Take it Easy Big Fella…Buick Driver's Seat Breaks at Lift Off in Drag Race

In one of those embarrassing moments than can haunt you for a very, very long time (especially when the mishap occurs in front of a crowd with hand held cameras…), a driver of what looks like a modified second-generation Buick Regal Coupe from the early 1980s, gets ready to impress by beating his rival in a drag strip race.

And then it happens; as he leaves the line in full force the seat breaks and he falls back… Watch the funny incident in the video after the jump.

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GM Debuts Automotive Industry's First Front Center Air Bag

Someone once said that in the future, the inner works of our vehicles after a crash will look like a balloon party – sans the bright colors. And true enough, after the front, side, roof, knee, rear curtain and seat-belt airbags, automakers have now discovered another area of the car that can be fitted with an inflatable bag for our protection: the center.

Following Toyota's presentation of the first production rear-seat center airbag on the Japanese domestic market Crown Majesta in 2009, General Motors is introducing the automotive industry's first front center air bag, designed to protect the driver and front passenger in far-side impact crashes.

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Chevy Small Block V8 “Not Dead”, According TO GM Design System Engineer

Since its introduction in 1955, Chevrolet’s Small Block V-8 has carved itself a niche that could otherwise never be filled. Affordable, lightweight and offering great performance for its size, the Small Block is to the automotive world what the Apple iPad is to tech-heads.

Now, with ever-hardening CAFE regulations and overinflated fuel prices, one would think the Small Block’s time had finally come. Not so, according to Mark Damico, GM’s small-block design system engineer.

Though there’s been no official confirmation from GM itself, Mr. Damico swears that the fifth generation Chevy Small Block is currently under development. In fact, Mr. Damico claims that as much as US$890 million is being spent on its development.

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2012 Buick Verano Priced between $23,470 and $26,850

General Motors has granted us with pricing for its new entry-level Buick model, the 2012 Verano compact sedan, before it goes on sale in the United States later this year.

Pricing for the base Verano starts at $23,470 and tops out at $26,850 including $885 in destination charges, with all three available trim levels powered by a 2.4L four-cylinder engine linked to a six-speed automatic transmission that delivers 180HP at 6,700 rpm with 171 lb.-ft. of torque at 4,900 rpm.

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Buick Launces eAssist Version of LaCrosse in China

The LaCrosse, Buick’s mid-size sedan offering, is doing quite well in China with 215,000 deliveries in the first seven months of the year alone. Now General Motors is adding the eAssist mild-hybrid version to the LaCrosse's Chinese line-up and is taking orders in 25 pilot cities, with the first cars scheduled for delivery in September. Read more »