During the 2008 Beijing Auto Show, Buick unveiled its new concept car called Invicta. The Invicta is said to be inspired by the Riviera concept shown last year. That name — which is Latin-speak for “invincible” — was last seen in the Buick lineup in the late 1950s.

Invicta carries multiple design cues from previous Buick concept efforts, now the design language on the Invicta is pure Buick, shield-shaped waterfall grille to the vent ports, which have been moved from the fenders onto the hood. The 4-door sedan has sharp, yet flowing character lines, including one that describes the classic Buick sweep spear cue on the car's flanks. The high beltline and low greenhouse give the Invicta a muscular stance. A glass roof helps to open up the greenhouse, and premium touches in the cabin include seam stitching on the instrument soft-touch feel panel pad, steering wheel and door panels. Buttons, switches and pulls are also designed to upscale tactile standards, and LED accent lighting adds to the experience.

Invicta concept will let you also experience riding on a 114.5-in. wheelbase, the Invicta concept is powered by a turbocharged direct-injected 2.0-liter four making 250 bhp and 220 lb.-ft. of torque. It is mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission.

The 5-passenger Invicta measures 194.2 in. in overall length, rides on 20-in. wheels and tires and has a fully independent suspension with 4-wheel disc brakes. The Invicta name was originally introduced by Buick in 1959 and used until the 1962 model year.

Buick is a division of General Motors and one of the vehicles under this brand is the Buick Lucerne. For 2008, Buick has already decided on the manufacturer’s suggest retail price of the Buick Lucerne Super. Buick would be selling the Lucerne Super for $39,395 and that already includes the destination freight charge of $765. Of course, you would have to decide now if you would like to own this vehicle for orders are already coming in. Buick has also announced that the vehicle would be available come April this year.

If you would be going for the standard unit, that would give you a vehicle that comes with high quality features. One of these would be the new 4.6 liter Northstar V8 engine that has the capacity to produce 292 horsepower. Aside from that, you also would find Magnetic Ride Control technology used in the vehicle as well as a premium steering system and front seats that are heated and cooled. The vehicle has also been equipped so as to be able to have windshield washer fluid which has been heated so as to help facilitate easier cleaning especially during the cold months.

Access to the vehicle has also been made easier with a remote start. This feature is factory-installed. You also get total comfort with QuietTuning - this is the brand’s technology designed so as to reduce any kind of noise from entering the cabin. For entertainment, the vehicle comes with the XM Satellite Radio.

The Buick Lucerne Super has a chrome waterfall grille as well as dual chrome exhaust tips. The unit has also been designed to ride on chrome wheels that measure some 18 inches and you can enjoy night rides under the stars for this car has a power sunroof.

At a press conference of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) held at the Toronto Congress Center at the country’s capital, twelve vehicles from twelve “Car of the Year” categories were awarded as “Best New” for 2008.


Giving recognition to the vehicles is the AJAC’s means of giving Canadians honest comparative information about new vehicles debuting in the country’s auto market. To stand for this cause, the organization made the information about each vehicle that made it on the list in their website ready for consumer access. To come up with the vehicle’s data, AJAC conducted a series of evaluation for the 177 new vehicles which initially made it as entries. The four day vehicle tests were held last October 29-November 2, 2007 at the Niagara-on-the-lake in Ontario. This yearly vehicle assessment had been famed in the global auto industry as the “TestFest”.

For the data to be reliable reflecting real life consumer driving experiences, the TestFest’s evaluation program includes the typical driving at public roads. At the site, 70 Journalists get to pick their bet by means of driving the cars back to back themselves on the same roads, day and under the same weather conditions to avoid bias. Seventeen evaluation parameters are used that basically include driver position and ergonomics, engine smoothness, steering, handling, visibility and styling both in the exterior and interior of the vehicle. With these filtering program, winning vehicles are really the best in their kind.

2008 CCOTY Co-chairman Paul Williams commented, "In my opinion, the AJAC Canadian Car of the Year awards are founded on the most objective, informed and thorough evaluation process you'll find. The evaluations are based on back-to-back testing in real-world situations. They're a uniquely Canadian resource for people looking to buy a new vehicle".

The 2008 category winners are:

BEST NEW SMALL CAR: Saturn Astra
BEST NEW FAMILY CAR: Honda Accord EX Sedan
BEST NEW LUXURY CAR: Mercedes-Benz C Class
BEST NEW PRESTIGE CAR (over $75,000): Audi R8
BEST NEW SPORTS/PERFORMANCE CAR under $50,000: MINI Cooper S
BEST NEW SPORTS/PERFORMANCE CAR over $50,000: Audi S5
BEST NEW CONVERTIBLE: BMW 335i Cabriolet
BEST NEW MINIVAN: Hyundai Entourage
BEST NEW PICKUP TRUCK: Chevrolet Silverado
BEST NEW SUV/CUV under $35,000: Nissan Rogue
BEST NEW SUV/CUV $35,000 - $60,000: Saturn Vue
BEST NEW SUV/CUV over $60,000: Buick Enclave

Aside from the twelve “Best New” awards, AJAC also awarded the Audi R8 as the “Most Coveted Vehicle”. The AJAC started recognizing vehicles as the “Most Coveted Vehicle” in 2005 giving honor to a dream car. The vehicle, to be a winner must gain the interests of car enthusiasts enough for them to say that it’s the vehicle they would buy in case they win in a lottery.