This year’s Shanghai Auto Show is a showcase for what foreign automakers can bring to the table to compete with China’s industry-leading electric vehicles. Buick, which has traditionally been General Motors’ most successful brand in China, has come loaded to bear with a new concept car, a new sub-brand, a new vehicle architecture, and three new production models.
The concept is called the Electra GS, so named for the Electra sub-brand of “new energy vehicles” that Buick is launching in China this year. It’s big, measuring over 208 inches long, or about the same length as an Audi A8 L. The all-electric four-seater doesn’t look that large in pictures, however, thanks to massive 23-inch wheels that keep its proportions consistent.
As for the concept’s design, here’s how Buick describes it.
Along the flanks, fluid surfaces dance with light and shadow, guided by a rising beltline and aerodynamic rocker panels that embody a “half wild, half wise” ethos. At the rear, floating roof rails morph into sculptural buttresses, seamlessly merging a glass roof with an aerodynamic spoiler—a testament to artful engineering.
Flowery design language aside, the ELECTRA GS has some impressive tech on the inside that includes an augmented reality HUD and 16.3-inch display. Passengers are also treated to a bevy of cabin materials including leather, fabrics, and metal trim. We particularly like the open-top steering wheel that doesn’t go as far as a full yoke but still opens up the driver’s view of the information display and windshield.
What The Electra GS Concept Heralds
The Electra GS concept is an opening salvo in Buick’s new offensive to take back the vaunted position it once held in the Chinese market. To do so, General Motors needs Buick to compete with Chinese electric cars, hence the new Electra sub-brand.
Electra cars will benefit from Buick’s new Xiao Yao Super Architecture that the company unveiled in Shanghai alongside its new concept. Developed by PATAC, GM’s engineering and design joint venture, Xiao Yao focuses on technologies in four areas: propulsion, chassis, intelligent driver assistance, and smart cabins.
For one, the Xiao Yao platform can underpin many different body styles, including MPVs, SUVs, and sedans, along with many drivetrains such as front-, rear-, and all-wheel drive. It can also accommodate pure electric powertrains as well as plug-in hybrid tech and range-extending engines.
As for batteries, Buick is partnering CATL to use a new 6C Lithium-Iron Phosphate battery that provides extremely high charging rates of up to 640 kW. At those speeds, the battery can add 218 miles of range in just 10 minutes.
Buick is also partnering with Momenta to add L2 driver assistance technology to its production vehicles from this year onwards, and it’s using a top-tier Qualcomm 8775 chip to power its infotainment. The new chip supports up to eight screens, as well as integrates AI.
Lastly, the Electra brand is launching with three models over the next year that Buick showed in Shanghai. The first is an all-new flagship MPV called the Encasa, which will be followed by a sedan and SUV. The Encasa will be sold in both electric and plug-in hybrid variants.
TopSpeed’s Take
Buick was a dominant brand in China, selling over a million vehicles per year at one point. It sold five times as many vehicles in China as it did in the U.S. and the market accounted for 70 percent of its global sales. Sales have fallen precipitously since, though, with the brand moving just 361,000 units there in 2024.
That said, Buick came to this year’s Shanghai Auto Show ready to fight its way back to the top of the Chinese market. With a concept car, new vehicle architecture, and a new luxury-spec electric vehicle sub-brand, it came with the sole goal of proving it can measure up to China’s domestic brands with regard to EVs.
Unfortunately, it’s unclear what the future holds for Buick in China considering the country’s trade war with the United States. All this effort may be for naught if retaliatory tariffs take too big a bite out of profits or consumer sentiment in the country turns against American brands. Nevertheless, we appreciate seeing what Buick can do when it’s lead well and properly supplied with resources, which some may argue is a far cry from the Buick we know here in the U.S.
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