1998 Buick Park Avenue Review (continued)
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Walkaround

At a glance, the latest generation of Park Avenues look like an evolutionary update, but it's an all-new car, based on the front-drive Buick Riviera-Oldsmobile Aurora chassis. Compared with the previous generation Park Avenue, the new one rides on a longer wheelbase and a wider track. At 58.1 inches, this Park Avenue is three inches taller than the old one and it weighs about 250 pounds more. For contrast, the Lincoln Continental and the Chrysler LHS--targeted by Buick as a key Park Avenue competitor--stand 55.9 inches.

In a world of zoomy low-slung shapes like the LHS, the formal contours may seem a trifle out of step, but the Park Avenue prioritizes comfort over style. Big doors make getting in and out easy and there's lots of front and rear headroom and legroom.

True, you could perceive these same design priorities in a basic brick like the old Checker Marathon, qualities that made it a favorite with taxi fleets for so long. But the Park Avenue embodies these virtues in a shape that's graceful and quietly elegant.

It may not turn heads like the Riviera, but the Park Avenue has an undeniable muscular grace that Buick designers want their cars to project, particularly in the slightly more aggressive looks of the Ultra.

GM's 3800 Series II V6 offers enough smooth, quiet power to provide brisk acceleration. Available in normally aspirated (Park Avenue) and supercharged (Ultra) versions, the 3800 delivers lots of low rpm getaway power, instant throttle response, and plenty of punch for passing.

Power is transferred to the front wheels through one of GM's butter-smooth electronically controlled 4-speed automatic transmissions--they're among the best in the business.

Buick has added four new colors to the palette for the '98 Park Avenue; ours came in Emerald Green, which made a nice contrast with its beige leather interior.

Interior Features

As we noted, roominess and ease of entry were top design priorities and the Park Avenue is a bullseye on both counts. Interior space is just this side of vast, a word that also applies to the trunk. And getting in and out is devoid of the simultaneous duck-and-bend movement required in some swoopier designs, even though the door sill is a trifle higher.

Like the exterior, the interior styling rates as more contemporary than the previous Park Avenue. Over resistance from longtime Buick owners, interior design chief Paul Tatseos managed to break out of the old horizontal dashboard theme that afflicted the '96 Park Avenue by installing a modestly curved cowl over the main instruments. Besides offering a more modern appearance, this allowed a bigger speedometer and tachometer, which makes them easier to scan.

Another welcome change is the general appearance of the dashboard, which shows a strong Riviera influence with its sharp color contrasts between secondary controls (sound and climate control systems, for example) and the interior color schemes. You'll find more woodgrain than in the Riviera, but the overall look is clean and tasteful, and the wood is the real article. Beyond that, the sound system buttons and climate controls are bigger, better located and far easier to operate when the car is in motion.

As you'd expect, the Ultra includes a full array of luxury goodies--premium sound system, automatic climate control, leather, power everything--that make the going more pleasant.

Safety features, including standard antilock brakes, are current, and the Park Avenue's strong body shell should perform well in crashes. However, even though side airbags are becoming common in this price class, they have yet to find their way into the Buick lineup.