Prospective car buyers interested in purchasing a used family vehicle may want to take a look at the 2006 Buick Rendezvous, which has the look and feel of a sport utility vehicle and the interior space and safety features of minivan.

For 2006, Buick equipped its crossover SUV with a more powerful engine and numerous additional standard features. The base model comes with a 3.5-liter V6 engine capable of producing 201 horsepower and 216 pound-feet of torque. An upgraded 3.6-liter V6 is also available.

The ’06 Rendezvous comes standard with OnStar, an innovative alarm system, rear parking assist and sound-reducing QuietTuning technology, according to Edmunds.com.

Possibly the most acclaimed aspect of Buick’s hallmark SUV is the expansive cabin space and extensive cargo capacity. It delivers 109 cubic feet of cargo volume, while maintaining the elegant upscale look that Buick is known for.

Sharing a basic platform with Buick’s Terraza minivan, the Rendezvous seats up to seven passengers and has split-bench seats that can fold away.

While the 2006 Rendezvous is an excellent family car, it is, however, not a capable off-road SUV. Buick’s fuel-efficient crossover was bred for the highway.

GM has recently announced that new Buick Lacrosses will come with an optional four-cylinder engine for improved fuel economy, but for consumers looking for used cars in New York with a little more kick, used versions all come with a more powerful V-6 or V-8 option.

The luxury sedan will get a slightly more powerful version of the Ecotec engine that powers compact cars like the Chevrolet Cobalt, for combined fuel mileage of about 25 miles per gallon, according to GM.

“Buick LaCrosse customers will have the fuel-efficient option of the Ecotec 2.4L direct injection engine, a four-cylinder that is not available by key competitors, such as the Lincoln MKZ and Acura TL,” said Susan Docherty, Buick-Pontiac-GMC vice president.

But for those looking for a slightly stronger engine a used Buick Lacrosse in New York from 2005 could be worth checking out.

Edmunds.com editors said that it had a “smooth and quiet ride” even with a V-6 engine with 20 more horsepower than the 4-cylinder offered in new version.

For the money-conscious, the fuel mileage was still fairly high in its class, they noted, with an EPA average combined estimate of 21 miles per gallon.

It’s no secret that times are tough for General Motors, but now it seems that the country’s largest automaker will need to auction 100 or so classic used cars to make ends meet.

The Los Angeles Times reports that GM will be selling about 100 antique and show cars in an effort to raise money for the failing automaker and to reduce warehousing costs.

Included in the list of cars to be auctioned, according to the paper, is a 1920 Chevrolet Model T truck and a 1978 Corvette Indy 500 pace car – one of only four in existence.

This will be the second time this year that the car company will be auctioning off some of its collection. In January GM sold more than 230 of the cars in its collection, including a 1996 Buick Blackhawk Custom which sold for $522,500.

It is unlikely that the company will sell off any of the one-of-a-kind vehicles it owns and is attempting to rid itself of the many duplicates it currently houses.

“We realized that we had a lot of duplicates and cars that we could do without,” Greg Wallace, manager of the General Motors Heritage Center, told the paper. “We had three GTOs. We figured, ‘Do we really need three?’ We decided to keep the best one.”

According to its website, GM’s Heritage Center houses more than 200 vehicles on display along with many other documents and products from GM’s history in its 81,000 square foot space in Sterling Heights, Michigan.

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A new study from J.D. Power and Associates finds that Buick and Jaguar have tied for the crown of most dependable car, dethroning Lexus from the top spot which it’s held for the last 14 years.

Although Lexus fell to the third spot on the list, Neal Oddes, director of product research and analysis said the car still performs well.

“Buick and Jaguar both lead the industry in nameplate performance,” Oddes told the Associated Press. “In terms of individual model performance, Lexus and Toyota still do very, very well.”

While knocking the luxury Japanese brand from its perch at number one was a big upset, it is somewhat surprising for many in the industry to see Jaguar vaulting to the top spot from last year’s ranking of 10th.

In ranking the car brands, J.D. Power looked at problems car owners complained of over the last three years. It surveyed 46,313 original owners of 2006 model year vehicles.

This means that late model used cars from some of the top brands may be a good choice for used car buyers looking for a dependable vehicle.

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It’s tempting to spend a lot of money on a new car even while the economy is tanking, but Boston Globe reporter Geoff Edgers makes the case for the used car saying a used car has something a new one will never have – soul.

Edgers admits it’s tempting to look at a new car, but he’s happy with his 1997 Buick Skylark which he says allows him to appreciate the finer things in life, like good wine. But perhaps more significantly, used cars have something that’s less tangible.

“Old cars have soul. They have character,” says Edgars. “They get us where we’re going without forcing us to spend money we should not be spending or should be spending on something important.”

A new car might seem essential, but Edgars says by spending less on a used car you can save money and buy something that might be more important. A $600 a month car lease, says Edgards, means an extra $7,200 at the end of the year.

Buying a used car may be even cheaper than it would have been a few years ago. According to the National Automotive Dealers Association, used car prices in every category dropped during 2008.

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