Buick Somerset

Infobox Automobile
boxcolor = darkgreen
name = Buick Somerset


manufacturer = Buick
parent_company = General Motors
production = 1985–1987
assembly = Lansing, Michigan, USA
class = Compact
layout = FF layout
platform = N-body
body_style = 2-door coupe
4-door sedan (1985 only)
successor = Buick Skylark
wheelbase = Auto in|103.4|0
engine = 2.5 L "Tech IV" I4
3.0 L V6
transmission = 5-speed manual
3-speed Turbo-Hydramatic 125 automatic
related = Buick Skylark
Oldsmobile Calais
Pontiac Grand AmThe Buick Somerset was a compact car produced by the Buick division of American automaker General Motors between 1985 and 1987. Buick had previously used the "Somerset" name as a trim-level package on the Buick Regal in the early 1980s.

The Somerset was one of a number of down-sized cars built on GM's N-body. Destined to replace the Buick Skylark, the Somerset name badge failed to resonate with the buying public. Initially launched as the Somerset Regal in 1985, the name was shortened to Somerset in 1986, when a sedan version of the car was added under the Skylark name (Buick's strategy of using the Skylark badge is not new — this trend occurred in 1975 when the 2-door coupe based on the Chevrolet Nova was badged the Skylark while the 4-door sedans were known as the Apollo).

Starting in 1988, the Somerset name was discontinued, and all models were called Skylark.

The Somerset did not do as well in the marketplace as the Pontiac Grand Am which was based on the same platform. The Somerset did have some interesting features such as an all-digital instrument cluster and a surprisingly luxurious interior despite its small size.

Problems

A common complaint among consumers was its audio system, mounted on a pod above the vehicle's center console between the driver's and passenger seat. Because the system was not a typical "in-dash" type, there was no space to mount an aftermarket sound system, forcing audiophiles to make do with the existing system or make an expensive modification to the dashboard in order to get an aftermarket unit to fit.

The all-digital instrument panel also caused electrical system problems. The stock alternator provided with the optional digital instrumentation lived a much shorter life than vehicles equipped with an analog counterpart. The life of the stock alternator was about three years for the digital-equipped Somerset.

The vehicle's front grille was also subject to breakage in cases of engine vibration or even a rough road, where the plastic grille would break on either side (where the mounting screws were) because of the rigidity of the mounts that did not flex to compensate for the vibrations.

The Buick Somerset featured as the rental car in the1987 movie Planes, Trains and Automobiles, the car is later set on fire in an accident in the movie.