Batteries Included.

By Mark Andrews

South China Morning Post.
06/09/2008

The Buick LaCrosse Hybrid is a bold bid for top spot in the mainland’s emerging green car market, writes Mark Andrews in Shanghai

Hybrids are not popular in China. Toyota has produced the Prius at its joint venture with First Automobile Works since 2005, yet last year total sales were just 414 units. On the face of it, Buick’s decision to introduce a hybrid version of its LaCrosse seems unjustified by the market. So, why does the US marque’s owner, General Motors, think it will succeed where Toyota has failed?

On the mainland, Buick fits in as a premium brand between GM’s more mass-market Chevrolets and high-end Cadillacs. The LaCrosse, introduced in 2006, is a large, midrange car. At just under five metres long, it’s much bigger than a BMW 5-Series or a Mercedes E-Class. And although it’s based on the same architecture as the American LaCrosse, the Chinese version was designed at Shanghai GM’s Pan Asia Technical Automotive Centre for sale on the mainland and Taiwan. The exterior and interior are different, and it’s not even offered with the same engine choices.

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Mark Andrews has written about everything from Japanese houses to heli hikes on New Zealand glaciers, test drives of Chinese cars to bar and restaurant reviews. He currently specialises in travel articles and reviews of Chinese cars plus articles about the Chinese auto industry.

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