Buick Rainier
Blazing no new trails |
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By Richard J. Newman
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NITS: The optional V-8 averages barely more than 15 miles per gallon, resulting in fill-ups costing $30 or more. Also, despite the extra insulation, noticeable wind noise comes through the windshield at highway speeds.
G-FORCES: The optional 290-horsepower V-8 is strong and mature, with potent acceleration and smooth shifts. The base engine is GM's 275-horsepower Vortec inline six-cylinder, a snappy power plant in its own right. The Rainier handles easily but feels top-heavy and somewhat clumsy on curves.
GIZMOLOGY: There's a lot happening on the dashboard, yet controls are laid out cleanly and are easy to find. Well-placed steering wheel controls, which are standard, further simplify use of the radio. Neat feature: When you fold down the rear seats for storage, the headrests flip back so that you don't have to remove them. Gripe: In this price range, automatic power windows should be up and down–not just up.
KID MARKS: The space and the perch in the back seat are grand, but there are a few minor shortcomings. The doors, for one, are heavy and stiff, thus making it hard for younger kids to close on their own. And there are no cupholders in the rear seat.
HOT OR NOT: Not. It's not ugly, but the Rainier is big and bulky and familiar at that.
ENVIROMETER: The eight-cylinder Rainier earns 3 stars out of 10 on the EPA's emissions/air pollution scale. The six-cylinder does much better, earning 8 out of 10. Mileage for the V-8 ranges from 15 mpg city to 19 mpg highway. For the six-cylinder, it ranges from 16 mpg city to 21 mpg highway. More details: http://www.epa.gov/autoemissions/
E-BUICK-Rainier-04.htm
CRASH COURSE: Not crash-tested by the government or by private testing organizations. But the structurally similar '03 TrailBlazer with four-wheel drive earned 6 stars out of 10 on the government's frontal crash test, and 10 stars out of 10 on the side-impact test when equipped with side airbags. Rollover resistance rating was 3 stars out of 5. Details: http://www.nhtsa.gov/
NCAP/Cars/2278.html
PRICE POINTS: Base price ranges from $35,945 to $38,945. Price as tested: $42,955. (All prices include delivery.)
MORE INFO: http://www.buick.com
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Model year tested: 2004
Rarely does something as audacious as an SUV arrive with stealth. Yet the Rainier, new this fall, has practically sneaked onto the market. In fact, you may very easily have driven by the Rainier, or craned your neck to see around it, without even noticing that it's something new.
That's because in many ways it's not. General Motors has merely taken the same platform for the Chevy TrailBlazer and the GMC Envoy and added just enough refinement to nudge it upscale one notch into the Buick quasi-luxury division. A cushy air suspension softens potholes and rough pavement. Extra insulation inside the chassis and a noise-reducing laminate on the windshield are meant to seal out highway noise. And the range of options offers drivers a slightly more regal experience. There's an available V-8 engine, for example, and if you choose all-wheel drive you get an automatic system with a computer that metes out power to the wheels as it deems necessary, rather than the traditional system on the TrailBlazer that must be flipped between two- and four-wheel-drive.
The net result is a capable and comfortable SUV, but one that is not very distinct from the numerous other products that populate this slice of the market. On the plus side, the Rainier is indeed smooth and pillowy on the highway. The 290-horsepower V-8 adds enough good ol' American muscle to claim a lot of bragging rights, and it can tow more than 6,000 pounds. The Rainier isn't built for off-road use, but the optional all-wheel drive provides the functionality most SUV drivers want–extra insurance in bad weather. And in the cabin the Rainier features dual-zone climate control and eight-way power seats and other gizmos that connote the good life.
Yet the hefty Rainier lacks the agility of competitors like the Acura MDX or the Lexus RX330, and next year it will face another tough comer in the redesigned and presumably much improved Jeep Grand Cherokee. The fully loaded feel of the Rainier's interior, combined with the pliant ride, does create a sense of refinement. But it does little to dispel the geezermobile image that saddles Buick. I'm sure the Rainier will gratify Buick loyalists who have been waiting for their favorite nameplate to spawn a large SUV. But how many of those are out there? In other words, the Rainier does very little that the TrailBlazer and Envoy don't, except allow GM to expand its SUV lineup at very little cost. Sure, there's enough room for one more SUV on America's roads–especially one unlikely to be accompanied by a lot of excitement.
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