The 2012 Buick Regal GS. Image: © GM Corp.
The Buick Regal Turbo is a reasonably good car, and one worth shopping if you’re in the market for a sporty mid-size sedan. It’s difficult for me to throw “sporty” and “Buick” out in the same sentence, but in the case of the Regal, it fits. I’d stop short of calling it a “sport sedan”, since the above average chassis was let down by a less-than-thrilling engine. The Regal Turbo makes do with a 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder, good for 220 horsepower and 258 foot-pounds of torque. In a small car, that could be fun; in the Buick Regal, it’s merely adequate.
The 2012 Buick Regal GS. Image: © GM Corp.
Enter the 2012 Buick Regal GS, which we thought would come with a 255 horsepower turbo four-banger. It turns out that Buick was sandbagging the numbers, and the car will actually come with a 270 horsepower four-cylinder. If math is your thing, that works out to be 135 horsepower per liter, or the highest amount of horsepower per liter ever tested by the SAE. The GS will also crank out 295 foot-pounds of torque, which should be enough to get the Regal GS off the line with some enthusiasm. Buick says it’ll do zero to sixty in 6.7 seconds, which shaves 1.7 seconds off the time of the Regal Turbo.
Clearly, Buick hopes to draw in a younger crowd with the Regal GS. Pricing hasn’t been announced just yet, but look for inventory to begin trickling into dealer showrooms this fall.
Source: GM
Kurt Ernst has been passionate about automobiles and driving nearly his entire life. His early years were shaped working in the family service station, though his real passion was auto racing. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Kurt spent a year club racing with the Sports Car Club of America, before focusing on a business career in marketing and project management. Later, his passion for writing and the automotive hobby found him freelancing for a variety of automotive news sites, including Automotive Addicts and Motor Authority, where his work was syndicated and appeared in several national publications. Recognized as an expert in the automotive field, Kurt joined Hemmings Motor News as an Associate Editor in 2013, and in the years since has progressed to Editor, Hemmings Daily; Managing Editor for Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Classic Car, Hemmings Muscle Machines, and the Hemmings Daily; and now, Managing Editor, Hemmings Auctions. Kurt was instrumental in organizing the Hemmings Motor News Concours d’Elegance from 2013-2019, and has served as a judge at this event and The Vintage Racing Stable Concours d’Elegance. A Skip Barber Racing School graduate and prolific writer, Ernst is also skilled in copyediting, project management, brand development, and public relations.
