Former NCAA Lacrosse star Greg Bice tells us about his involvement with Lacrosse the Nations at the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Final Four Weekend in Boston.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Beck & Masten gets another thumbs up!
"The customer service was truly exceptional. Thomas Clark was extremely helpful from point 'A' to point 'Z'. He found the best vehicle to suit my needs and with many thanks to both him and Mr. Jamie Perry I am now the proud owner of a 2012 GMC Sierra." -Bryan
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Thanks for the thumbs up Matthew!
Had a great experience in buying a new car. Ariel, Gay and Mark were all very professional and knowledgeable. They were not "pushy' and allowed us to test drive several cars until we found the one we wanted. We plan to buy our next truck from this same dealership, and salesman. Thank you for the great experience. Love my new 2012 Yukon!" - Matthew
Friday, May 25, 2012
High-Mileage Sierra Owners Search for Durability Limits
DETROIT – When a new generation of the GMC Sierra fullsize pickup heads into production, it will have already absorbed hundreds of thousands of miles of hauling, towing, use and abuse testing. It’s the kind of durability exam customers in the real world administer for years and even decades.
Tammie Roeber, Dave Cleveland and Don Impson are three of those customers. Together, their trucks represent more than 2 million miles and two-and-a-half decades of proven GMC engineering.
“I signed the papers on my new Sierra 3500HD one-ton pickup in 2006, hitched up a trailer, and have been on the road since,” said Roeber, who has recorded more than 1.2 million miles on the original Duramax diesel engine and Allison transmission in her GMC. Roeber makes a living transporting horses across the eastern United States. “From 30 below zero in Minnesota to 100 degrees in Miami,” she said.
“I had two Ford pickups prior to owning my GMC, but I was replacing a transmission every year. If that rate continued, I’d be through my sixth transmission with the miles I’ve put on the Sierra.” Most of Roeber’s miles have been driven pulling trailers, including a 48-foot, 16,000-pound trailer holding as many as nine horses. She maintains her truck religiously, sticking to a 15,000-mile oil change schedule. At her pace, that’s just three weeks between service visits.
Among Roeber’s favorite features are the truck’s engine braking capability – she often encounters 6 percent to 7 percent grades that stretch for miles – that’s allowed her four-wheel disc brakes to last longer, as well as the comfortable crew cab. With most of her life lived on the road, the rear seat often doubles as a bed.
Dave Cleveland uses his 2002 Sierra 1500 extended cab to travel from his home near Chicago to trade shows as far away as Florida and Colorado. Between those travels and his daily 60-mile commute, he’s accumulated 420,000 miles over the past decade. The truck shares a driveway with his wife’s 2010 Sierra.
“This truck runs as good today as the day I bought it,” Cleveland said. “The engine and transmission are original. I haven’t even replaced the brake rotors or shocks. Other than a rear pinion gear replacement and regular oil changes, it’s just had one major tune-up at 200,000 miles.”
Don Impson, a semi-retired veterinarian in Arkansas, has stretched his miles out longer than the others. He started accumulating his 520,000 miles – mostly by making farm visits tending to animals in a three-county area around his home – when he bought his GMC pickup new in 1986.
“Everyone down around us owns trucks, but no one ever talks about this sort of mileage on one engine,” Impson said. In addition to the original engine, his manual transmission still has its original clutch. “I bought a red and white two-tone truck off the lot because the colors were done wrong for a local construction company, but it’s actually become somewhat of a calling card. Everyone knows my truck.”
“In 1995, I bought another GMC ¾-ton pickup truck thinking mine may quit on me,” he continued. “Man, how wrong I was. The 1995 truck has mostly sat while my ’86 continues to get the work done. We’re both getting older, but me and the truck may still be hankering to make a cross-country trip and I bet we could make it.”
Customers like these help GMC make advancements in durability by providing real-world test results.
“Customer stories are great to listen to, and they provide useful data for planning new trucks,” said Jim Mikulec, lead development engineer for Sierra Heavy Duty pickups. “We test our vehicles based on where and how our trucks are used to assure consumer demands are met. Vehicle testing takes us high in the mountains, low in the deserts, colder than -50 degrees in Canada and up past 120 degrees in Arizona. These stories show that our diligence is paying off.”
Mikulec’s favorite testing involves driving Sierra 3500HD Duramax diesel trucks up Eisenhower Pass in Colorado with 20,000-pound trailers attached. “With the inclines and altitude, there’s no more demanding place to drive a truck and trailer. It’s a task to stay with traffic all the way to the top, and it has been satisfying seeing publications prove that GMC is the leader in that regard.”
In an August 2011 PickupTrucks.com test, a 2012 GMC Sierra 2500HD Diesel ascended Eisenhower Pass, the highest point on the U.S. Interstate System, faster than comparable Ford or Ram trucks. It also performed better during the descent with its exhaust brake outperforming its competitors.
“Technology also allows us to get data more quickly than we could in the past,” added Mikulec. “In today’s labs, we can simulate stress tests and various weather changes to help refine frames, suspension components and cooling systems.”
Mikulec’s top tip for truck drivers looking to go the distance? “A truck is like a human body. It needs care, and the best way to ensure it lasts longer is regular preventative maintenance.”
GMC has manufactured trucks since 1902, and is one of the industry's healthiest brands. Innovation and engineering excellence is built into all GMC vehicles and the brand is evolving to offer more fuel-efficient trucks and crossovers, including the Terrain small SUV and Acadia crossover. GMC is the only manufacturer to offer three full-size hybrid trucks with the Yukon, Yukon Denali and the Sierra pickup. The Sierra Heavy Duty pickups are the most capable and powerful trucks in the market. Details on all GMC models are available at http://www.gmc.com, on Twitter at @thisisgmc or at http://www.facebook.com/gmc.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
2012 Buick Regal eAssit Review
About 15 years ago when this author began to ride motorcycles, we were inundated with advice from experienced riders on surviving riding out on the street. Advice ranged from watching out for anyone using a cell phone or eating in a car, to avoiding riding behind semi trucks that could shred a tire or block a rider’s view of road debris, etc. And we were cautioned to never follow a Buick, because the old man or blue haired granny driving it would be traveling 10 mph slower than the posted speed limit, have their right turn signal on for miles and then make a left turn with no warning.
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Now with the average age of Buick owners dropping faster than American’s approval ratings for Congress, that’s no longer true. In fact, today it would be more accurate to admonish riders to steer clear of Honda Accords or Toyota Camrys. A younger crowd has discovered that Buicks have a lot to offer as understated luxury cars with excellent technology, much-improved driving characteristics and plenty of value.
A 4-CYLINDER WITH ELECTRIC BOOST
We drove the base Regal when it first came out and we were enamored with the car. Derived from the German Opel Insignia, the Regal feels like a taut German sedan. But alas, the standard 182 hp 2.4-liter motor feels underpowered.
When the turbocharged model arrived, boosting horsepower to 220 ponies and 260 lb-ft of torque, we were smitten. Now the chassis had a worthy engine.
Now we’ve spent a week with the Regal eAssist. The power sits between the base and Turbo models, but the gas mileage increases to 25 mpg city and 36 mpg highway, and still provides enough power to make the Regal an enjoyable car to drive as a commuter, and to challenge some twisty bits of tarmac.
First let’s talk about the eAssist technology. It is designed to improve a vehicle’s fuel efficiency by adding a compact electric motor and state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery to a 2.4L four-cylinder engine, improving fuel economy by about 25 percent, and boosting performance a bit. Power on the base engine remains at 182 hp and 172 lb-ft of torque, though the electric motor can provide as much as 15 hp extra and 79 additional lb-ft of torque. The electric boost comes on under certain conditions like taking off from a stop light or ascending a hill, and it allows the 6-speed transmission to operate more efficiently.
One of first GM vehicles available with eAssist, additional fuel saving features include regenerative braking and a start-stop function, with the power being generated from braking stored in the lithium-ion battery pack and then used to power various accessories like the radio and climate control when the car is in start-stop mode.
COMFORTABLE YET ENGAGING
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The body structure is rigid and solid, which aids in a quiet ride and supports the precise suspension tuning. Body roll in tight corners is limited and nicely controlled, and yet on rough road surfaces, the Regal still provides an excellent and well damped ride quality, aided by a generous 107.8” wheelbase. Steering is light yet precise and offers good feedback while the brakes are strong with good pedal feel. Everything feels solid, taut, and athletic, like a quality European sedan should.
Slipping behind the steering wheel, the driver is greeted by a handsome and comfortable cabin. The front leather covered seats are wide and comfortable with three-position heating for both the seat cushion and seat back. Ideal for cold weather climates, one can fry an egg on setting number three.
Legroom is excellent thanks to seats that can be moved very far back although headroom in the rear might be a bit tight for folks over 6-feet. The cabin is whisper quiet at speed, meaning Buick has worked out the aerodynamics well, including making it slippery underneath the car to attain such good gas mileage.
There are a lot of soft touch materials in all the right places in the Regal, including the tops of the door sills, armrests, console, and dash. The drivers gauge package is easy to see and operate with a large round tach and speedometer and two smaller ones for fuel and an “Eco” gauge to give you instant feedback on your driving habits. It even switches into the “off” mode at stops to let you know the gasoline engine is off. Plus, the information screen between the large gauges offers lots of good info, and is easy to toggle through the system to get the info you want. And the whole dash is nicely lit up at night.
There is ample storage in the door pockets and in the glove box which is lined with a velvety material - a nice touch. The console is a bit small but has a divided compartment for an iPod or phone and has a USB, Aux. port and a power outlet. A second power outlet is located at the lower portion of the center stack.
DARK CABIN, CONFUSING CONTROLS
The interior is not, however, without its flaws. While it is handsomely elegant, even the sunlight shinning through the moonroof can’t stop the cabin from feeling dark. Our test car had the black interior, and except for some brightwork surrounding the gauges and vents, it’s all black. Even the trim on the doors and lower dash are piano black lacquer pieces, and there’s no contrast like there is on the Regal’s beige interior. There is some white double stitching on the door trim, but curiously, it isn’t picked up anywhere else in the car.
Also, the Nav screen is nice and large, but there are a lot of toggle switches and buttons and dials beneath it for all the radio, and mode and phone switches. It makes for a busy look and is more complicated than necessary. Unfortunately, the Regal’s German origins also show up with a round “i-Drive’like” control on the console. So now there are some operations that require one to use the Nav’s touch screen, then go down to the dial, and back up to the screen, and back and forth until you want to scream. It is so typically German to require three separate steps when one easy one would do just fine. Hopefully the first time Buick redesigns the Regal they will let the American engineers handle the interior.
Trunk space is a bit smaller than the other Regal models, because of the batteries located between the rear passenger seat and the trunk. Thankfully, while the whole rear seat can’t fold down, the battery pack only limits have the space, meaning the driver’s side can still drop so you can slide reasonably large objects through.
The Regal that we tested came with a lot of nice features and amenities including 17-inch alloy wheels, fog lamps, and heated outside mirrors, dual zone heating, 8-way power front seats with lumbar support, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, a tilt and telescopic steering wheel with phone and radio controls, remote start, rear park assist, and more, at a base price of $29,515. The e-Assist engine adds $2,000, and a reasonable $1,145 for the Nav system and upgraded radio, and $1,000 for the moonroof, bringing the total to $34,470.
THE VERDICT
The Regal continues to be a surprising mix of luxury and sport that will satisfy those looking for understated elegance, a comfortable ride and an engaging drive. Of course the turbo model offers much more power, but the eAssist adds just enough oomph to the base engine to make the package enjoyable, all while offering the best fuel economy in its class.
And herein lies much of the reason why the Regal eAssist is so appealing. While we don’t want to take anything away from it, there really is no other hybrid available in this category. As a result, if you’re looking for high mpg in this size and type of machine, the only other place left to go is to the conventional mid-size sedan set.
Great feedback for Beck & Masten Buick GMC
"Had a great experience in buying a new car. Ariel, Gay and Mark were all very professional and knowledgeable. They were not "pushy' and allowed us to test drive several cars until we found the one we wanted. We plan to buy our next truck from this same dealership, and salesman. Thank you for the great experience. Love my new 2012 Yukon!" - Matthew
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