Bennett Motors's automotive expertise is a product of our sustained interest in industry trends and characteristics. We are privileged to share the latest news, promotions and events with you and hope the information will enhance your shopping experience. As you know, there are many new cars from which to choose, and we believe an informed customer is the best customer.

Sport-Injected Luxury, and article from B the Buick Magazine

Imagine an automobile that combines Buick's hallmark luxury, quietness and precession craftsmanship with performance attributes such as sculpted styling, a turbocharged engine and an available Interactive Drive Control System.
     That's precisely what Buick Designers and engineers envisioned when they developed the Regal CXL Turbo, an exciting new turbocharged version of the recently introduced Regal CXL sport sedan. This sport-injected Buick takes the best of the Regal CXL and infuses it with even more power, more responsiveness and more engaging features.
   "Our goal with the Regal Turbo was to maintain its European handling characteristics while incorporating Buick quietness and refinement," explains Mark Meyers, Global Vehicle Performance manager.

Performance Heritage

Ecen with its history of luxury and style, Buick boasts a number of performance-oriented models, including the popular Gran Sport and the turbocharged Regal GNX.
    "The Regal name has been synonymous with models of elevated performance," says Product Manager Bobo Casparian. "We felt it was only natural to offer a model with a higher level of performance."
    Outside, the Regal Turbo displays a sleek, sculpted appearance along with a wide stance for a planted look. In back, a bright "Turbo" badge and a pair of chromed exhaust tips distinguish the turbocharged model from the standard Regal. You can even opt for 19" alloy wheels to showcase the sedan's performance character.
 
Turbo-Motivation
For enthusiast, it's what resides beneath the hood of this athletic sedan that really tells the story.
     Equipped with a direct-injected 4-cylinder turbocharged engine, the Regal delivers 220 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque-- enough to propel the midsized Buick from 0-60 mph in 7.5 sec.
    This turbocharger, incidentally, features no ordinary design. It employs dual-scroll technology for instantaneous response, providing drivers great acceleration with excellent efficiency.*
   Speaking of efficiency, the Regal's 2.0-liter Ecotec power plant comes Linked to a smooth and efficient standard 6-speed automatic transmission.
    Prefer clutch pedal-style shifting? An optional 6-speed manual transmission arrives early next year.
    "the manual transmission takes the driving experience to a new level," Myers says. "And when combined with the Turbo's excellent ride and handling it will leave people saying, 'This is a Buick?'

Personalized Driving Experience
Make no mistake: Being a modern sport sedan, the Regal will engage you.
    Its available Interactive Drive Control System (a class-exclusive feature), for example, allows you to choose from three dynamic driving modes: Standard, Tour and Sport. Each adjusts the suspension, steering, throttle and transmission settings to personalize your driving experience.
    Standard Mode makes the perfect all-around setting for daily commuting and city traffic while Tour enhances ride comfort--a good choice for relaxed, long distance cruising.
    Press sport and you'll enjoy a more performance oriented drive through sharper steering response, quicker acceleration, enhanced road grip and crisper shifts. This sport sedan features it all: modern, sleek styling; a driver focused interior; turbocharged performance; class-leading Interactive Drive Control and more.
    Enjoy a close-up look at performance-infused luxury ... Buick-style. The Regal CXL Turbo Arrives at dealerships this December.
   
B 

2011 Sierra HD


This is an article from GMC The Magazine

5 Minutes with Jim Mikulec

GMC engineer discusses 2011 Sierra HD development
As a Lead Development engineer, Jim Mikulec heads up a team of dedicated professionals who work to ensure that the 2011 Sierra HD models deliver everything you expect and more in a heavy duty pickup. GMC The Magazine recently caught up with Mikulec who is responsible for total vehicle integration, to learn more about what went into developing the 2011 Sierra HD's.

Q. What does total vehicle integration entail?
A. It involves taking everything into account. making sure every thing-- from the engine, transmission and from to interior noise levels and how the radio functions-- works together as a unit to meet or exceed customer expectations.
    What was great about this project was they took a clean sheet approach. We were asked, "if you could do anything with this truck, what would you do?" The team developed a wish list of items and we got pretty much every one.

Q. Can you describe some of the testing the new Sierra HD's went through?
A. Members of the eight-person development team spend weeks on the road year-round. We test the ride and handling, engine/transmission performance, as well as interior functionality-- everything. and we drive the trucks everywhere, from here at the Milford Proving Ground to Michigan's Upper Peninsula to test the Stabilitrac on snow and ice; to Colorado where we can go from sea level to between 12,000-ft and 14,000-ft elevation. we even go to Death Calley to test the truck in extreme heat conditions.

Q. What is the best part of your job?
A. Seeing the final product come together and getting positive feedback. We did a ride-and-drive with the national press, and people who were driving the Sierra 3500 dually pulling a 35-ft trailer were saying things like "I could drive this across the country." The fact that these people, who don't drive big trucks all the time, felt that comfortable and confident was great. That gives you a real feeling of satisfaction.

Q. What is your favorite feature of the Sierra HD?
A. For me, The Duramax engine is the star of the show. The way we were able to integrate that powerful diesel engine just makes for a great truck, Put the Duramax in a Sierra Denali HD and I don't  see how it gets any better.

Q. What is something most people would be surprised to learn about vehicle development?
A. I can tell you from experience that people are surprised at the level of detail and work that goes into integrating all the different systems.
    Also, we stay involved with the vehicle after it has been released. Every morning, we go over any vehicle issues that came into the customer assistance center the precious day. That day our team will be working to find a solution-- usually within 24 hours. 

Buick Regal


With four fewer brands in the stable Gm finally can get serious at Buick and the Regal is as serious as the U.S. treasury's executive paymaster. No gas-guzzling V-8 available, not even a big V-6 Buick became known for in recent years. Just a pair of sensible but fully capable 4-cyl. motors.
    For its base engine,the regal gets a stout 2.4L named Ward's 10 Best Engines and up-level models receive a rollicking little 2.0L turbocharged unit.
     Gm marketers like to say the car was bred on the Autobahn, a nod to its roots as the European-market Opel Insignia, but all Boomer-aged buyers really need to know is the Regal is the most fun thy will have in a Buick Since Prom Night.

-Ward's Dealer Business

2011 GMC Sierra Heavy Duty

First Look: 2011 GMC Sierra Heavy Duty

It was only a month ago that we had our first look at the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado Heavy Duty pickups. Now, it's GMC's turn in the spotlight. The "professional grade" brand is unveiling the 2011 GMC Sierra HD lineup at the NTEA Work Truck Show. While most of the technical specifications of GM's HD pickups are identical, GMC is adding a new high-end Sierra Denali HD model to its work truck lineup.

The luxurious Sierra Denali will only be available as a crew cab four-wheel drive 2500 model with a choice of either the standard 360 horsepower / 380 pounds-feet of torque 6.0-liter V-8 gas engine or the class-leading 397 hp and 765 pounds-feet 6.6-liter Duramax V-8 turbodiesel.

To separate it visually from the rest of the Sierra HD trucks, the exterior of the Denali HD will feature a four-bar chrome grille along with body-color bumpers, chrome door handles, chrome accents and 18- and 20-inch polished forged aluminum wheels. As with other Denali models, the cabin will be unique with standard premium touches. It will include Denali-specific brushed aluminum trim, power-adjustable pedals, a Bose premium surround audio system and 12-way power seats. Along with an optional heated steering wheel, heated and cooled leather-appointed seating is available. The exterior will be offered in three colors: Black, Stealth Gray and White.

The rest of the new 2011 Sierra HD lineup receives new three-bar grilles and prominent louvered hoods, along with a revised chrome steel front bumper and new 17-, 18- and 20-inch wheels. The interior, though, is mostly unchanged.

GM made the biggest changes to the Sierra's frame, powertrain and running gear to increase towing and hauling capacity.

Maximum trailering is rated up to 20,000 pounds pulling a fifth wheel trailer with a dual rear wheel Duramax diesel and up to 14,500 pounds pulling a fifth wheel trailer with a single rear wheel 6.0-liter gas V-8.

Maximum payload is rated up to 6,335 pounds with the DRW 6.0-liter gas V-8 and up to 5,724 pounds with the DRW 6.6-liter Duramax V-8. Five of 12 Sierra 3500 models offer a payload capability greater than 6,000 pounds.

Jeff Luke, GM's chief engineer for full-size pickups, said the new frame has five times the torsional strength, 92 percent better bending stiffness and 20 percent better beaming stiffness. The front frame bay cradling the engine is 125 percent stiffer than the old frame.

Torsional strength is how much the frame will twist side to side under load. Bending stiffness is how much the frame will bend under load. Beaming stiffness is how much the frame will flex as it's loaded in the center and supported at both ends. The stronger frame is also said to help reduce noise, vibration and harshness, particularly up front. The engine mount brackets have been strengthened, and their positions supporting the engine are optimized so that the bracket attachment points are now set relative to the center of the frame rail instead of offset at an angle, which had caused unwanted engine vibration.

There are a total of 11 different frame assemblies, depending on cab configuration, wheelbase, weight class and whether it's a pickup or a commercial chassis cab.

In the front suspension, the upper control arm is now made from forged instead of cast steel, for increased strength and weight savings, while the cast-iron lower control arm has been bolstered to handle greater loads. To help improve ride quality, two urethane jounce bumpers instead of one are mounted to the frame to cushion each side of the lower control arm, and there's also a new upper shock mount attachment design as well as all-new shocks.

There's also a new steering box with a 16-1 turn ratio and larger front linkage to manage increased front-end loads resulting from the improved front gross axle weight rating, which has jumped from 4,800 pounds to 6,000 pounds.

It's not just the stronger frame and suspension that support the increased towing and hauling numbers in the 2011 GMC Sierra HD. There's also a revised 6.6-liter Duramax clean diesel. Sixty percent of its parts are new, and Duramax chief engineer Gary Arvan said it will be 11 percent more fuel efficient than the previous LMM Duramax.

A new 36-gallon fuel tank extends the driving range of the Sierra. It's standard on long and short box versions. GM promises up to a country-crossing 680-mile range, or about 18.8 mpg.

Other notable changes include replacing the old solenoid fuel-injection system with high-pressure 30,000-psi common rail piezo electric injectors, a higher capacity oil pump, revised crank for improved balance, and head gasket improvements have been made for greater quality, reliability and durability. Cylinder pressure ratio remains unchanged at 16-1. The variable geometry one-piece solid-shaft turbo has been marginally tweaked to work optimally with the engine's new performance characteristics.

For improved cold weather breathability, the Duramax uses a new flat-panel cartridge air filter instead of the old round filter. It helps prevent snow ingestion. There's also an improved mass airflow sensor to monitor the intake.

The engine block continues to be gray iron construction, instead of lighter, stronger compacted graphite iron used in the new Ford PSD and planned for GM's indefinitely postponed 4.5-liter V-8 Duramax. The block has been slightly revised with new ribbing structures to reduce noise, vibration and harshness and handling of increased torque levels.

New fast-acting glow plugs are said to promise instant cold starts after just 3 seconds in winter temperatures down to 20 degrees below zero.

Like Ford's Power Stroke, the Duramax will use selective catalytic reduction, or SCR, and a new high-capacity two-stage exhaust gas recirculation system to scrub nitrogen oxide emissions down to no more than 0.2 grams per horsepower/hour. It's a new EPA requirement as of Jan. 1.

The SCR system uses diesel exhaust fluid, or DEF. The urea-based solution (32.5 percent industrial urea and 67.5 percent deionized water) is held in a 5.3-gallon storage tank and injected as a fine mist into the Duramax's hot exhaust gases. The heat turns the urea into ammonia that, when combined with a special catalytic converter, breaks down the nitrogen oxide emissions into harmless nitrogen gas and water vapor.

The DEF refill point for the Sierra HD is mounted under the hood of the engine instead of next to the diesel refueling cap on the side of the cargo box, as it is on the 2011 Super Duty.

To ensure that the driver refills the DEF tank, Duramax-equipped trucks will warn the driver when the fluid is down to a 1,000-mile range. A series of start-up warnings - including lights, chimes and messages - will become more frequent until the tank is empty. When the DEF fluid is down to a 100-mile range, the truck will be limited to only 55 mph. As the range declines, so will the vehicle's top speed. If the driver continues to operate the truck with a dry DEF tank, after a final warning and restart, the truck will operate in a "limp home" mode that limits speed to just 5 mph until the tank is refilled.

The 2011 Sierra adds the first application of trailer sway control to GM's full-size pickups. It works using the truck's antilock braking system and integrated trailer brake controller to brake individual wheels on the pickup automatically when it senses dangerous yaw in the rear of the truck from the trailer, which could happen if weight unexpectedly shifts inside the trailer. If the trailer has electric brakes and is connected to the Sierra's 7-pin trailer connector, the truck can also automatically apply the trailer's brakes to stop dangerous sway. TRW is the supplier for the system.

The Sierra also has bigger wheel brakes that have increased from 12.8 inches to 14 inches in diameter and widened from 1.5 inches to 1.57 inches. They feature a larger swept area for better stopping power, and the operating pressures have been changed to provide a firmer feel during application with less pedal travel required. The bigger brakes are a necessary improvement to reach higher gross combined weight ratings across the line.

Another new safety feature can help with hill starts. Hill-hold assist will automatically apply the vehicle's brakes for 1.5 seconds once you lift your foot off the brake when you're on an incline. It's part of the Sierra's integrated trailer brake controller, so it will apply the trailer's brakes, too, if it has electric brakes.

Finally, all single rear-wheel Sierra HD pickups will come standard with GM's StabiliTrak stability and traction control system. Though it's not required on trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds, on the GM pickups it will run up to the heaviest 11,600-pound GVWR.

We can't wait to drive the heck out of these trucks this summer when they go on sale.