My Daily Driver: @aHawkeyeFan's Buick Regal TourX

1. How did you come to the decision of buying this car?

I was buying a house with my soon-to-be fiancée and I needed to downsize to one vehicle. I owned a Pontiac G8 GT and a Mazda CX-9 at the time and wanted the versatility of a bigger vehicle, but needed the fun of a car. Clearly a wagon was the best choice.

I had previously leased a B8 and a B9 A4 so I knew the Audi Allroad was both too small and somewhat uncomfortable for very long road trips. That also eliminated the BMW 3 series wagon as it would be similarly too small. I test drove the Subaru Outback, but it didn’t have the driving dynamics I wanted; it felt too much like a CUV. I never liked the W212 E-Class and couldn’t afford a W213 as they had just come out. So, that just left the Buick Regal TourX.

I really liked the styling when I first saw one at the 2018 Detroit Auto Show so that was a plus. It has a legitimate back seat for adults, European driving dynamics due to its Opel heritage, a trick AWD system with a torque vectoring rear axle, and was very comfortable, as you might imagine from Buick. In the end, it was an easy choice. Unfortunately, I bought mine before the massive rebates became available for the TourX, but I don’t regret my choice (just my timing!).

2. What has your ownership experience been like?

Mostly fun, with great dealer/warranty support. I currently have 62.5k miles on it and have encountered the following issues:

The Lower Control Arms (LCA) on the front started making noise at around 10k miles. There was a service bulletin from GM and they were replaced at no charge. The issue has not recurred.

At approximately 40k miles, there was leaking from both front and rear pinion seals. This was also repaired at no charge, however I did have to wait a couple months for parts because the repair required replacement of the front PTO unit and this was coincident with GM’s strike.

3. What is your fondest memory with this car?

This car has been a bundle of fond memories, but one that particularly stands out is the trip to the 2019 Detroit Auto Show. I live in upstate NY, near Albany and the drive to Ann Arbor where my friends and I were staying was comfortable and uneventful (love having radar cruise control). The next morning, we woke up to a snow storm that completely covered the highways into Detroit and my TourX was a sure-footed mountain goat. I felt complete confidence at all times. Little did I know, this was only a precursor.

On my way home through upstate NY, I ran into endless blizzard-like snow squalls. Within a few hundred feet of each squall’s edge, the road would be enveloped in snow, visibility would be reduced to a few feet, and any traffic would slow to a crawl. The drive took me over 12 hours, but the entire time the TourX was unflappable and my lower torso did not suffer from being seated that long.

4. Why do you love cars?

For me, it’s multiple reasons. The personal freedom that they allow to explore the world around us. The level of design and detail that exists in modern vehicles. And, the sport of enjoying a great car on a hard road, be that a blizzard or mountain switchbacks.

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If you would like to participate, just answer the above four questions and submit one to three photos of your daily driver to milhousevanh at geemail. Thanks and have fun!