I am very impressed with the lacrosse, it's 197" long and it commands road presence, the freaking car out styles just about every other full sized car out there including the lexus GS and LS.

what u guys think about the lacrosse ?

 

nice looking car for sure!! I like them. I haven't driven one, but they look great. GM is making some good looking cars, especially from buick. They do seem to be on the heavy side. I still like my max over the lacrosse.

Aren't you worried about the gas engine not being around in the next couple of years? The buick still has a gas motor!

Are you just curious about cars? Just wondering with all the threads you have started about the maxima's cvt, gas engine, now buick. No harm in that. im' just curious what you are thinking?

 

honestly the maxima....though i do like all the new buicks coming out lately...a slammed one would look sweet....but still the maxima (imo) has better styling, power etc....

 

The LaCrosse has a few advantages like AWD and remote start, but it's a lot slower. I drove one and it although it drives nice, it feels very soft and plush like an old caddy. Not at all sporty. More comparable to the ES350 with driving characteristics. The Max feels more confident and young. Very different cars. So it depends on what you like in a car.

Another thing to consider is Buick's resale value is pretty bad, so leasing or trading the car in in a few years would be pretty expensive whereas the Max has very good lease deals and holds it's value well if you decide to trade it in. That's one of the main reasons I didn't get the LaCrosse.

 

yeah IMO the maxima and the lacrosse are the two hottest sedans right now....I think I'm gonna wait for the 2012 lacrosse with eAssist, it's going to do 26-37 mpg. not bad for a full size sedan.

 

I like the look of the LaCrosse but it is a heavy car but if you're looking for a nice luxurious type of ride (more for the Lincoln crowd) then this is your car.

I'm not sure of their overall mpg but being that they're heavy the mileage has got to be an issue when considering one of these.

 

I agree with the guys, one is more sporty, one is more of "floaty" feeling luxo cruiser type car. Max screams sport in its looks the buick doesnot but looks nice. Now to the origial poster, the Lexus GS is still a sharp looking car inside and out and screams quality. That interior is top notch!

 

I think the lacrosse kills the ES and GS both at the same time.

the Es and Gs are frail, femine looking...the lacrosse has *****, broad, strong.

 

Maxima > All

 

Well the GS is hardly that......but they aren't cross shopped anyways...One is a 50k+ luxury sport sedan with top notch materials vs a mid/high 20's to 30's full size car.....They appeal to different demographics and marketed as such, but styling is a preference thing

 

Definitely the Lacrosse.

When I first stepped into the 2010 Max, I immediately thought that this would be the car for me. The seats were comfy, interior design was sporty, and the "feel" of the car going down the road was great. The car was very quick and had plenty of acceleration but I did not like the feel of the CVT holding the engine at redline, and the engine sounded very strained at the top of the RPM range. From 0-60 or 20-60 the car took off, but passing on the highway (say from 70mph+) felt a lot more strained than did acceleration from lower speeds. (I don't know if this was a quirk of the particular car I drove, or a problem with the CVT.) I do a lot of long distance highway driving for my job, so highway passing ability is especially important for me.

When I went to take a look at the Lacrosse, I made sure to test drive the 3.6 version. (I had driven a family members 3.0 with AWD and it is not what I would call "quick"). The 3.6 with the 6 speed auto in FWD form offered plenty of power and I especially enjoyed the passing power on the highway from 70-100, which I feel bests the Max. Off the line the Lacrosse 3.6 is no slouch as well.

In terms of interior, I feel the Lacrosse is in a whole different league than the Max. The supple leather seats, ambient lighting, Heads up display, etc. just made me feel like I was in a more luxurious car. The Harman Kardon stereo sounded better to me than the Bose in the Max as well.

Exterior design is pretty much subjective, but I do have to say that I love the way my red Lacrosse looks on 19's.

The Max is a great car, and I almost bought it, but I feel the Lacrosse is more "up there" in terms of road presence and luxury. More value for the $.

My $.02

 

I'd also give the thumbs up for the lacrosse over the maxima in terms of build quality..interior of lacrosse is very nice and the ambient lighting makes it so refreshing...the leather seat and the decently equipped versions are full out luxury status.

but the maxima has it's own style and holds it's own, both very nice. u can get 2009 maxi's for really good prices as well.

the 2012 lacrosse will also have the ecotec hybrid version which will pump out 26mpg and 37mpg highway, that's a whopping 31 mpg mixed for a full sized vehicle, this is huge!

of course there's also the koreans that are coming out with the 2011 kia optima hybrid, which belts 35mpg mixed offering over 200 horses. that's huge to, but the car is visually a "mid size" car.

 

Drive em both...get exactly what you want. i test drove six cars before buying the Maxima...but I didn't get the exact color or options I wanted, and I have forever been looking at trading it in before its paid off. Lesson learned...get EXACTLY the car you want to pay for!

 

+1!!!!!

I'm in the same situation.

I wish I had been more patient and bought the exact option/color combination that I wanted (White on tan with Premium) instead of jumping the gun. Anyway knowing what I know now I would not have bought the Maxima.

Like you said..... lesson learned!

 

The one thing I'd be very careful about when getting a Buick is the reliability, now I'm not saying that the American cars haven't improved but I had terrible experiences with my Buicks back in the day.

The Maxima is a car that you can nearly guarantee will hold up well and that you'll still see on the road with well over 200K or 300K miles on them and will still run with little to no problems.

I have yet to experience that or even see that done in a Buick but given that the LaCrosse is an upscale car with quality already built in to it then I'd say it is worth taking a chance on it as it does have a lot of sex appeal, style, room and panache.

 

I had a lot of trouble getting in and out of the Lacrosse because of the way the dash wraps around and I'm extremely tall. The Maxima seemed to fit me much better, and we think finding aftermarket parts for the Max is tough, good luck finding them for a Lacrosse.

 

The Lacrosse is a gentleman's car. No mods needed here. You can keep your performance chips, subwoofers, mufflers, and various other paraphernalia for yourselves.

 

GS maybe, does not even touch the LS

 

I think you mean "old man's car." LOL And we do plan on keeping our paraphernalia.

 

Another maxima vs something thread....Great.

 

Maxima - 0-60 = 6.0
Lacrosse CXS - 0-60 = 7.4

Qtr mile comes in over 1.3 seconds slower in the Lacrosse and 10 MPH slower, I know acceleration isn't everything about a car however even in a standing start the Maxima is faster which is the Nissan's weakest area. Your subjective review is just that very subjective and not at all accurate in regards to performance. On top of all that the CXS weighs a whopping 563 pounds more than the Maxima.

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...est/specs.html

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...val/index.html

 

This really is a no brainer. It depends on what kind of driving style you prefer. If you want something that is a looker and has a sporty flair to its driving abilities then you definitely want the Maxima. The LaCrosse is too much like a Lexus in its driving ability so unless your specifically looking for a couch on wheels with little to no feedback in the drive then the LaCrosse is the way to go.

Personally, while the LaCrosse is heading in the right direction, for me its still way to Buick looking, bloated and boxy in shape/size. I personally think that the Regal would be a better choice if your looking for sporty character though I still think the Maxima is better than the Regal in those departments.

 

haha! I've always thought Buick is an old mans car...

As far as the Maxima on the highway I think it does really well. It may not feel like it's picking up speed (especially when you get used to the car) but when you look down real quick and look at the speedo you realize you're pickin up in MPH pretty quick. I highly doubt the LaCrosse is in any way faster then the Maxima...

 

Well said!

 

MT did test a second Lacrosse which had substantially better performance than the first. 0-60 in 6.4 and covered the quarter mile in 15.0 @ 94.5.

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...est/specs.html

The Lacrosse is definitely at a disadvantage when it comes to the weight. However, the Maxima definitely loses steam on the top end with the CVT. To me it is very noticeable. Standing on the gas pedal at 80mph in the Buick felt worlds better than the Maxima. The old man boat ripped off a quick downshift and pulled away...the CVT in the Maxima soggily revved up, the engine made plenty of noise, but it certainly didn't feel as though it was moving very quickly.

The Maxima has the advantage from 0-60 and in the quarter mile, but as these tests show the Lacrosse reaches triple digit speeds faster. Considering this, it should be no surprise that the Lacrosse beats out the Max from 80+. Granted, there is hardly anybody that should need to travel at these speeds on public roads, but I prefer to have lots of power in reserve for passing. I'm not worried about who can get from light to light quicker.

http://www.caranddriver.com/var/ezfl...a8461a0468.pdf

http://www.caranddriver.com/var/ezfl...52825b1046.pdf

The Max gets from 0-120 in 30.4, the Lacrosse CXS does it in 27.1

The Max has the advantage from lower speeds up to highway speeds, but say from 60-110 or 80-110 I think the Buick holds its own quite well.

 

those 0-60 times for the lacrosse seem odd. a whole second different from 2 sources. i wonder if they got the fwd and awd models mixed up or something.

 

There is always Ds that gives the real feel of a regular automatic...although idk if that would make the difference at high speeds

The Maxima is consistently just under 2 seconds faster at high speeds then the LaCrosse til it reaches 110 then looses it at 120.

So the LaCrosse is a bit faster then the Max but only at top speeds people don't normally drive on the road. C'mon! Who does 110 on the highway and wants to pass somebody with ease...just sayin

 

I originally went to buy the buick over the max butthe changing factor was that GM wouldnt budge on the 4.9apr and would only knock off 2K off the sticker.So I went with the max for 0%apr and they took 7K off sticker and I have been pretty happy.I still would have prefered the buick but those factors and the low HP rating just wasnt enough to pull me in.I even took 1 home for 48 hours.If I could have gotten 0% and some break on the sticker price on a fully loaded to the max buick I would have taken it over the max with no hesitation.I even considered the regal but that too was pretty soft when it hit dealers.The top model wasnt due out for another few months and that too just wasnt enough.If they made the 2 door and given it the motor it was suppose to get it to was a sealed deal.

 

The Lacrosse is beautiful, but it is still GM. While GM has come a long way - they had a looong way to go.

The scary thing to me is the direct injected engines. There are hundreds of pics on automotive websites showing horribly grunged up intake valves on GM 3.6L DI engines with 30K miles and less. All of the DI engine makers, including Audi have a long way to go to give me any confidence in DI.

 

Agreed...I'm 6'4 and can't fit in the Buick. I imagine for those under 6' you might be safe. I couldn't get the seat far enough back far enough to get comfortable in my test drive (I felt I was in one of those ridiculous toy cars that clowns ride in.)

 

I agree with this...I always looked at Buick's as for grandparents or something.

Not sure what being "a gentleman" has anything to do with car mods. That "gentleman" quality you see in Buick, is what others are referring to when they comment that Buick's seem to target an older client base. Nobody needs to modify anything on their cars ever, but many people like having a unique car that is not like anyone else. For example 1sik4DSC has a BEAUTIFUL customized white Maxima and it looks WAY better than stock.

If you're cool with driving a stock car, then everyone else is too. But for those of us that like having something different, sorry to say, but it has nothing to do with being "a gentleman" or not. That's simply an ignorant statement.

 

IN SHORT: It's a BUICK...

I too in a sense could have waited. I may have ended up with a G25x AWD Fully Loaded for less...with AWD and snow mode in NJ! And it's an INFINITI. No regrets with the Max though...who knows, maybe after the lease

 

BBMaxi: just a question for you, nothing personal. What are your intentions with all these questions? It seems to me that you are bringing up all the "debateable" items on our car, or items that people like to fuss about. The CVT, the styling, the Ester oil.

Are you just curious about the maxima? Or are you trying to get people fired up? Have you driven a max? If you are just trying to make a better purchase decision then that is great! Way to go, but if you are trying to get people fired up then shame on you. Not trying to sound like a jerk, I am just curious to your intentions...

 

Bobjohn1 permabanned for disregarding the rules, personal insults, trolling. Sorry folks you all had to see that. Anyone that has been around here for any length of time knows I don't generally ban folks for any reason, I don't get involved in discussions that can incite flame wars, etc. And, of course, personal attacks are one of the big gotchas on this forum. After multiple complaints from long time users, a warning and continued insults, he is now perma banned. If anyone disagree's with my decision, please contact me via private message or contact an administrator.

--Larry

PS, now back to the discussion at hand.

 

Who is accelerating from 60-110? WTF do you have an autobahn near you? I'm not saying the Buick is a slouch but the Maxima isn't being blown away by any stretch of your imagination. Using Car & Driver and real world specs, i.e. 30-50 and 50-70 MPH figures the Maxima is lighter, faster, quieter and brakes better.



Data Source:

http://www.caranddriver.com/var/ezfl...a8461a0468.pdf

http://www.caranddriver.com/var/ezfl...52825b1046.pdf

 

Maxima is faster than LaCrosse to 100 MPH. If I'm over 100 (VERY seldom), I don't need big accelleration, because at that point, I would simply be cruising.

Maxima has BETTER than average reliability per Consumer Reports reader's responses.

LaCrosse has WORSE than average reliability per Consumer Reports reader's responses.

Maxima is faster than LaCrosse to 60 MPH.

Maxima is faster than LaCrosse from 40 MPH to 80 MPH (for highway passing). It may not feel that way when driving the car, but that is because the shiftless CVT sneaks up on us. If you watch the speedometer rather than go by the seat of your pants and engine/exhaust noise, you will be able to see this. The Maxima takes almost no time to spurt from 40 to 80. This only makes sense when we compare the weight and HP differences.

The Maxima got several MPG higher than the LaCrosse in Consumer Reports field testing. With the price of fuel going up again, this matters.

The Maxima did better than the LaCrosse in slalom testing. Of course a LaCrosse that weighs a quarter ton more and has ten less HP than the Maxima is at a disadvantage in the slalom.

The Maxima stops from 60 MPH in 128 feet, while the LaCrosse takes 137 feet.

The Maxima will have a better trade-in value than the LaCrosse.

BUT

These are TOTALLY different cars intended for TOTALLY different drivers.

The LaCrosse is a roomy, plush vehicle that softens the bumps and coddles the driver and passengers. Its classy design will look great at the country club. It is clearly better than the Maxima FOR THOSE INTO HEAVY, SOFT AND PLUSH. It is NOT intended to be a SPORTY vehicle.

The Maxima is also roomy, has a few upscale and plush features, but has a firmer ride, and IS intended to have a SPORTY EDGE with more emphasis on AGGRESSIVE STYLING and SPORTY HANDLING than we find in the LaCrosse.

Each of these cars will be the easy choice for the type of driver it is aimed at. I find it unusual that a driver would have these two vehicles as their final two choices.

 

That's exactly what I said! So I'm not the only one that feels this way. It's especially worse once you get used to it...but I still know it is actually accelerating fast.

Nice explanation btw