Derived from the Greek "ergon," meaning work, and "nomia," meaning knowledge or science, the word "ergonomics" refers to the study of human work, and the methods used to perform it. A young, cross-disciplinary science, ergonomics emerged in the 1950s as a combination of biology, technology, and psychology used to analyze the interaction between human beings and machines.


In its simplest definition, ergonomics might refer to the degree of comfort an automobile's interior offers. A Buick may have commanding presence, but it must above all cater to its pilot. Given the tendency of cars with strongly identifiable traits to be overwhelming in their demeanor, it seems a dichotomy.

Yet Buick is thoroughly familiar with such contradictory goals. After all, while this brand bears the name of a singularly focused inventor (David Dunbar Buick), it was in its earliest days run by both a dreamer supersalesman (William C. Durant) and by the deeply practical and fiscally conservative Charles W. Nash.

This is an automaker that, in 1959 and the streamlining era, gave us the flourish of a non-rectilinear grille, yet one paradoxically composed of fiercely rectangular squares; and let us not forget the famed Rivera, advertised in 1965 as something of a contradiction in terms: an "iron fist in a velvet glove."

Sure, today's Buick Lucerne is a large car; a full-size automobile. Yet its size is less about girth and more about spaciousness; as design director Peter Lawlis puts it, "more room for the man and less for the machine."

This is among the overarching ergonomic principles inherent in Buick interior design philosophy.

Yet Lawlis emphasizes constant delight, too, as a standard feature of the Buick: "your eyes keep moving through the vehicle, and everything you see extends the feeling of quality."

Certainly, Buick ergonomics are as much about execution as about science.

Volvo is another automaker whose attention to ergonomics is well recorded. Yet, through the ages, Volvo dashboards could very well be described as drab.

To fulfill the modern Buick's mission of luxury without ostentation, elegant shapes must meet exceptional craftsmanship and organization.

Indeed, through the ages, the grace inherent in Buick design and conduct has meant that a stately presence need not imply stoic detachment. An ethic of craftsmanship can be ergonomically sound. The Buick designer, the engineer; both must love cars, enough to understand how their craft shapes their customers' needs and desires.

Buick ergonomics seek that every aspect of the Buick must be tuned to blend with every other. It is this balance - a concoction of visionary, yet accessible, luxury - that is proudly presented to the driver (in ice-blue ambient lighting, in the case of the 2010 LaCrosse!)

Four aspects of Buick ergonomics stand out: interior craftsmanship, spaciousness, correct utilization of space, and - most importantly - a holistic approach, throughout the automobile.

The Buick balance of craftsmanship, spaciousness, and ergonomic excellence is unique in character, intelligent and holistic in its execution, and pleasant in its ambience. In considering all these aspects, even in the face of seemingly contradictory goals, Buick engineers bend over backwards to ensure the Buick driver's and passengers' comfort.

Long may it continue to be so.


Wrote Cars magazine of the 1974 Riviera, "we were most impressed with the detailing and quality control on our test car" (Cars, February 1974).

Then, as now, and dating back to the very beginning of the 20th century, craftsmanship has been a core Buick value.


When Buick in 1912 replaced its planetary transmissions with three-speed units, engineers took care to neatly enclose the shift lever in a steel casing, with only its handle visible. Six years later, the 1918 Buick forever moved past rubber floors (with linoleum), with mohair tops replacing cloth.

By 1927, the Buick Master Six's interior was finished in walnut, satin, and broadcloth. Five years later, the Buick buyer had a choice of whipcord or leather upholstery. In 1939, mahogany became an option.

Buick would turn its attention to seating. Sure, the 1955 Buick was superlatively comfortable, with layered comforting double-depth foam within its seat cushions. As Buick strived to make every type of driver comfortable, Cars noted of the 1974 Riviera, "the infinitely adjustable semi-buckets offer a driving position for everyone, regardless of stature" (Cars, February 1974).

The buckets of the 1986 Riviera T-Type could be adjusted not only up and down, and back and forth, but also for thigh and lumbar support; angle of cushion side support, and height of head restraint. At the height of their adjustability, in the 1989 Buick Electra Park Avenue Ultra, the Buick's seats could be moved a comprehensive twenty ways.

Yet, as time and Buick had marched on, seats were to be a treat for the eye, as well as for the frame. That '89 Park Avenue Ultra's seats had been penned by no less than famed Italian designer Giorgio Giugiaro. For 1981, even the lowly Skylark had offered woven velour upholstery. The 1983 line-up of Buick T-Type cars had featured bespoke seats that were, as Road & Track put it in June of that year, "beautifully finished," with multiple adjustability and good lateral support to match.

As with the seats, so too the steering-wheel. For 1977, Buick's Riviera impressed Road Test magazine in that its "slick, leather-wrapped steering-wheel was complete with a nice, soft feel to it, one that is both comfortable and that allows you to get a good grip on things" (Road Test, July 1977).


Of the 1971 Buick Centurion, Road Test magazine found that, "once inside, the surroundings border closely on the luxurious... extensive use is made of quilted nylon for seats, with vinyl door panels accented by brushed stainless steel" (Road Test, January 1971).

Electing the 1979 Riviera its "Car of the Year," Motor Trend magazine wrote, "throughout, the Riviera exhibited a high degree of workmanship and attention to detail."

Buick celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Riviera for 1983 with a medium-beech anniversary interior, featuring English walnut wood veneer trim plates and 26-ounce wool-like carpeting. Suede inserts enlivened glove-leather seats, and leather-wrapped upper door trim and wood steering wheel. 502 of these cars were produced.

Two years later, Riviera Limited for 1985 featured genuine wood in the form of a burled walnut veneer on dash and door panels, a wood/ leather steering wheel, and beige leather/ suede interior trim.


"As admirable as the Riviera's roadability may be, the car's most outstanding aspect is its interior environment," concluded Motor Trend in 1978.

"Just sitting in the Park Avenue's roomy interior is pleasing," said Car and Driver of Buick's flagship in 1991. Added Motor Trend, following a spin in the new full-size Buick, "Buick engineers have come up with one of the quietest, lightest, and smoothest-operating luxury sedans we've ever driven."

As GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told Britain's Channel 4 News, "I'll take you to see a Buick up close - and I challenge you to show me a Lexus/ Toyota or an Acura/ Honda or an Infiniti/ Nissan with tighter body gaps and flanges, better interior fittings, sheetmetal quality, and so forth" (Channel 4 News, May 15th, 2006).


Craftsmanship is nice - but, sometimes, space is the ultimate luxury.

Buicks have had room for five since virtually the brand's inception. The first 5-passenger Buick, the Model C, was built in 1905.

Buick built its first wagon in 1940. For more than fifty years hence, the Buick Estate would be a staple of the American road, through the '50s and '60s strong in the intermediate segment, and later extending to both full-size and compact sizes. By 1980, a midsize Century could hold 6 passengers or 72 cubic feet of cargo - a considerable feat of packaging, in that it equaled 80% of the capacity of period full-size LeSabre and Electra estate models! In 1982, the midsize Regal Estate continued this tradition. Even the Buick Skyhawk wagon of 1983 made 65 cubic feet of luggage space available, reminding buyers that Buick's, with its full-size Electra sedan, still made the longest production car in America.

These types of advances in packaging were evolved over an extended period of time; a history spanning more than a century.

In the mid-30s, as GM Design Head Harley Earl worked to lengthen and lower the Buick, the division was careful to lower the new cars' floors by more than the height was reduced, to maintain interior head room (and, happily enough for enthusiast drivers, to lower the center of gravity).

For the 1962 Buick, engines were moved four inches forward, minimizing the size of the "hump" in the floor, for engine/ transmission coupling.

For 1978, compact Buicks began offering compact spare tires, the better to provide the trunk space that the Buick buyer demanded. Meanwhile, full-size Buicks, despite their downsizing, had actually gained 30% more trunk space.

The trunk of the 1983 Buick Century T-Type yielded more than 18 cubic feet of space, in a package just 189 inches long. In some years described as Buick's Little Limousine, the Century line would offer class-leading, voluminous capacity as a key feature - and, indeed, this has continued at Buick as a whole. By the late-90s, no Camcord or Taurus could match Century for interior space.

Buick coupés may have lost two doors, but care was taken to retain practicality. A 1979 Riviera S-Type could hold more than 19 cubic feet of cargo, versus 17 cubic feet for Mercedes-Benz's 450 SEL. The 1985 Somerset Regal slid its passenger seat aft when the seatback was tipped forward, for easy entry to the rear.

Following several years in the late-70s and early-80s as only a coupé, the Regal added a sedan body for 1982. Through 1984, it proved a popular addition to the line, and it was much in Buick's error that the automaker did not consistently offer a Regal sedan until the end of the decade. From then on, however, through the Millennium and beyond, no Camcord could match the period Regal for trunk space.

Today, Buick packaging engineers push the instrument panel down and forward (by three full inches, in the 2009 LaCrosse), into the front of the car, ensuring that the Buick does not assault the driver's knees and elbows upon entry and egress.


Space, in and of itself, can be a luxury. Yet pure size is nothing without the intelligent utilization of space, and convenient access to it.

In production, as in concept, it is in the science - the intelligence - of Buick's presentation of space that the marque truly shines. Instrument panels must be of a generous size, with easily legible gauges. An interior should offer a myriad of storage spaces, well located. Packaging - the art of maximizing space utilization within a given set of exterior dimensions - should be second to none.

Yet ergonomics cannot not stop there.

As far back as 1914, Buick brought standard electric starting and lighting to its range. For 1918, it became possible to monitor the battery responsible for those functions via an ammeter on the dashboard, nestled across from a new, oil sight gauge. A longer control lever made operation of the Buick more convenient, and seats were revised with higher backs. For 1923, the gear shifter was lengthened.

1927 saw the speedometer, now lit, placed directly ahead of the driver. The premium Buick Master Six received a dash-mounted fuel gauge.

It was Buick that, in 1928, introduced the H-shift pattern to which stick-shift drivers have become so accustomed; astonishing, perhaps, given that the marque would in later years be closely associated with column shifters. Yet the Buick remained floor-shifted until 1939.

Together with the H-shift pattern came an adjustable steering column, along with fuel and engine temperature gauges as standard across the range.

A year later, in 1929, Buick celebrated its Silver Anniversary with sloping, non-glare windshields; an advance on the one-piece windshield of 1925.

An adjustable driver's seat, and a rear foot rail for passengers, debuted for 1931. Adjustable sun visors, now mounted inside the car, followed for 1932. Fisher No-Draft ventilation was new in 1933.

Synchromesh came to Buick for 1932, together with Wizard Control, a combined freewheeling and automatic clutch, eliminating clutch shifting between second and third gears. For 1933, it allowed the driver to switch back and forth from direct-drive to freewheeling, as desired. A year later, helical gears were adopted, reducing movement at the shifter.


For 1950, Buick introduced the push-pull door handle; thumb the button, and the door opened (and there were no open ends to catch clothes).

By 1956, easy access to the cockpit had become an obsessive theme at Buick. In the 1956 Centurion concept, engineers investigated the idea of power seats which automatically slid fore and aft to aid entry and egress. A glass roof reinforced the feeling of roominess, as production Buicks debuted the industry's first power windows, and the first power convertible top.

As the all-steel construction and folding rear seats of the mid-50s made the station wagon stylish and practical enough to become a genuinely popular family car, Buick models adopted a roll-down rear window for 1959, and a one-piece tailgate the following year.

As far back as 1960, Buick's Special wagon offered the one-piece tailgate so popular in today's SUVs and crossovers. In 1976, the Estate Wagon's tailgate went a step further, featuring a clever, glide-away lower section which would disappear under the floor, while the rear window receded up into the roof area. The following year, Estate Wagon's tailgate could fold down or swing open like a door.

So attuned have Buick's engineers been to making access to space as easy as possible, that the 1997 LeSabre sedan - mid-cycle - received a rear fascia redesign which added diagonal cut-lines to make loading easier.

Over the years, Buick's concepts have explored ergonomics further still. The 1998 Signia concept featured a removable hatch, with a loading platform which graciously extended fifteen inches out from the cargo area at the touch of a button. Three years later, the LaCrosse concept's tailgate could transform from luxury sedan to light carrier, by voice command: as the tailgate slid, electrically, down and under the vehicle, the rear window and rear portion of the roof slid forward, making room for extra-large loads.


Keyless entry has locked and unlocked Buick doors, and opened Buick trunks, since 1991. Open any Buick door in the last fifteen years, and the interior lights glow for twenty-five seconds, giving driver and passengers time to settle, and start the car.

Upon engine shut-off and key removal, interior lamps illuminate to give time to locate inside door locks and handles. Today, as (first) in 1986, Retained Accessory Power keeps radio; electric windows; wipers; fuel door; deck-lid, and electric glove compartment release functional until a door is opened.

Upon entry, appreciate that, as with every car designed around its driver, Buick starts with the H-point, the position of the driver's hip (and thus, of the driver) within the car.

"Until recently, market researchers did not even ask customers how high they wanted to sit in a vehicle," writes author and New York Times Hong Kong bureau chief Keith Bradsher.

"Now, surveys by companies like AutoPacific show that visibility from the driver's seat ranks even with a vehicle's driving performance and interior comfort as the most important attributes that buyers seek" (High and Mighty, Keith Bradsher, PublicAffairs, 2002).

Thus is the industry coming around to the Buick way of thinking. It is, by nature, an expensive way of going about design, and a difficult compromise: the H-point should be low enough to permit easy entry and egress, to offer potent handling and a nod to aerodynamics; and yet high enough to provide a commanding view of the road.

Post-millennium, Buick's mastery of the H-point was tested to the limit as the division moved into the crossover (Rendezvous and Enclave); SUV (Rainier), and even minivan (Terraza) segments. Before designing for production, Buick engineers tested their theories with the 1998 Buick Signia concept, which featured all the comfort and convenience of a luxury sedan, and yet the all-wheel drive technology and versatility of a van or sport-utility vehicle. It was unusually easy to get in and out of Signia. Both roof and seats were higher than in a traditional car, so rocker panels were inset to avert drivers bumping their legs on a muddy door sill. Signia concept evolved into Rendezvous, a strong success.

Buick engineers have even experimented with power-operated doors, hinged at the front and rear pillars of the 2000 Buick LaCrosse concept, and opening at the center pillar for easy access.


It was Buick that, back in 1939, introduced the industry's first flashing turn indicators. For more than three decades, visibility had been paramount at Buick. Standard equipment on Buicks of 1906 were acetylene headlights, and oil side and tail-lamps. By 1913, electric headlights, tail-lights, and side lights were available. A year later, they were standard.

For 1933, a new type of headlight, whose passing beam brightly illuminated the pavement edge while shedding a far dimmer light on the traffic side, was common to all Buicks. Fog lights became available that year.

For 1934, the Buick headlamps produced 20% more illumination, providing four different light patterns: city and country driving beams, a passing beam, and a parking light.

By 1980, tungsten/ halogen high-beam headlights were employed across the range, for an intense white beam. At the rear, the 1985 Buick Somerset Regal could be equipped with a high-mount brake light, a year before government regulations made this mandatory.

The 1992 Buick Sceptre concept's high-intensity projection units lit the way ahead, while high-intensity strobes marked the car's perimeter. That year, for cases when the intensity of other vehicles' headlamps impaired visibility, an automatic day/ night electrochromic rear-view mirror became optional on several Buicks for 1992. Today, these devices are standard across the Buick line.

Buick, for decades, installed courtesy lamps which would switch on, with the activation of left and right turn signals, to assist in cornering at night. Today, Twilight Sentinel - just as it did as far back as 1960 - turns on every Buick's headlights automatically at dusk.

In 1925, Buick dropped horizontally divided windshields, in favor of a one-piece unit for a clearer view. A windshield defroster became available for 1937. The 1939 Buick's windshield was 26% larger, front door windows were 16% larger, and there was a 21% increase in area for the rear windows. That car placed its radiator grille lower, not only to aid cooling, but also to enable a more narrow bonnet for increased visibility.

A wraparound windshield for 1954 gave 19% greater visibility again, while every rear window was 3 to 4½ inches wider, with each metal pillar designed and placed for minimal obstruction of the view ahead.

At the rear, despite the 1971 Buick Riviera's famous boat-tail rear deck, care was taken to ensure that visibility was retained. "Lateral distortion through the rear window does not affect the driver's judgment of distance," confirmed Motor Trend (Motor Trend, December 1970).

By 1974, Riviera featured a remote-controlled right-side mirror, a rare luxury at the time. "Rearward visibility is good... but the addition of the controllable right-side mirror gives the driver full coverage," Motor Trend noted (Motor Trend, March 1974).

When Buick introduced its compact Apollo/ Skylark for 1973, it boasted of the car's tall greenhouse, with generous glass. For 1978, as the Regal established itself as a separate model from the Century line, it replaced angled opera windows with larger, upright rear glass within a taller, longer roofline.

For 1981, a new fluidic windshield washer system sprayed two fans of fluid, but with the reassurance of no moving parts. It was an improvement over the double-jet nozzles Buick had introduced just eight years earlier; nozzles which distributed the fluid on the glass more evenly, getting more of it there faster, for quicker, more thorough cleaning.

Buick believes in visibility for passengers, too. By 1976, the Buick buyer could choose from four roofs: an Astroroof, with sliding shade and heavily tinted glass; an electric sunroof; a Hurst hatch roof with twin removable smoked glass panels, and (on Skyhawk) a fixed glass roof with aluminum band.

Riding in the 1977 Riviera, a Road Test magazine correspondent remarked, "the opera windows are bigger than most; you can actually see something through these" (Road Test, July 1977).

The 1991 Buick Roadmaster Estate featured a standard Vista roof: tinted glass positioned midway in the panel to provide an open-air look, reprising the Skyroof panels of the 1964-68 Skylark sportwagon, and the 1969 Sport Wagon.

In addition to bringing more light into the interior, the feature permitted the third seat to be placed at a higher level, offering more legroom. Indeed, while other automakers have only recently discovered theater seating, Buick has long positioned the rear seats slightly higher, to give everyone a view of the road ahead. This was among the key features of the 1997 Century, introduced more than a decade ago.


For 1965, the Buick tilt steering-wheel reexamined the idea of driving comfort. Behind the driver, in 1960, after 37 years of building cars with heating, Buick offered separate heat ducts and controls for the rear seats.

By 1995, front and rear seats could be upholstered in leather, no matter the Buick model. In several instances, the orthopedic practice was called upon to provide counsel, with the most recent generation of orthopedically designed seats debuting in the 1995 Riviera, permeating through the range, and steadily improving since. Electromechanical lumbar support, seat memory, and dual heated seats also debuted on Buick's options list for 1995. Meanwhile, on auto show floors across the country, the Buick LaCrosse concept's rear seats reclined, and featured unique retracting footrests. Today, every 2010 Buick offers the comfort of heated and cooled front seats.

For 1980, Electronic Touch Climate Control on Electra and LeSabre used a row of touch surfaces on a smooth panel, in place of the usual protruding knobs and switches. In 1991, Buick offered ComforTemp on Park Avenue and Regal, lending each front passenger individual climate control. In 1992, up-level Buicks offered standard solar-control glass, working with climate control to keep cabins cool in harsh climates. By 1996, rear passengers had their own climate zone, too. Today, dual-zone climate control is available on every new Buick; with cabin air filtration, which has been standard across the Buick line-up since the '90s, significantly reducing the degree of dust and pollen entering the passenger compartment. The system's filter is replaceable, assuring constant optimum performance.

By 1978, every Buick glove-box thoughtfully featured a coin holder; gradually, this would move to the center console to facilitate paying tolls.

The 1990 Buick Bolero concept featured a beverage cooler, built into the rear package shelf; dual cup holders front and rear, and portable radio headsets in the rear of the front seats, permitting rear passengers to take their music selections with them. Every Buick since 2006 is ready for iPod and other MP3 devices.


In 1975, the new subcompact Buick Skyhawk debuted as a dramatically styled 2+2 with room for four and cargo; an impressive achievement in a smaller class, heretowith unknown to Buick.

More was to follow. When, in 1977, the LeSabre, Electra, and Riviera were all significantly downsized, in search of better efficiency and maneuverability, they retained their traditional, spacious comfort. LeSabre and Riviera coupés, in fact, offered more rear legroom than their predecessors, and increased headroom, all while gaining tighter turning circles (by four feet), and better fuel economy.

In the Spring of 1984, an entirely new, smaller, front-wheel drive Electra debuted. Again, dramatic cuts in exterior size and weight had minimal impact on interior dimensions. Despite curb weight cuts of between 600 and 900 pounds; despite being two feet shorter and a full four inches narrower - Electra remained a 6-passenger sedan with a capacious trunk. The following year, LeSabre and Riviera would follow; with similar results.

In the next century, drivers of the post-Millennial LeSabre found a full ten storage areas strewn across the interior; more than any other full-size car (and more than in most SUVs, even today).

Again - ergonomics is not simply about space, and so at Buick there exists a more vital measure of packaging: psychological elbow room, a tricky concept to define. Not that this stops Buick Lucerne design director Peter Lawlis from trying: "the balance of actual spaciousness along with perceived spaciousness is a tricky thing, but when it's done right, the car feels expansive," Lawlis explains.

Indeed, it is for its very expansiveness that the Buick is best known: an expansiveness that promotes convenience, and by corollary, confidence.

The Buick has traditionally been a study in fingertip convenience, key to the brand's holistic approach to comfort, by which every aspect of driving is accorded a harmonious home.

The earliest Buicks had hand-operated wipers; but, in 1925, vacuum-operated units replace them, with electric wipers following shortly thereafter (1929).

Of the 1968 Riviera, Car Life magazine wrote, "Riviera's new spade-handle, console-mounted transmission selector is delightful to use.

"Gear changing is precise, and a simple depression of the handle permits of Reverse, Park, First, or Second. This is a welcome change from knob-mounted push-buttons, ragged side detents, and the like" (Car Life, November 1967).

The 1971 Riviera "clustered controls in easy reach," noted Motor Trend (Motor Trend, December 1970). As an option, that car's shift lever could be installed between the seats, in its own console, slanted toward the driver for ease of operation.

The 1985 Buick Somerset Regal experimented with a dash-mounted radio control pod, remote from the radio itself, and featuring soft-touch, low-travel controls. This was the forerunner of today's steering-wheel mounted controls, first seen on a Buick in the 1989 Regal coupé, just as compact disc players became available. By 1995, Buick steering-wheels had added temperature controls to their repertoire.

Generally, the Buick is designed to travel as unobtrusively as possible. Yet when the car needs the driver's attention, Buick has delivered information in a myriad of ways.

As early as 1918, the Buick featured oil and ammeter gauges. For 1939, a clock mounted on the passenger side was standard. In 1972, Riviera offered a fender-mounted bulb monitor, an installation powered by light-transmitting (and light-bending) clear plastic cords which picked up illumination from headlights, turn signals, and cornering lamps. It was, said Road Test magazine, "a foolproof method far superior to the indicator system of separate bulbs which may, in some designs, glow even when a lamp has burned out" (Road Test, August 1972).

The 1980 Skylark range introduced a Sport model which, together with stiffer springs and dampers, and larger rear stabilizer, offered full instrumentation, including a voltmeter. Its turbocharged LeSabre Sport Coupé stablemate added a vacuum boost light. By the mid-1980s, all turbocharged Buicks came with boost gauges; and the 1986 Riviera even toyed with a windshield-washer fluid gauge, soon replaced by an indicator which, for 1991, joined oil-life and oil-level warning lamps on the Park Avenue's dashboard. Today, washer-fluid level and oil-life indicators have long been standard across the Buick range.

The 1992 Buick Sceptre concept, with purpose-built tires by Michelin, showed off Buick's research in continuous tire-pressure monitoring, for optimum tire life and economy. Today, every Buick alerts its driver of low tire pressure, a feature which debuted on production Buicks with the 1997 Park Avenue.


On January 15th, 1979, Buick introduced its digital Trip Monitor, with on-board computer providing the number of hours and minutes to destination; mileage to the destination; estimated time of arrival, and estimated number of miles left on fuel in the tank. Today, every Buick features a Driver Information Center, offered by Buick since the 1999 Park Avenue, and an evolution of the innovative electronics that Buick first began researching more than three decades ago.

All minor switches of the 1986 Riviera were of the electroluminescent, backlit variety. There were no major switches, thanks to a Graphic Control center with touch-screen membranes replacing 91 buttons buttons and switches, in advance of the same concept from BMW, with iDrive, 15 years later. Providing immediate feedback upon command, the system would grow to enable the screen to be deflected by 70 degrees for better visibility, and would offer a compass, reminders of calendar events, and the ability to integrate a cellular telephone address book. Following customer concerns about the visibility of the GCC display, Buick responded with an ambient light sensor the following year, permitting the GCC to stay on full brightness when the headlights were switched on during the day. A decade later, similar concerns resulted in Buick engineers going back to the drawing board for 1995 LeSabre, which received larger controls with stronger back-lighting; a surprisingly major effort for a minor, mid-cycle refresh.

Today, every Buick screen-based navigation system is of the touch-screen variety. Buick, incidentally, began researching navigation systems in the early '80s. By the 1988 Lucerne and 1989 Essence concepts, Buick proposals were using advanced dead reckoning, through sensors on the wheels and steering, to track the car's location continually, from a starting point entered by the driver.

In addition to touch screens, Buick experimented with voice-activated controls, with the LaCrosse concept. Voice activation worked in tandem with a ball-like device installed in the console. Well before BMW's iDrive or Audi's MMI, Buick was working with a controller which would operate all interior systems save for throttle; braking, and steering. Features selected by the driver were projected on the windshield, via a head-up display, for both driver and front passenger.

The 2002 Buick Bengal concept (which, like the LaCrosse concept, was designed under executive director Steve Lyon) had a voice-activated command system, enabling drivers to use up to 118 commands to control everything from its convertible top to its on-board navigation system.

At the 1995 Detroit show, Buick displayed the XP2000 concept; a car that was of particular interest to no less than the aviation industry, for its new generation of interactive electronics, including a head-up display, its ability to tailor chassis responses to driver tastes, and its Smart Card feature, set up to automatically charge tolls, fuel, food, and other services. Today, XP2000 concept's head-up display - dubbed Eye Cue when introduced on production Buicks with the 1997 Park Avenue and 2001 Rendezvous, is offered in the 2010 LaCrosse, projecting current speed, turn signal and high-beam status, check-gauges indicator, and audio system information onto the windshield.

In 2002, Bengal concept had taken the head-up display a step further, with a reconfigurable, color display showing information on demand.

XP2000 concept was itself a rethink of the 1983 Buick Questor concept. A similar test bed for innovative ideas in automotive electronics, Questor had packed fourteen microcomputers, controlling a laser-key entry system, automatic load-leveling, spoiler control, head-up display, theft-deterrent system, road-surface traction monitoring, TV rear-view mirror, touch-command controls, and map/ navigation system. The video rear-view mirror was particularly impressive for 1983 (and, like several Questor ideas, would later find its way into production Buicks); yet consider that, as far back as 1956, Buick's Centurion concept had also previewed such an idea, its camera mounted in a jet-plane-like tailcone.

Before Centurion concept, the 1954 Buick had featured what authors Dunham and Gustin would later call "the first real innovation in speedometer instrumentation since speed dials were first installed:" the Redliner, credited to Ralph O. Helgeby, which displayed the numbers as a red bar, moving from left to right, like a horizontal thermometer (Buick: A Complete History, Terry B. Dunham & Lawrence R. Gustin, Automobile Quarterly, 2002).

For 1960, Buick debuted Mirromagic, an adjustable instrument panel that could be tilted to the easiest reading position.

Digital readouts for engine temperature, time, average speed, and elapsed time were offered on the 1979 Riviera. Through the Eighties and into the Nineties, Buick would continue to evolve digital instrumentation, with instantaneous read-outs of speed, engine revolutions per minute, remaining gasoline, coolant temperature, and oil pressure.


As recently as 2001, when Buick engineers were developing the 2005 production LaCrosse, they worked on voice-recognition technology, with supporting buttons arrayed around the steering-wheel.

Yet testing showed that the system was too complicated by far. After all, Buick innovation should never be for the sake of it. Change is not always an improvement, as evidence by driver resistance, over the past several decades, to manufacturer attempts to find a better location for the humble car horn. In a Buick, it's on the steering-wheel hub (where you'd expect to find it).

"In today's market, in which it is increasingly difficult to achieve and sustain a significant advantage... manufacturers should be more cautious about introducing control systems with obstructions to easy operation," warns Car and Driver Editor-in-Chief Csaba Csere, leveling criticism at Mercedes-Benz's COMAND, BMW's iDrive, and Audi's MMI all-in-one systems.

"Controls should only be introduced if they are clearly superior, because when it comes to automotive controls, change without improvement is a step backward.

"In this market, no brand can afford that" ('The Steering Column,' Car and Driver, September 2004).

Indeed, a high-ranking BMW official admitted to CAR magazine, under condition of anonymity, "I needed 3,000 miles to dully understand iDrive." As he criticized the company's experiments in ergonomics, he exuded (CAR noted) a "mixture of pride and relief."

Not for Buick to afforest its cars with lights and buttons, nor to replace those lights and buttons with electronic light trees which seem to have no relevance to what a car is really supposed to do.

Among Buick's ergonomic experiments, some have proven to be enough of a benefit to evolve into solutions befitting the modern Buick - such as the head-up display available in the 2010 Buick LaCrosse.

Yet, for all these innovations, consistency is the mark of a manufacturer which is confident in its methodology. Many a driver, for instance, has appreciated Buick's reticence to deviate from ambient green in its instrument cluster, a conviction that even led to the ambient floodlighting of 1977 Electra, LeSabre, and Riviera instrumentation. Today, the Buick combination of green instruments with white and carmine needles is more readable than the neon blues and reds used by others, this latter being, decidedly, evidence of fleeting fashion over function.


The clarity of information from gauge to eye, and the comfortable proximity and linear feel of controls, must be backed by the linear response of a precisely calibrated chassis.

A cabin that adheres to the strictest of ergonomic principles might be reduced to a mere aberration of these same principles did not apply to the entire car throughout its design, and in its demeanor.

One cannot, for instance, enjoy craftsmanship while being assaulted by noise and vibration. In the modern Buick, a thorough QuietTuning process chases down wind, tire, and powertrain noises. In every class in which Buick's cars play, this process is unique to Buick.


Buicks have always sought quiet refinement; hushed comportment, yet without the loss of distinction.

Back in 1920, Buick was chasing and eliminating noise, with larger piston pins and a different method of anchoring them; with a stiffer support for the oil pump shaft bearing, and with the reaming of all bearings. For 1927, new motor mounts, a counterbalanced crankshaft, vacuum ventilation for the crankcase, and a torsional balancer enabled Buick to describe its engines as Vibrationless Beyond Belief.

Noise, vibration, and harshness are not all engine-related, of course. For 1923, anti-rattler catches were installed on the Buick's windows, while a new top reduced noise in 6-cylinder closed cars.

"I remember that Buick had the best axle in the business, with very low gear noise," recalls Lloyd Wold, proudly, of his days on Buick's Factory 31 axle lines in Flint from 1949 to 1982 (A Place Called Buick, Don Bent, 2005).

"Liberal use of body snubbers keeps the ride free of unwanted road noise," wrote Motor Trend of the 1971 Buick Riviera, explaining that the dominant impression was "isolation from the road surface... you can go from a concrete road, across a metal bridge grate, to a gravel road, and there will be no vibrations forthcoming, to tell you that you're on a different road surface.

"This car-as-a-cocoon philosophy if you want to look upon your car as a place to unwind and relax, even while trying to drive seven hundred miles between sun-up and sun-down" (Motor Trend, December 1970).

Buick cars for 1973 equipped with the 350 cubic inch engine received a quiet-flex variable output fan, with larger stainless steel blades, with non-uniform blade spacing for minimum fan noise level. All Buicks that year benefited from a new system of soundproofing, including a full fiberglass hood blanket, and increased insulation for the rocker panels, trunk floor, door inners, instrument panels, and plenum chamber.

In addition, extra insulation padded the 1973 Century Regal's front floor and toe pan area, and the area behind the rear seat and in the sail and quarter panels. Regal's roof, which received the sound absorbing, perforated vinyl headliner, added sound-deadening material for a car that was, according to Road Test magazine, "25% quieter than last year's Skylark Custom coupe.

"Regal is an impressively quiet vehicle on any road at any speed, and the low sound level makes a solid contribution to the car's comfort" (Road Test, May 1973).

For 1977, to improve smoothness, the cylinder firing of Buick's 90-degree V6 was changed from alternating 90- and 180-degree intervals of crank rotation to even 120-degree intervals. Buick made much of the revised V6's ability to "idle like a V8."

One of the reasons for Motor Trend's choice of the 1979 Riviera S-Type as its Car of the Year was that Rivera was so quiet at speed. As Road & Track put it, "one staff member wrote in the test book when we first received the car that the speedometer must be grossly optimistic, which later proved untrue.

"When comparing the Buick's dBA numbers to past test cars', it undercuts them all at 70 mph, and at 90 mph it loses only to the Rolls-Royce - and then only by 1 dBA" (Road & Track, March 1979).

Yet, still, Riviera did not quiet live up to the refinement expected by the Buick buyer. Award or not, Buick did not sit on its laurels, revising Riviera's body mounts (and damping) the following year.

Hydraulic motor mounts came to most Buick 4- and 6-cylinder engines for 1985, cutting vibration. For 1991, a new dual-resonator induction system reduced noise and vibration in 4-cylinder Skylarks, while the Riviera - even mid-cycle - benefited from additional acoustical insulation for a quieter ride.

When, for 1995, the 4-cylinder Skylark switched from an overhead-cam to a dual-overhead-cam engine, two counter-rotating balance shafts enabled smoother operation and less vibration, while larger mufflers reduced engine noise. LeSabre that year - also mid-cycle - gained a quieter blower motor.

For 1996, Skylark's balance shaft system was mounted in the oil pan, while a new composite intake manifold further improved noise control, while being lighter than the aluminum unit it replaced. In the midsize Regal, a low torque axis engine mount system reduced noise and vibration at idle; and even the starter motor was quieter.

As Skylark gave way to the new Century at the base end of Buick's range, the new '97 Century offered little things beyond its station - such as small rubber bulbs at the top of window glass channels to block wind whistles, a rubber-isolated rear crossmember, triple-seal doors, and strategically placed sound-deadening materials.

A step above Century was the 1997½ Regal. In driving the Buick midsize sedan, USA Today wrote, "Buick should get an ovation for the work it put into making Regal quiet... sound deadening and excruciating detail work cut road and wind noise to remarkably low levels."

Meanwhile, Regal's Riviera sister was, despite being toward to end of its run, nonetheless further refined in its suspension and engine mounts.

For 1999, both of Regal's engines were recalibrated to operate at a lower idle speed for better cold weather operation.

Today, Buick's QuietTuning process is a cut above the rest.

A key feature of every new Buick, QuietTuning begins with the car's body itself. Some manufacturers save refinement for last, spraying damping or employing thick foams, crudely adding weight in an attempt to cover up noise/ vibration/ harshness (NVH) deficiencies.

Not Buick. Rather, Buick's Quiet Steel is a sophisticated suite of engineered multi-layer composites with various elastic polymer cores between two layers of cold-rolled steel. It features as a large sheet of deep-drawn steel laminate for the front-of-glass area.

"Quiet Steel is like a sandwich," says Buick LaCrosse performance manager for noise and vibration Dan Nolley.

"It's two layers of steel separated by a visco-elastic layer, which you can really just think of as a goo that can be tuned for specific applications. With laminated steel, you've got 100% coverage. There are no exposed corners or seams" (Ward's Auto World, April 1st, 2005).

Then, let us not forget the glass. LaCrosse's windshield and front-site windows use laminated glass, essentially a plastic material comprised of a glass and visco-elastic sandwich.

"Nobody else in the midsize car segment uses it," says Nolley, proudly. "We did it specifically for wind noise, but the motor noise turned out unbelievably nice, too" (Ward's Auto World, April 1st, 2005).

Exhaust noise must be controlled. One of Buick's more unusual measures is the use of a Helmholzt resonator, a specially designed chamber that does just this. LaCrosse Chief Engineer Ed Hufnagle admits that the resonator was not inexpensive, and posed serious packaging challenges in a tight engine bay (Automotive Industries, March 2004).

Despite all this - and acoustic engine covers; forged steel crankshafts; structural aluminum oil pan; hood insulator pad, and baffles and foam in the roof pillars - some noise, Nolley and his team noticed, still came through the floor. So LaCrosse employs AcT Fiber absorptive carpet in both its cabin and its trunk. The advanced blend of inter-locked synthetic fibers is tuned for each Buick, by controlling the fibers' length.

The praise has been deafening.

Buick's exhaustive development work on QuietTuning has paid off. "Buick's vault-like sound management is absolutely stunning," reports Ward's Auto World's Brian Corbett.

"Road noise is totally muffled. Wind noise is nothing more than a gentle breeze. The engine proffers a distant and soothing hum" (Ward's Auto World, April 1st, 2005).

What you choose to hear should be as important as what you do not.

Free of the usual gauges, the Buick Bengal Concept's dashboard was transformed into a large flat-panel speaker, integrated with the rest of the vehicle's high-fidelity audio system.

Today, the Buick Lucerne offers a bespoke Harman/ Kardon system.

Ergonomics, even under the hood.

In case you might enjoy performing basic maintenance work, Buick ensures that its motors are a joy to behold and service. Back in the '80s, the division embarked upon an engine beautification process. Come the '90s, and the media was crediting Buick for both its craftsmanship, under the hood, and for its principles of ergonomic access.

The 1988 Regal and 1991 LeSabre, for instance, received a maxi-fuse system that packaged all under-hood fuses in one panel for easy replacement; an ergonomic achievement that would become a common thread at Buick.

"Not only is the V6 engine dressed up nicely, but there has also been an effort to get all of the wires and other necessary junk tucked away neatly... this housekeeping also makes it easier to do repair work when that time comes," wrote Ed Noble for the Oakland Press, of the 1998 LeSabre.

That's no surprise. As far back as March 1920, in its test of a new Buick, Britain's The Motor magazine noted that Buick obviously had in mind "the type of motorist who has to look after his own car.

"All grease cups and adjustments are accessibly situated. Lubrication of chassis parts is a comparatively simple matter and, in addition, the grease retainers are of such a size that the supply is sufficient for several hundreds of miles on the road. In place of milled edges to afford a grip on the movable part of the cups, a neat flat projection is provided, so that no matter how greasy the operator's hands may become, he can always get a grip to screw the cup tight."

Decades later, Road Test magazine wrote of the 1971 Buick Centurion, "a look under the hood discloses one of the most maintenance-oriented engine compartment arrangements we have inspected in years, especially on a full-size car which has one of the largest-displacement engines in the industry and which is equipped with every power option in the book.

"And we always note the accessibility of plugs; distributor; carburetor linkage; oil filter; dipsticks, and other components subject to period adjusstments" (Road Test, January 1971).

For 1975, Buick added a visual wear indicator to the lower ball-joints of its Riviera: a grease fitting at the top of the joint which receded into the end cap, eliminating the need for an expensive tear-down to check the ball-joints' condition.

It was, later still, also easier to service bulbs and lenses on the Electra; LeSabre, and Riviera, thanks to hinged tail-lamps. For 1986, as for 1979 when electroluminescent coach lamps eliminated bulb changes, the little things mattered.

Relief in ride quality.

More than fifty years ago, all-around coil springs could be found under the chassis of the magnificent 1954 Buick Roadmaster, a car whose pliancy - thanks to new direct-acting shock absorbers attached directly to the frame and independent of the springs - quickly became colloquially termed, the Million Dollar Ride.

Buick sought to relieve driver strain in every aspect. Steering linkage and geometry were also improved for 1954, with one road test report enthusing, "finger-tip steering is literally possible!" (Buick: A Complete History, Terry B. Dunham & Lawrence R. Gustin, Automobile Quarterly, 2002).

1970 Buicks offered AccuDrive, suspension design and tuning which promoted directional stability, offering improved, smoother handling, especially on windswept, bumpy roads.

As Buick technology evolved, ride and handling merged. By 1973, Buick was using chassis springs that were selected by computer, based on the weight of the car and equipment ordered. "The undercarriage geometry enables it to ignore large bumps at speed," said Motor Trend of the '74 Buick Riviera (Motor Trend, June 1973).

"For American driving conditions - that's what we're talking about, right? - the Riviera has an excellent combination of those vague terms known as ride and handling," noted Road Test magazine of Buick's '77 coupe (Road Test, July 1977).

Meanwhile, Buick has continued to improve its legendary ride.

Even the Skylark, the entry-level Buick for 1995, received a tubular rear axle which carefully placed rear springs and shocks along the wheel center-line, with noted gains in both ride and handling.

Today, Buick proposes gradual, controlled spring rates, for a smooth ride that is stable over ruts and through switchbacks. Authority is the answer to the age-old compromise between ride and handling, and between simple numbers and real-world performance. This is the natural extension of Buick's philosophy, dating back to 1966, which stated that, while it certainly used orthodox proving grounds (including facilities in Milford, Michigan, and Phoenix, Arizona), it "couldn't tune a car on a proving ground alone.

"You won't be driving on one, either."

Expounding upon this theme in 1987, Buick ventured, "as you have undoubtedly noticed, the real world is not one long and winding two-lane blacktop road.

"It is, instead, a seemingly endless array of traffic lights, railroad tracks, potholes, and - alas - other cars.

"Buick hereby offers a very comforting alternative: performance and handling that are spine-tingling, yet never bone-jarring... composure, confidence, and a sense of control."

In its simplest definition, ergonomics might refer to the degree of comfort an interior offers. A Buick may have commanding presence, but it must above all cater to its pilot ... (more)

In its simplest definition, ergonomics might refer to the degree of comfort an interior offers. A Buick may have commanding presence, but it must above all cater to its pilot ...