OREANDA-NEWS. Experience Buick leasing -- a two-year term with a single monthly payment that includes entertainment, safety and maintenance features – has led Buick to double its leasing business as a share of total sales over the last 12 months.

Launched in mid-March last year, Experience Buick leases come with SiriusXM satellite radio, OnStar Directions and Connections and include oil changes and tire rotations in the monthly payments.

According to customer data collected late last year, 55 percent of Experience Buick customers are new to the brand; that number rises to 63 percent for the Regal luxury sport sedan and 66 percent for the Verano compact luxury sedan. Including leases and sales, a higher percentage of customers in 2012 were new to Buick – 43 percent – than any year on record.

About 74 percent of customers polled said Experience Buick played a major role in their decision, and that each element – maintenance, two-year term, satellite radio and OnStar – were all among their top 10 decision factors. Two-thirds of the customers indicated they would definitely consider another Buick for their next vehicle.

Dealers in some cities have seen even more dramatic lease penetration with Experience Buick. From mid-March last year through February 2013, leasing as a share of sales was up 23 percentage points in Los Angeles, 19 percentage points in San Francisco, 15 percentage points in Miami and 11 percentage points in Atlanta.

“When this was introduced, I knew it was going to be special for us,” said Mark Naszaradi, general manager at Williamson Buick in Miami. “Our city is a very lease-dominated market, so we knew if we could get the word out about Experience Buick, it’d be a great thing.

“Since then,” said Naszaradi, “we’ve gone from averaging about 30 Buicks each month to as high as 80 in September, with a majority of our customers trading in import brands. And leasing has risen from 30 percent of our business to more than 70 percent.”

Naszaradi is confident that Experience Buick’s momentum will continue. “Within the next year, we’ll start seeing these customers coming back, and with everything that’s included in these leases, the experience they’re getting, we’ve gotten feedback that they’ll stay with us.”

When the Experience Buick customers who leased vehicles in March 2012 return next year, every model in the Buick showroom will be new or significantly updated, with redesigned Enclave, LaCrosse and Regal models, a Verano with an available 250-hp turbocharged engine and new safety features, and the all-new Encore luxury small crossover.

“Our vehicles and our dealership facilities deliver on what today’s luxury car customers expect,” said Brian Sweeney, vice president of Buick Sales and Service. “Experience Buick gives customers a low-commitment, all-inclusive way to see that we’re a modern and inviting brand with five unique and appealing models.”