Love Buick, Columbia? Love Santa? Connecting the two is an OnStar button away!

For many Columbia residents, driving to see loved ones on Christmas Eve is a common choice.  Naturally, we think that driving to see family in a new Buick from Jim Hudson Buick (the premier Columbia Buick dealer) is an even better choice, in no small part because of the connectivity and safety provided by OnStar service that comes standard for six months with the purchase of a new Buick.  OnStar performs many functions, including providing turn-by-turn navigation, emailing you diagnostic information about your Buick, unlocking the doors should you lock yourself out, and notifying emergency services should you be involved in a serious accident.  This year, OnStar will be providing another crucial function: letting you know where Santa Claus is!

On Christmas Eve, OnStar advisors will be prepared to give subscribers specific location-based updates on Santa Claus’ journey around the world based on data received in partnership with the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). Beginning at 6 a.m. Eastern on Christmas Eve, if you are an OnStar subscriber you can press the blue OnStar button to request a “Santa Update.” OnStar advisors will share Santa’s whereabouts through 5 a.m. EST Christmas morning. If your Buick doesn't have an OnStar subscription, you can still visit www.noradsanta.org or call 877 HI-NORAD (877-446-6723) for Santa’s location.

“It’s great to provide our customers with a fun, highly informative benefit during the holidays,” said Scott Kubicki, executive director, OnStar Sales, Services and Marketing. “Our advisors also enjoy hearing children’s surprise and joy when they learn that St. Nick is only hours away from their home.”

For more than 54 years NORAD has used its North Warning Radar System, geo-synchronous satellites with infrared sensors and other technologies to monitor Santa’s Christmas Eve travels and share the information with children and families around the world.

All of us at Jim Hudson Buick wish you and yours a wonderful Christmas season.  We will be closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and will reopen to serve you the following Monday morning.

Columbia Loves Buick Regal - So Does Esquire Magazine!

The 2012 Buick Regal GS is coming soon to Columbia, SC.

If you've had the chance to drive the Buick Regal in Columbia, SC, you've probably fallen in love with the  crisp handling, the premium amenities that come as standard equipment, and the distinct styling.  And if you do love Buick's latest premium sedan, you're in very good company--so does Sam Smith in Esquire magazine.

The 2011 Buick Regal, as you no doubt know by now, is the American sibling of the Opel Insignia, a car that found much love in Europe--enough to become the 2008 European Car of the Year.  As Smith writes, "And in this version it does something few American cars have done: take down the competition while reinventing a brand.  Save a few trim changes and minor chassis tweaks, the Regal is undiluted Opel."  Smith goes on to praise the Regal as a return to the glory days of Buick. "Don't remember what that is? Once, Buicks were admirable machines, the kind of comfortable, capable vehicles driven by doctors and fathers. Men might not have lusted after a Buick, but they didn't settle for one, either. Charmingly, the Regal seems cut from the same cloth, albeit updated for the times — it's refined but not distant, sporty but not harsh."

With the more potent Buick Regal Turbo arriving in Columbia, SC, and the Buick Regal GS coming soon, it's easy to find a lot to love about the Buick Regal in Columbia--and Jim Hudson is here with the best selection of Buick Regal sedans in town.

Love Buick's fuel efficiency, Columbia? Get ready to love it even more!

Buick LaCrosse, coming soon with eAssist
technology to Columbia, SC

Even with gas still below $3 a gallon (knock on wood), fuel efficiency remains a concern for a lot of drivers in Columbia, South Carolina.  Buick's fuel economy has improved by leaps and bounds over the past few years with new models like the Buick Enclave crossover and the new Buick Regal.  Perhaps the best example of the improvements, though, has been in the Buick LaCrosse.

The final model year of the LaCrosse's first generation offered a V6 engine rated for 28 highway MPG, or a 5.3L V8 rated for 24.  For 2011, LaCrosse offers a 4-cylinder engine rated for 30 highway MPG.  Now, for the 2012 model year, Buick is introducing the eAssist system to the four-cylinder Buick LaCrosse as standard equipment with an estimated 37 MPG!

Don't call it a hybrid--you won't be driving on the electric motor alone--but the eAssist system uses an electric motor coupled to the four-cylinder engine on the LaCrosse in lieu of a traditional alternator.  A 115V battery pack in the rear of the car provides the motor with up to 15 horsepower (or 11 kilowatts) of electric assistance during heavy acceleration.  This is a huge leap over the 2 kilowatts of the last-generation system found on models such as the Saturn Aura Green Line and Chevy Malibu Hybrid.  The eAssist system also provides up to 15 kilowatts of regenerative braking power, capturing energy for later use that would otherwise be lost to heat and friction.  The system also allows the 2.4L Ecotec engine to shut down fuel delivery in certain situations, allowing the motor to spin the engine to a stop at just the right position to restart smoothly.  Unlike many hybrid sedans available in Columbia, the LaCrosse will retain its split-folding rear seat; cargo space will be reduced slightly to make room for the battery.

LaCrosse with eAssist will also include improved underbody aerodynamics and actively-controlled shutters on the lower grille.  When cooling is not needed for the engine, such as while cruising down the highway, the shutters will close to force air around the body of the car to reduce drag.  In cases where more airflow is needed, such as in the city or while going up a steep grade, the shutters will open to provide better cooling for the engine.

All of this, save for an ECO gauge on the instrument panel, is invisible and effortless to the driver as you'd expect from a Buick in Columbia.  Although pricing has not been announced for the 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist, Buick expects the sedan to come in "about $30,000".

Another New Buick to Love: 2012 Buick Regal GS Announced for Columbia, SC

2012 Buick Regal GS sedan, available soon in Columbia, SC (GM Media)

If you love Buick Regal's styling but wanted something a little more potent than the standard CXL's 2.4L engine, your ship has come in!  Buick has announced the new 2012 Buick Regal GS, which will arrive in the second half of 2011 to Columbia, South Carolina.

When it arrives, the Regal GS will deliver an estimated 255 HP and 295 lb-ft of torque, all run through a six-speed manual gearbox; a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters will be available later on.  The new Regal GS also receives exclusive race-inspired exterior styling and interior appointments. Furthering the Buick styling tradition, the four-cylinder Regal GS has two portholes on each side; Buick models equipped with V6 and V8 engines historically received three and four respectively.

Unlike the Regal GS show car, the production model will only be available in front-wheel drive.  Columbia drivers will experience the well-received HiPerStrut suspension system, seen on uplevel models like the Buick LaCrosse and Saab 9-5, which serves to reduce torque steer under acceleration commonly found in front-wheel-drive performance sedans.  Regal’s class-exclusive Interactive Drive Control System will also be standard equipment, providing Columbia Buick drivers with pushbutton control over the Regal GS’ suspension and steering settings.

Pricing has not been announced, but the 2012 Buick Regal GS will be for sale in Columbia, South Carolina in the second half of 2011.  When it does, you can bet that your Buick dealer in Columbia will be among the first to get a hold of this Buick performance sedan!

Flashback Friday: 1980 Buick Regal for Columbia, South Carolina Drivers

YouTube finds itself loaded with all sorts of old videos, many of them promotional videos of vintage cars that have passed through Buick dealers in Columbia, South Carolina over the years.  Today, set your clocks back thirty years and take a look at the 1980 Buick Regal.

Buick Regal: Then and Now the Buick Columbia Loves

Back then, the Buick Regal was available as a two-door coupe in standard, Sport Coupe, and Somerset trims.  You wouldn't know it then, but the turbocharged V6 engine found in the Sport Coupe would form the basis for one of the most world-renowned Buicks of all time, the Buick Regal Grand National.

The Regal has come a long way in the three decades since the 1980 Buick Regal, with the new 2011 Buick Regal offering a range of options that people could only dream about back in the Carter administration.  Today's Regal offers features such as dual-zone climate control, heated leather seats, XM Satellite Radio, a total of six airbags, ultrasonic parking assist, an onboard GPS navigation system, and a USB port for connecting your iPod.  (Okay, perhaps the iPod comparison is unfair--in 1980, America was just getting the Sony Walkman!)

2011 Buick Regal in Columbia at Jim Hudson Buick

Today, the 2011 Buick Regal is available from Jim Hudson Buick in Columbia, South Carolina starting at $26,245 for the well-equipped Regal CXL that includes leather seating, USB port inputs, dual-zone climate control, heated seats, a power driver's seat adjuster, a six-speed automatic transmission, and six months of OnStar service with turn-by-turn navigation. Available in six levels of equipment right now, the Regal lineup will grow late this year with the addition of the Regal CXL Turbo and its 220-horsepower four-cylinder engine; the turbocharged model will start just under $30,000.

For more information, visit Jim Hudson Buick at our Buick Regal Columbia website or call us at 803-783-0110!

How-To Tuesday: How to love Bluetooth in the 2011 Buick LaCrosse

We know that sometimes it can be a long road to falling in love with your new car.  Most new cars these days have a plethora of features that take a bit of time to get used to.  It's not just limited to cars, either--the same thing can be said about many cell phones these days!

If you've recently started driving the 2011 Buick LaCrosse in Columbia, South Carolina, your car may have Bluetooth hands-free connectivity.  (It's standard on the CXL and CXS trims, and available on the entry-level CX model as part of the Comfort and Convenience Package.)  Jim Hudson, as your Columbia Buick dealer, is happy to offer this short clip from Buick that demonstrates setting up the Bluetooth feature with your phone and using it to place and receive calls.

It's just another thing to love about the 2011 Buick LaCrosse!

C&D drives the 2011 Regal--do they love a Buick like Columbia does?

2011 Buick Regal CXL in Columbia, South Carolina

The September issue of Car and Driver magazine saw their staff get behind the wheel of a new 2011 Buick Regal. The people of Hogback Road overall enjoyed their time behind the wheel of the reborn Regal over on its home turf of Germany, particularly its smaller size compared with competitors that have grown over the years, although their naturally lead-footed nature meant that the standard 2.4L engine was a little less power than they hoped for.  (They, like us, are waiting on the turbocharged Regal that should be arriving later this year, or even for the not-too-far-beyond-that Regal GS.)

Many Columbia Buick drivers are falling in love with the Regal's slimmer dimensions compared to the larger family sedans on the road today.  What about you?