Chevrolet Strobe?

So a long time ago I reported on the possibility of Chevrolet getting a version of Buick’s Encore, perhaps called the Strobe, and now L'Automobile Magazine has obtained Patent renderings of this Vehicle. The car shares absolutely no sheet metal with the Encore; even the door skins are unique.

The Strobe has a more upright front end, blockier fender flares, a more traditional crossover DLO,

a more Captiva like rear end,

and a front fascia that looks like a Cruze and an Equinox had a love child. So because it shares no styling, why does it still look like an Encore? Well I think this can be attributed to two things, 1: one the Proportions, and 2: the fact that it’s a patent rendering does the car no justice, I think it will look allot better, and less like the Encore when it’s in production, but it doesn’t look too bad now. I might try to “Paint” the car in Photoshop to give us a better Idea of what it will look like if I get the time. It’s unclear whether or not this will come to America, as reports have both confirmed and denied it, but if it does, we can probably expect at least some lighting changes, but judging by spy shots, I’d be willing to bet it gets a more Sonic like face if it makes our shores. I hope it does come here though because Chevrolet needs something to go up against the other small SUVs like the CRV and Rav4, But I’d like to pose a question to you guys, would you rather Chevrolet get this or the Meriva?

Teaser Tuesday: Buick Encore Update

Buick teased yet another picture of its very Subaru like Encore; this week’s picture came with no new info, and none has leaked since the tidbits of information on the Mokka surfaced late last week. What we can see of the Encore’s rearward styling in this new photo is very Subaru like, but also shares some cues with Pontiac’s Last wagon, the Vibe, right down to the Opel version’s light use of cladding, to me this looks more like a baby VUE than a Baby Enclave. I maintain my statements that I think this would be better in Saturn’s lineup, but this may be a great seller for Buick, that is if they don’t slap some astronomical price tag on it. Thankfully these new photos show that the images that were leaked about 2 weeks ago are Chops, as the rear DLO doesn’t have the foreword sweeping Lancia like edge that the chops had. The Encore appears to have the scalloped bone line like the Regal and Verano, which would give it a more signature Buick look, despite the rest of the sheet metal being decidedly Saturnesque. The Profile DLO has a slight unconventional kick up like the one found on the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu, the taillights don’t appear to be LED based, but I could be wrong. Personally I’d like the roof rack to have a little less plastic, or they could just take it off, it might give the car a more premium appearance. This might throw a little heat Acura, Infinity, & maybe even Lexus’s way, but I think to become a Buick it should have more resolved sheet metal. It should help retain some Pontiac and Saturn customers, so this could be a very good thing for Buick, because the VUE and the Vibe sold pretty well, but it might make it harder to justify shelling out $36,600 for an entry level Enclave, or $37,785 for a fully loaded Regal GS.