Many people (including some of us at the powerTV offices) were shocked when General Motors slashed Pontiac while keeping Buick when it entered bankruptcy in 2009. What could they be thinking? Well it turns out GM had a plan for Buick, a plan that would rejuvenate the brand and inject some sporty youthfulness into it.

The sporty turbocharged Buick Regal GS was a good start, and now Buick is stepping down market with its latest offering. Yesterday GM announced that Buick would begin selling a 250 horsepower Verano that will also come with a six-speed manual transmission.

That is a major revelation for the Buick brand, which offered only automatic transmissions in its cars for the better part of the past two decades. The Buick Verano, which is based on the same architecture as the Chevrolet Cruze, will get a detuned version of the 2.0 liter turbocharged EcoTec engine found in the Regal. The six-speed manual is standard, though an automatic will likely be offered as well.

Pricing hasn’t been set, but the Buick Verano will have some stiff competition in the front-drive sports car market. The Ford Focus ST will offer a similar amount of power, and Volkswagen’s GTI is a perennial best seller. But if Buick ever decides to come out with a sporty package that stiffens the suspension and adds a little in the way of exterior enhancements, then Buick might find itself attracting a much younger crowd than the salespeople are used to.