Verano vs. Acura ILX

hpmctorque

The Verano appears to be the better value, but falls short of the ILX on fuel economy and rear seat leg room. Would like to hear from anyone who's compared one versus the other, weighed the tradeoffs, and reached a conclusion.

guy1974

I have looked at both and both are good cars. However the Verano is quieter, more powerful, and cheaper (around $3000). It is also has a larger trunk and more head and hip room. The fuel economy trade off is around 10% - so in my opinion not huge. The Verano turbo should be a good powertrain option going forward compared to the ILX 2.4.

The Verano also has a bigger touchscreen, more airbags and an available Bose stereo system. Reliability would probably be an Acura advantage although Buick do seem to score well in reliability surveys.

billherrmann

ILX is definitely priced too high when we take a close look at the competition. Verano offers more content, room, horsepower, and torque for 3 to 4 K less $. And, aggressive factory incentives from Buick add the advantage. Even 2012 Ford Focus has more HP.
If this car were offered for $3500. less [ about $100. less on a three year lease basis ] , buyers, including myself, would be on Acura lots waiting for the nest ILX delivery.

habitat1

I'm not shopping in this market segment and can't comment specifically on the virtues and features of two cars being compared.

But regarding price/brand comparisons, I would also take a look at future resale. Buick may have improved recently, but in the past GM's depreciated at a much, much faster rate than Acuras. Part of that was poor GM fit and finish and build quality, and hopefully GM has addressed most of these with the new models. But I wouldn't just make the price comparison based upon purchase price today. I'd look at future resale and, if you intend to keep the car for 5-7-9 years, how you think it will hold up both mechanically and in appearance.

guy1974

You make a valid point about residuals. It does depend how long you expect to keep the vehicle, it seems increasing numbers want to keep a car 10+ years so the difference would be minimal by then. Also GM seems to be offering reasonable lease deals (inflating the residual perhaps) which takes the risk out since you can choose to buy it or not at the end of the 3 years.
If the Verano scores well in reliability surveys (truedelta.com is one that gives upto date data) going forward then it certainly has all bases covered.

normsky

I picked up 2013 Verano 2.0T 6-speed manual with 6,000 miles for $23,000. The car is a gem in ride quality, low noise, and power. I have since had the ECU tuned to around 320 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque. It is a blast to drive and is very fuel efficient.

I drove 7 hours each way on hilly PA-80 and saw 36 mpg on one tank and 38 mpg on another in 30F degree temperatures with cruise set at 70 mph. That is calculated by hand as the car trip computer reads low, always has. I did aver 39 mpg this summer on one tankful during my 120 mile daily commute.

Who needs a low horsepower hybrid for highway travel when you can bust out 40 mpg and still use the 320 hp to pass and merge when necessary?

Sandman6472

drove these back to back yesterday and think the Verano is the better vehicle and value. The ILX is basically just like my '06 Civic but with much better materials and a sunroof and back up camera among other small things. The 2.0 engine didn't drive nearly as nice as the Buicks and if lux is what one wants, like I do, the Verano is the right choice here. I tend to keep vehicles longer and right now, I am just bored with the Civic an want a change and a lot more lux. i found what I am looking for in the Verano and even am in line for a demo that will have about 3k on it when they will let me have a shot at it. They want to discount it only $1k but hopefully I can get that figure up a bit. have my Civic up for sale on Craigslist but if it don't sell, Carmax gave me an offer which though not great, I could live with if the Verano is at the right price.
All I know is that I was very disappointed in the ride of the ILX yesterday but the few Verano's I've tried now have all been stellar and smooth, what a entry lux vehicle should be.

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

hpmctorque

I read that Buick will discontinue the Verano in the U.S. after the 2017 model year. It'll abandon that car segment, even though the second generation is already being sold in China and other markets. The reason is that the Verano is being outsold by the entry level Encore crossover by a wide margin. Also, the new, improved Chevy Cruise covers that segment sufficiently for GM.

Acura, by contrast, will introduce its second generation ILX for 2017, based on the new for 2016 Civic.

Question: Is Buick making a mistake?

Sandman6472

Probably not since there is so much overlap in the GM lineup. Even though the Verano's interior is so much nicer than the Cruze, better to let Chevy spruce up the Cruze to meet the quality level of the Verano. See so many Encores on the road down here because it looks so much better than it's cousin, the Chevy Trax. And the pics I've seen of thee new Encore look to make it look even nicer than the outgoing model. I was very close to buying one of the Buicks back in 2014 but the dealers didn't work very hard for my business truth be told. But in the future, I'll definitely give them a shot at mybusiness.

The Sandman