Three-Row Buick SUV Could Be Happening

General Motors Design has shown off its take on what an off-road capable Buick SUV could look like. Like the fully animated design study of the Buick Wildcat concept, the new SUV design was shown off on the company's official Instagram page, and at a glance, it looks rather stunning.

On the front face of the artist's rendition of a crossover is a design that's similar to the currently available Buick Envista and Encore. It's a combination of slick lines for the front bumper and a more aggressive-looking upper portion with very sharp daytime running lamps and a muscular-looking hood.

Like many Buick production models, the unnamed car has a straight window line that lines up with the top of the hood. Its side portions, meanwhile, are mainly smooth, but it does get an interesting sloped side skirt portion. And, of course, it gets huge wheels and a very generous ground clearance, fitting for something that can deal with rough terrain.

Unfortunately, the rear section of the vehicle was not shown. One can imagine, though, that a similar design to the Envista's rear portion might suit its squared shape, which gives us hints of the Kia EV9 in its angularity.

Overall, the sketch looks like it could be a great basis for a new entrant to Buick's lineup, potentially offering three rows of seating in a luxurious package, but we doubt that any real off-road ability would be engineered into the vehicle, given the brand's luxury focus. But it's also worth mentioning that the design is not particularly revolutionary.

While crossovers and SUVs are the best sellers these days, yet another such vehicle would need to offer more than just sharp styling to be competitive. Buick is launching several new products in China, some of which will come to the US, but on the whole, we feel Buick needs to do more to recapture the magic of yesteryear.