2012 Buick Verano Overview Change Vehicle

This 2012 Buick Verano review explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2012 Verano, and includes Buick Verano safety, reliability, and fuel economy ratings.

Based on the same platform as the impressive Chevrolet Cruze, the new 2012 Buick Verano arrives to serve as an entry-level luxury sedan that blends traditional Buick characteristics with fuel efficiency.

The 2012 Buick Verano is a new model, slotting into Buick’s four-car lineup as the least expensive path to tri-shield ownership. Though based on the Chevrolet Cruze, the Verano receives upgrades in terms of styling, features, and performance.

Buick offers the Verano is a single level of trim with two primary option groups called Convenience and Leather.

Standard features include Bluetooth, dual-zone automatic climate control, leatherette seats with fabric inserts, manual seat height adjusters for the front seats, power windows with express operation for the driver’s window, power door locks with remote keyless entry, power side mirrors, a leather-wrapped tilt-and-telescopic steering wheel, and cruise control. A set of 18-inch alloy wheels comes standard, as well as fog lights, a trip computer, a remote engine starting system, and a stereo system with satellite radio, an auxiliary audio input jack, and a USB port. The Verano also includes OnStar telematics with six free months of Directions and Connections service, which includes Automatic Crash Notification and Stolen Vehicle location and tracking services.

If you choose the Convenience model, the Verano is equipped with a power driver’s seat and heated side mirrors. Leather models add leather upholstery, a power front passenger’s seat, heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, and a keyless entry and push-button start system.

A Bose premium sound system is available on any Verano. To get a power sunroof, a navigation system, and Buick IntelliLink technology, the Convenience or Leather model is required. Rear parking assist is only offered on the Leather model.

A direct-injected, 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine rated to deliver 180 horsepower is standard, driving the front wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission. Buick says the Verano accelerates to 60 mph in eight seconds, which is adequate for a sedan touting itself to be entry-luxury. Buick confirms that a turbocharged, 2.0-liter four-cylinder is in the Verano’s future, and some industry observers believe that a sport-tuned GS model will contain that engine.

For now, though, the Verano has its E85-capable 2.4-liter engine. Official EPA estimates are not available as this review is written, but Buick claims the car will get 22 mpg in the city and 31 mpg on the highway.

Buick installs a total of 10 airbags into every Verano, including rear seat side-impact airbags and knee airbags for the front seat occupants. Additionally, the Verano is equipped with four-wheel-disc antilock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution and brake assist, traction control, and stability control. Parking assist sensors are optional, and available only on the most expensive model.

Another standard safety feature on the Verano is OnStar, a telematics system that offers Automatic Crash Response service. If the OnStar subscription is active, this feature automatically contacts a live operator in the event of an airbag deployment. The operator attempts to establish a line of communication with the Verano’s occupants to assess the situation. If there’s no response, the operator can send emergency personnel directly to the Verano’s location to speed rescue.

Because the 2012 Verano is a brand new model, there are no crash-test ratings and no reliability predictions to report as this initial review is written.

Buick says the Verano is aimed straight at the Lexus IS 250, but there must be some kind of mix-up. The Lexus is rear-wheel drive, cramped, and austere – about as close to a basic German sport sedan as Japan typically gets. The Verano is a different sort of car, a small sedan equipped with front-wheel drive and generously topped with traditional American luxury cues. Natural competitors include the Acura TSX, Audi A3, Chrysler 200, Lincoln MKZ, Saab 9-3, Volkswagen CC, and Volvo S60.

The Verano’s A-pillars (the posts that frame either side of the windshield) are wrapped in fabric material rather than covered in plastic, an upscale touch representing attention to detail. The Verano also has a premium knit headliner with material made, in part, from recycled cardboard. Buick also equips the Verano with its Quiet Tuning approach, and claims the car is among the quietest in its class. If you value a silent cabin, the Verano is worth investigation.

A Watt’s Z-link rear suspension keeps the Verano’s back wheels glued to the ground, a simple design which Buick points out is lighter and smaller than a more sophisticated fully independent setup, thereby preserving trunk space and improving fuel economy. There might be something more to that than just a marketing department trying to put makeup on a pig, but in the entry-level luxury class, this borders on unacceptable. Buick needs to make sure they’ve done everything possible to massage the Verano’s underpinnings to provide the best possible combination of ride and handling. Especially if the company is targeting Lexus.

That said, the Verano’s trunk is large for a small car, measuring between 14 and 15.2 cubic-feet depending on whether the car is equipped with the Bose premium sound system, a spare tire and jack, or a tire inflator kit.

It looks great. It’s remarkably quiet. It’s small. And, unfortunately, it’s slow.

Ask for a quick summary of the 2012 Buick Verano and don’t be surprised if that’s what you hear. Let’s quickly walk through each of these attributes.

The Verano does look great. Our test model, an attractive little number bathed in black Onyx paint and a cashmere (tan) interior, generated a few incredulous statements like, “I’ve never thought about buying a Buick but I would seriously think about buying this one “ and “I love how that Buick looks.”

Though it shares a platform with the Chevy Cruze, the Verano is clearly the better-looking and better-equipped car of the two. You’ll see the difference in the faux-wood trim, the brushed aluminum on the steering wheel, center console, vent surrounds and door handles and the comfortable leather seats.

Not all is perfect with the seats, however. The driver’s seat is powered up and down, forward and back but you have to adjust the vertical setting manually. The passenger’s seats are manually adjusted with fairly inexpensive-feeling plastic handles. It cheapens the feel of the car, just a bit. And we wished the bolstering was a touch heavier on the front seats. For an entry-luxury vehicle, the seats are merely good not great.

One other surprising negative—the Verano does not offer a rearview camera. That’s a shock since rearview cameras are available in less-expensive vehicles and they’re fast becoming a near-standard feature (or at least option) on any vehicle that is marketed to a luxury buyer. We would respectfully suggest Buick make the camera an option in future models. The seven-inch screen on the radio offers plenty of space to see what looms behind you.

On the positive side, the interior of the Verano lives up to its reputation as exceptionally quiet. We intentionally drove on some horrible pavement to see how it resonated through the cabin; short answer, not very much. If you prize a quiet interior and you don’t blast the radio to drown out noise, you’ll appreciate the attention Buick paid to getting that sound-deadening detail dead right.

Like the Cruze, the Verano is small and rear legroom is limited. Two passengers will happily enjoy the rear seats but don’t invite a third person unless he or she is half the size of a supermodel. In the front seats, driver and passenger have all the room they need.

The Verano is competent and comfortable around town but far from zippy. That 180-horsepower engine gets you up to speed but not particularly quickly. Is that a problem? Most of the time, no. If a semi-truck is barreling down behind you, then yes.

Fuel economy is worse than promised. We covered more than 200 miles during a week’s driving and averaged a mere 23 mpg. That lags the estimated combined average by 2 mpg and is most troubling because the majority of our driving was on the freeway where we should expect 32 mpg.

If the size of the Verano feels right to you but you’re looking for better fuel-efficiency, we’ll recommend you take a close look at the Chevy Cruze ECO. Last time we drove the one, we averaged 37 mpg. The Cruze ECO is nowhere near as attractive as the Verano—inside or out. But these days, a highly fuel-efficient car that saves money and trips to the pump can more than compensate for a few style deficits.

We’ve seen this movie before, and we’re having trouble figuring out why there’s a sequel. Again. But at least the Buick Verano is based on a competently engineered foundation and is actually pretty good looking except for all that mass over the front wheels. The timing might be right, too, with high fuel prices and stretched budgets translating to consumers hunting for bargains. Yep, even luxury car buyers.

By Christian Wardlaw and Michael Waterman