in North America, and is also be sold in China and Korea. The car's design was a joint venture: the platform comes from GM of Europe; interior design and engineering was done in China; and the exterior was conceived in North America.

The LaCrosse's 2,837 mm wheelbase is 30 mm longer than the Allure's, but the new car's overall length is the same amount shorter. Width is up nominally, and the LaCrosse is about 40 mm taller.

Much of the new car's allure, if you will, is in its appearance; the LaCrosse is far more athletic-looking outside, and the new interior is much more appealing than the Allure's. Buick makes much of the "sweepspear" character line that begins at the front fender, runs the length of the car, and resolves where it meets the leading edge of the taillight. It's meant to echo the classic lines of Buicks from the 1930s, '40s and '50s, and regardless of whether you're old enough to remember the 1938 Y-Job or the '53 Skylark, it's an element that has been rendered beautifully on the LaCrosse.

Despite that throwback styling element, this is a car that could hold serious appeal with a younger generation of drivers than those who typically shop Buick stores. Whether that happens will remain to be seen; Buick has its work cut out for it to convince shoppers that this is not another "grandpa" car.

Inside, the centre stack is a little button-busy, but the controls are easy to figure out, and material quality and panel fits are to the same high standards that you'll have noticed in other recent GM products. A few niggles I noticed in my time in the car were interior door handles and door pulls that are a little awkward to use, and the shift lever is positioned too far back in the console. This isn't such a huge deal if you're a stick-it-in-drive-and-go kind of driver, but it makes the transmission's manual shift function awkward to use.

In front, long haul comfort seemed quite good, despite a driver's seat with what initially felt like too aggressive a lumbar support. The rear seats are comfortable and offer loads of legroom; the car is optimized for two rear passengers, with a scalloped headliner to increase headroom in the outboard seats.

Trunk space is good, and a split-folding rear seat makes an expected appearance, but the new, shorter decklid means a smaller opening than in the old car.

Initially, the LaCrosse will be offered with a pair of direct-injected V6 engines: a 3.0-litre making 255 horsepower and 215 lb-ft of torque, and a 3.6-litre rated at 280 hp and 259 lb-ft. Come December, Buick will add a four-cylinder to the mix; this engine will be a 2.4-litre, also direct-injected, shared with the Chevrolet Equinox/GMC Terrain crossovers. Its power figures will be 182 hp and 172 lb-ft of torque. All use GM's six-speed automatic, and the 3.0-litre engine is available with all-wheel drive.

Fuel consumption numbers are an estimated 10.5/6.6 L/100 km with the four-cylinder; 12.7/7.7 for a front-drive, 3.0-litre model, and 13.3/8.0 with all-wheel drive; and 12.2/7.3 L/100 km with the 3.6-litre engine (which is only available in front-wheel drive configuration).

The LaCrosse makes its best impression on the road, where it does prove very graceful indeed. The first car I drove was a top-end CXS model, which comes standard with the 3.6-litre engine. Straight-line performance was just fine, but it was on the twisty roads of our drive route that this car, fitted with GM's high-tech Continuously Variable Real-Time Damping suspension, really impressed. This suspension is a very well-done setup that gives the car a well-planted feel over rough roads. There's no "float" in the ride, and body roll is virtually eliminated. The upgraded suspension includes a sport mode, which I didn't realize existed until after I'd driven the car, but I didn't miss it, as handling felt very capable and confident. This car was actually fun to tear through the twisties in.

Next to the CXS, the CXL AWD car was noticeably slower, a sensation that was amplified by the steep hills we were asking these cars to climb. Blame the smaller 3.0-litre engine's lower torque rating, which peaks at a lofty 5,100 rpm; the transmission often had to hunt around for the best gear to keep the little engine on the boil. Attribute some of that performance deficit to my CXL all-wheel drive tester's porkier curb weight: Buick estimates the AWD model weighs in at 1,904 kg, about 80 kilos more than the front-drive CXL and 60 more than the more powerful CXS.

Still, I think this engine will satisfy most drivers' needs when they consider the price jump between the base CXL and the CXS; more on pricing later.

Word is that the four-cylinder engine is actually a more athletic performer than the smaller V6, at least in the Equinox crossover that shares the 2.4- and 3.0-litre engines with the LaCrosse. I'll look forward to an opportunity to try a four-cylinder version when the engine becomes available in this car.

The 3.0-litre car initially felt clumsy compared to the CXS: without the trick suspension, cornering is less precise and body roll more pronounced, but the car's behaviour on the road exceeded expectations based on the Buick stereotype.

The LaCrosse uses an all-wheel drive system from Sweden's Haldex, and incorporates an electronic limited slip rear differential that can transfer up to 40 per cent of the engine's torque to the axle (left or right side) with the most grip. All-wheel drive models also get a more sophisticated "H-arm" rear suspension, replacing the standard four-link setup; note, too, that the front-drive-only CXS uses the H-arm rear suspension as well.

The brakes in both cars I drove were terrific, with great pedal feel and response. The power steering is a hydraulic system with variable assist on CXL and CXS models; I found the wheel a little light at speed and lacking feel, but as my driving impressions suggest, it's plenty responsive for the kind of driving this car is likely to be subjected to.

GM talks up the LaCrosse's "library quiet package" which consists of a plethora of noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) reduction measures taken to keep the car quiet. It works: it's probably quieter in this car at highway speeds than in a typical library.

Notably, GM brought a Lexus ES 350 to the event. The company feels that this is the LaCrosse's closest import competitor and a benchmark in the entry-level luxury class. The Lexus is a fine car, but the Buick offered a far more involving drive: the steering and brakes were better and its handling felt more capable. The LaCrosse seating position was preferable, making you feel more like you were sitting "in" the seat, rather than "on" it. The Buick's interior finishings were more attractive and seemed better assembled, too. To be fair, the current ES 350 is a three-year-old design, having been introduced as a 2007 model.

LaCrosse trim levels will echo those of the outgoing Allure, with an entry-level CX model, mid-range CXL (front- and all-wheel drive) and top-end CXS.

The four-cylinder will become the entry-level powerplant when it arrives later this year. Until then, the 3.0-litre CX is the starting point, and its MSRP will be $32,745, a steep increase compared to the Allure's sub-$28,000 opening price. The CXL is worth $34,745 with front-wheel drive, and $38,245 with AWD, and the CXS is priced at $40,745.

2010 Buick LaCrosse

Extras include the $895 Touring Package available on the CXS model, which bundles the variable damping suspension with 19-inch wheels. The Driver Confidence Package, which includes adaptive Xenon headlights, head up display and rear parking assist is worth for $1,915 in the CXL; the same package is less expensive in the CXS ($1,550) as that model gets rear parking assist as standard. A $1,780 Luxury Package adds heated leather seats with memory (for the driver) and an auto-dimming driver's side rear view mirror to the CXL.

Navigation is available; in the CXL, the package comprises navigation plus a 40-GB hard drive, surround sound stereo, rearview camera, USB input and a 120V power outlet in the rear seat, for an eye-opening $4,460. The $3,465 navi package offered in the CXL, which includes just the navigation system, hard drive and rear view camera, is a better all-round value, I think, even if it is still quite pricey.

A rear-seat DVD player is $2,745 in the CXL and $1,750 in the CXS. A nifty interior ambient lighting package is available, too.

The CX comes standard with cloth seats, 17-inch steel wheels, single-zone automatic climate control and an eight-way power driver's seat. The CXL adds a dual-zone climate system, a power front passenger seat, aluminum wheels and heated exterior mirrors with integrated turn signal repeaters and puddle lights. The CXL AWD gets 18-inch wheels as standard.

The CXS adds the 3.6-litre engine, chrome plated wheels (19-inchers are available), rear parking assist, a passive entry system, heated steering wheel, heated and ventilated front seats and a power rear sunshade.

Standard safety kit includes the expected six airbags (front, side curtain and front-seat thorax), stability and traction control, anti-lock braking with brake assist, OnStar with advanced crash notification and side blind zone alert (which will be available in November of this year).

On the whole, this car's ride and handling are so good that its performance could attract younger drivers who would have been bored to tears behind the wheel of any Buick that came before. To cop an old slogan, this ain't your grandfather's Buick, but grandpa would probably like this one as much as he enjoys the Allure he's got now.

If you'd asked GM to produce a car to prove it was worthy of the millions it received from the feds, the LaCrosse is exactly the kind of car you'd want: attractive, but not flashy; capable and modern, but not over-the-top, in its mechanicals; and cloaked in a traditional body style that will always find a market, even in the most tumultuous of times.

Pressure, meet grace: I think you'll get along quite well.