The Wildcat EV concept stands alone as a sleek and streamlined Buick concept, although the vehicle is intended to reveal the future direction for the style of Buick as we head deeper into a world soon to be dominated by electric vehicles. Paint it pink and it might look like a car from Thunderbirds, oversized with curved glass and agile looking with all the Wildcat’s lines subtly pointing to a fastback style rear. It gives the sense of movement and makes the Buick Wildcat EV look like it’s always wanting to move forward as the angles of the front smooth out towards the Wildcat EV concept’s rear, a look much helped by the slightly wraparound windscreen.

It’s a bold statement from Buick, who say that the Wildcat EV is a ‘glimpse of where we’re going’ according to Global Buick Executive Director, Sharon Gauci. This new horizon for Buick has also taken in a nice looking modern new tri-shield company logo which will feature on the range of new production vehicles from 2023. By 2030, Buick plans to only be producing electric vehicles.

While the 2+2 Wildcat EV coupé looks a bit space-age, its design ideals are set firmly in looking towards the immediate future. Although from here it gets a little confusing and maybe disappointing; Buick will not be putting the wonderful looking Wildcat EV into production any time soon – the brand intends to stick firmly to its established SUV base, though incorporating aspects of the Wildcat’s design into these new electric vehicles. It does make me wonder why Buick hasn’t chosen to highlight the company’s next steps with a more straightforward SUV concept rather than a sports car – unless they’re still possibly keeping a few ideas behind closed doors.

All is not lost though, as when the Buick Electra SUV EV is revealed to us – likely to be in 2024 – it will lean heavily on many of the design aspects of the Wildcat EV. ‘Electra’ will be a range of vehicles rather than just a single model, and initially at least, sit on a base of the Cadillac Lyriq EV.

The Buick Wildcat EV partly formed itself through the design process; it became a sports car as the design team liked the way it was shaping up while creating the concept. The Buick design team had started out with the plan to make an electric vehicle concept that didn’t look faceless and had some character, with the Wildcat concept car’s sweeping lines, and narrow blended headlight structure, all seemingly developing from the sharp-lined tight knit grille design. It’s beautifully and thoughtfully designed.

So, what do we learn from the Buick Wildcat EV concept reveal? Well mostly that Buick has a great design department and should maybe not completely close the door on expanding beyond the company’s more regular SUV base. While the Electra EV will reveal more about Buick’s new direction, it is possible that the Wildcat coupé might have more of an influence on future proceedings than Buick is letting on.

Images: buick.com

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