2012 Verano vies for NVH benchmark

General Motors ‘throws the toolbox’ at its new entry-level Buick as it aims to create the quietest compact in the market.

To fill the glaring compact-segment gap in Buick's model line, General Motors planners followed a logical path. They captured many of the attributes of the widely acclaimed D/E-segment LaCrosse and applied them to the C-segment Delta II vehicle architecture. The result is the 2012 Verano, Buick's first entry into premium compacts since the unlamented N-body-based Skylark of the 1990s.

Verano is a platform-mate of Buick's China-market Excelle GT (with which it was codeveloped), as well as the Opel/Vauxhall Astra and Chevrolet Cruze. The four-door, five-passenger Verano is aimed straight at the Audi A3, Lexus IS250, and Honda's Civic-based Acura CSX currently sold in Canada and expected in the U.S. next year.