Does Cadillac need a Mini-fighter?

According to Autocar, Cadillac may have a burning desire to lock horns with Mini. The site quotes designer Niki Smart as saying that the time is right for The Wreath and Crest to build a model akin to the company’sUrban Luxury Concept that we saw at this month’s LA Auto Show. His reasoning? The company needs metal that’s more appealing to European buyers than what’s available in the current lineup. That means a heavier focus on small, hatchback designs that still retain the premium Cadillac aesthetic. Smart seems to think that translates into a Mini Cooper fighter.

With its scissor doors and 78 mpg hybrid drivetrain, the Urban Luxury Concept isn’t any closer to production than the now-iconic Sixteen Concept of years past. Even so, Smart told Autocar that GM’s Advanced Design Studio has looked into ways to make the vehicle production ready, funky doors and all. While we aren’t exactly wild about the design of the ULC, the thought of a flingable Cadillac with a V on its hatch is certainly a notion worth mulling.

2011 Cadillac CTS-V Wagon

Instead of getting suckered into the Wagon Queen Family Truckster, a pea green calamity with excessive wood paneling and eight sealed-beam headlamps, a wiser move for Clark Griswold would have been to hold off until the first wave of high-performance station wagons rolled into showrooms. As it happened, just a few years after Clark traded in his Oldsmobile, sedans like the Volvo 740 and BMW E34 spawned the enthusiast-targeted Volvo 740 Turbo Wagon and BMW M5 Touring. Both five-doors would have given Christy Brinkley a serious run in her red Ferrari 308 GTSi.

Those early gussied-up family haulers were the predecessors to theAudi RS6 Avant, Dodge SRT8 Wagon, BMW M5 Touring and Mercedes-Benz E63 Sport Wagon. None were intended to be volume models (in fact, two never made it to the States). Instead, each was fabricated to act as a flagship ambassador, a proof-of-concept to the performance capability of the five-door chassis and to deliver unchallenged bragging rights. Automakers didn’t build fast wagons because they had to – they built them because they could.

Cadillac, a company no longer content with letting others lead segments it once dominated, wanted to get into the frothy action. The luxury automaker felt an obligation to do “the right thing” and push for its own very unique five-door. The vision was clear – Cadillac wanted to build a CTS-V Wagon – and the concept was simple, making it difficult for management to contest (at the time, the organization was functioning inside circled-wagons). Since the platform and powertrain were already in existence, the ceremonial mating would be accomplished at minimal cost and everything could be completed at breakneck speed. Less than one year later, the all-new CTS-V Wagon is here.

Cadillac Urban Luxury Concept scales down Art & Science for big-city life

Cadillac, usually an automaker that likes to go big, has taken a stab at scaling things back with the 2010 Cadillac Urban Luxury Concept unveiled at the 2010 LA Auto Show today. The Urban Luxury Concept is a vehicle designed for people who live in a city and need a smaller vehicle but don’t want to compromise on the upscale tech.

The Urban Luxury Concept is filled with touch screens and projected displays in addition to high-end trim materials like carbon-colored wood, aluminum and ceramic. Those screens and displays also allow for more interior space, which is ultra important since this Caddy is a mere 151 inches long, 68.1 inches wide and 56.9 inches tall. Cadillac is toying with the very limits of its Art and Science ethos by compressing luxury, technology and design into this tight package.

Since this is designed to be a small city car, the powertrain is also efficient. Go-motivations come courtesy of a 1.0-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine that utilizes electric assist, start-stop, brake-energy regeneration and a dry dual-clutch transmission. It’s estimated that fuel economy would be in the neighborhood of 56 miles per gallon in the city and 65 mpg out on the highway, were the Urban Luxury Concept ever approved for production… but it’s not.

Review: 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe

Cadillac introduced the CTS to the world in 2003, and since then the standard sedan and its V variant have been completely reworked, while the Art and Science design language have carried over to a pair new body styles: the CTS Coupe and CTS Sport Wagon. While the wagon adds an excellent dose of utility, the 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe represents the purest expression of Art and Science to date.

The Coupe’s design is further proof that math is beautiful, with enough hard edges and creased angles coming together to make Euclid proud. Step back and the entire shape creates an elegant solution to a complex equation. Solve for X and you get one of the strongest styling statements from Cadillac in nearly 50 years.

But is Art and Science enough to compete with the tried and true champs of the luxury sports coupe segment? Class is in session, so open your Trapper Keepers, grab a pencil and pay attention.

Cadillac STS trudges into 2011 model year sans V8 engine

Soon enough, General Motors will pull the wraps off of Cadillac’s new XTS flagship sedan, marking the official demise of both the aging DTS and STS sedans. Until then, however, the two top-end Caddies live on, albeit with fewer options than before.

According to USA Today, the STS sedan will no longer be available with GM’s 4.6-liter Northstar V8 for the 2011 model year. The only mill on hand is The General’s direct-injected 3.6-liter V6, cranking out 302 horsepower and 272 pound-feet of torque. Power still gets to the ground via rear- or all-wheel drive. V8 power is nice, but since the Northstar only churned out 18 more horses and 43 more pound-feet than the V6, it won’t be too tearful of a goodbye, especially when you consider the six’s better fuel economy. The supercharged, 469-hp STS-V was put out to pasture last year.

Cadillac CTS-V Wagon priced from $62,990

This is sort of like a dream come true. We’re already madly in love with the Cadillac CTS-V in both its sedan and sexy coupe forms, and in just a few months, we’ll have a five-door station wagon version that still packs the V’s 556-horsepower supercharged V8, rear-wheel drive and a proper manual transmission. It’s likeGeneral Motors made this one just for us (we aren’t complaining). Want one? $62,990, including destination charges.

So, what does $63K get you other than some family haulin’ lunacy on wheels? Leather, heated seats, navigation, HID headlamps, a premium Bose sound system and Cadillac’s premium care maintenance service for four years or 50,000 miles. Optional goodies include the $3,400 Recaro heated and ventilated front chairs (you want these – trust us), $800 19-inch polished aluminum alloys, $600 for slightly fancier wood trim and $300 for suede on the steering wheel and shifter

Cadillac sponsors communist party movie?

Cadillac is doing its best to secure its spot in the ever-growing Chinese auto market, and according to sources culled by Automobile, the luxury marque may have even gone so far as to sponsor a documentary on the rise of the communist party in the People’s Republic. Depending on which translation you believe, the name of the film is either “The Birth of a Party” or “The Great Achievement of Founding the Party” (both are pretty catchy) and the sponsorship is part of a drive to get the word out about its long-wheel base SLS.

With the number of wealthy individuals in China growing by the day, it should come as no surprise to hear about The Crest doing whatever it can to promote its products in the country. Still, as Automobilepoints out, it’s only a matter of time before some yokel with an internet connection begins drawing imaginary connections and calling GM out for its contributions to communism.

Cadillac recalling CTS and CTS-V over risk to passenger knees

General Motors has issued a recall notice for 2009-2010 all-wheel drive Cadillac CTS’ and CTS-Vs due to an issue with the front passenger-side knee airbag.

In a collision, the front passenger’s knees are at risk of being hit – however, this risk is only for passengers not wearing their seat belts. Dealers are instructed to replace the glove box assembly and, if necessary, modify the instrument panel structure. Per usual, these services are free of charge and the recall is scheduled to begin on or before October 20th, 2010.

Cadillac CTS-V “Competition” commercial

Recently, we showed you a behind-the-scenes look at Cadillac’s newest commercial featuring the CTS-Vsedan out on Germany’s hallowed-be-thy-name Nürburgring. Now, after all of the editing and post-production work has been completed, we’re left with a brand new television ad spot simply dubbed “The Competition,” showing viewers that one of the world’s fastest sport sedans will strive to be better and better. How can you improve on 0-60 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds and a ‘Ring run in just 7:59.32? We’re eager to find out.

Aside from the gloriousness of watching a CTS-V do what it does best out on one of the world’s greatest road courses, we like this video because it makes mention of the BMW M5 and Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG – two vehicles that inspired Cadillac to raise the bar for its own sport sedan. Give credit where credit is due, after all. Still, we like stiff competition, and you can watch Cadillac’s latest ad spot for yourself after the jump.

Drop Top Customs to unveil convertible Cadillac CTS at SEMA

The shop behind the beautiful convertible Dodge Challenger that stole the spotlight at last year’s SEMA showis at it again. Drop Top Customs has announced that it will set about creating a topless version of the ever-sexy Cadillac CTS Coupe for this year’s aftermarket shindig. We’re not entirely sold on the thought of hacking the razor-sharp roof line from the coupe and replacing it with a folding soft top, but we’ll reserve judgment until after we see the final product in the flesh, er, sheetmetal.

DTC has been cranking out convertible versions of production hardtops for around 30 years, so the company knows what it’s doing when it sets to taking the plasma cutter to an otherwise unsullied vehicle. Last year, that infamous convertible Challenger actually walked away from SEMA with a design award from Chrysleritself, so chances are the new drophead CTS will have the fit and finish of a factory effort. Still, we’ve got to wonder just how many people are clamoring for a convertible Caddy these days. After all, there didn’t seem to be much pent-up demand for the XLR…

Report: Whitacre wants a flagship S-Class rival for Cadillac

There was a time, not so long ago, that if you wanted a proper fullsize luxury sedan (short of a Bentley orRolls-Royce, at least), your choices were “largely” limited to the German three: the BMW 7 Series, Audi A8and Mercedes-Benz S-Class. But that was before the Lexus LS came along, the Infiniti Q45 came and went, when Jaguar’s XJ was still a tight fit (and an unreliable one at that) and the Maserati Quattroporte didn’t really factor into the equation. Don’t even get us started on underdogs like the Volkswagen Phaeton and Hyundai Equus, but you get the point. Volvo recently became the latest rumored to be joining the fold, and now it looks like Cadillac could as well.

Substantiating earlier reports, the latest batch indicate that the call for a fullsize Caddy to battle the German stalwarts came right from the top, from GM CEO Ed Whitacre. And why shouldn’t it? After all, if the head of one of the largest corporations in the world needs a new ride, he shouldn’t have to look to a competitor like his Japanese counterpart Toyoda-san was spotted doing.

Cadillac CTS-V Coupe is angular, unhinged glory

We’ve already discussed the complete, audacious beauty that is the 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe. Not only is it one of the most attractive designs to come out of General Motors in decades, but it’s arguably one of the best-looking vehicles on the road today, proving that Cadillac (and GM, for that matter) is once again capable of delivering world-class designs.

Sexy? Yes. But can she cook?

We don’t have many complaints about the 304-horsepower, direct-injection 3.6-liter V6 found under the hood of the standard Coupe. It certainly means well and does a good enough job of keeping the CTS experience entertaining, but we’d be liars if we didn’t say we’d rather have a powerplant with a few more stones – 252 more, to be exact.

Enter the 2011 Cadillac CTS-V Coupe. It has a supercharged V8 that makes 556 horsepower. It comes with a six-speed manual transmission as standard equipment. It’s under $65,000. Not only that, but the largercojones found on the V sedan are translated into the coupe’s styling, making for a car that’s at once audacious and vicious, with a beating heart of total lunacy.

In the late 1990s, General Motors gave us the Opel-derived bar of soap known as the Cadillac Catera, telling us that it was “The Caddy That Zigs.” But the Catera is long gone (good riddance) and we’ve found a candidate that’s more worthy of carrying on that short-lived tagline. Take your blood pressure medicine, folks – the CTS-V Coupe is here. And it does a lot more than simply zig or zag – it utterly dominates the high-powered sports coupe segment.

Cadillac CTS Coupe headed to dealers ahead of schedule

When we had our first shot at the 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe, we described it as “audacity in motion.” After all, the new Caddy coupe is indeed one of the most attractive designs to come out of General Motors in quite some time.

In an effort to get these hot new two-plus-twos out on the road as soon as possible, Cadillac is ramping up production of the CTS Coupe a bit early, and the first few models are starting to roll off of assembly lines at GM’s Lansing Grand River assembly plant. Pricing starts at $38,990 for the base, rear-wheel-drive model, which will be joined by the pavement-bending CTS-V Coupe later this year.

Check out the sexy new CTS Coupe for yourself in the gallery below, and hit the jump to read Cadillac’s press release.

2011 Cadillac CTS and CTS-V Coupe priced at $38,990, $62,990

Pricing for the Cadillac CTS Coupe and it’s V-equipped sibling has been released, and the standard two-door is priced at $38,990 while the 556-horsepower, 6.2-liter V8 version reportedly comes in at $62,990.

We’ve contacted General Motors for confirmation and more information, so stay tuned.

Cadillac XTS Platinum Concept: Videos and Live Shots from Detroit Show

Making its world premiere at the Detroit motor show alongside the 556HP Cadillac CST-V Coupe, is the XTS Platinum Concept. GM calls it a concept model, but the 203.5 inches (5,170mm) long XTS is expected to heavily influence Cadillac’s upcoming flagship sedan that will replace the DTS, and quite possibly, the STS also.

The full-size sedan, which most likely shares the vehicle platform with the 2010 Buick LaCrosse, keeps all the usual styling cues of modern Cadillacs such as the sharp creases and vertical lights.

The concept’s interior blends leather, wood and other high quality materials with modern technology like the Organic Light-Emitting Diode (O-LED) displays that replace the traditional gauges and screens.

Under the Caddy’s bonnet is GM’s 3.6-liter V6 engine with direct-injection plus a plug-in hybrid system that deliver a combined output of 350HP and 295 lb-ft of torque.

Cadillac XTS Platinum Concept Foretells DTS Replacement

Meet the Cadillac XTS Platinum Concept that made its world debut at the 2010 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Officially, the XTS is just a design study that showcases Cadillac’s emerging top-of-the-line Platinum series of models, but unofficially, it previews the Detroit firm’s DTS replacement in the full-size sedan segment that’s pegged make its way onto the market by 2012.

General Motors did not say which platform the concept is based on, but judging from the XTS’ wheelbase length of 111.7 inches or 2,837mm that is identical to the new Buick LaCrosse, we’d say that it rides on a modified version of the Epsilon II.

Even though it shares the same wheelbase with the LaCrosse, the XTS is 6.6 inches longer at 203.5 inches (5,170mm) and 1.7 inches wider at 74.8 inches (1,900mm).

You may have noticed that we haven’t said anything about the XTS’ exterior design. That’s because we can’t decide if we find it elegant or boring. We’re probably leaning towards the second, but feel free to tell us what you think in the comment section below.

The concept’s interior is a bit more intriguing style-wise, but nothing groundbreaking – or at least not for anyone under the age of 50…

Moving on the XTS Platinum concept’s hardware, Cadillac fitted the full-size sedan with a plug-in hybrid electric propulsion system (PHEV). It combines a direct-injection V6 petrol engine and electric motors to drive all-four wheels. The system delivers an estimated output of 350 horsepower (260 kW) and 295 lb.-ft. of torque (400 Nm).

CADILLAC XTS PLATINUM CONCEPT SPECIFICATIONS

Vehicle type:

luxury sedan concept

Wheelbase (in / mm):

111.7 / 2837

Length (in / mm):

203.5 / 5170

Width (in / mm):

74.8 / 1900

Height (in / mm):

59.1 / 1500

Track (in / mm):

62.6 / 1589 (front); 62.8 / 1594 (rear)

Powertrain:

plug-in hybrid system with 3.6L Direct Injection gas engine (with variable valve timing); lithium ion battery

Suspension:

four-wheel independent with Magnetic Ride Control.

Brakes:

four-wheel disc with electric park brake system

Wheels:

20-in front / 20-in rear

Estimated power:

350 hp (260 kW) / 295 lb.-ft. (400 Nm)

Cadillac CTS-V Coupe with 556HP Supercharged V8 Unveiled Ahead of Detroit Show

This here is the ultimate iteration of Cadillac’s brand-new CTS Coupe and it will make its first public outing at next week’s 2010 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. To the surprise of no one, the CTS-V Coupe packs the same 6.2-liter supercharged V8 engine found in the sedan version. It produces a hefty 556-horsepower and 551 lb.-ft. of torque (747 Nm) propelling the 2+2 coupe from 0-60 mph (96km/h) in just 3.9 seconds.

Potential buyers will have the choice of a six-speed manual gearbox or a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle-shift control, which transfer power to the rear wheels through a limited slip differential.

The V-spec model also gets Cadillac’s Magnetic Ride Control with two selectable modes (Tour and Sport) and Brembo brakes with six-piston calipers in the front and four-piston calipers in the rear.

Cadillac says that the Coupe has the same wheelbase as the CTS-V Sport Sedan, but its overall height is about two inches (51 mm) lower and its overall length is two inches (51 mm) shorter while the rear track is nearly an inch wider than the four-door model.

Visually, the CTS-V Coupe is identified by its bulged hood, specific front and rear fascias, and unique 19-inch alloy wheels wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 rubber.

There are no pictures of the interior, but Cadillac said that the steering wheel, seat inserts and shifter are covered in microfiber while the integrated center stack is trimmed in Obsidian black material that is also applied to the center console and door trim.

Available options will include an exclusive new Saffron color and special Recaro sport seats that are 14-way adjustable and include pneumatic bolster controls in the seat cushions and backrests.

We’ll have more on the CTS-V Coupe after its official debut at the Detroit motor show next week.

2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe: First Official Photos of GM's BMW 3-Series Coupe Rival

This here is the production version of Cadillac’s 2008 CT Coupe Concept that will be revealed at next month’s Los Angeles Auto Show. The first Cadillac coupe in almost two decades features a classic 2+2 seating layout and is slated to arrive in U.S. showrooms in the spring of 2010. The most obvious rivals for the 2011 CTS Coupe are the BMW 3-Series Coupe along with the new Audi A5 Coupe, Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe and the Infiniti G37 Coupe.

The coupe has the same wheelbase as the CTS, but an overall height that is approximately two inches (51 mm) lower and an overall length that is two inches (51 mm) shorter.

According to Cadillac, even though the Coupe is based on the CTS sedan, it shares only the instrument panel, console, headlamps, front fenders and grille with four-door model.

At launch, the 2011 CTS Coupe will be offered with GM’s direct injected 3.6-liter V6 engine that produces 304 horsepower and offers an EPA-estimated fuel economy of 27 mpg on the highway.

The V6 engine is coupled to a standard 6-speed manual gearbox with an automatic transmission with Driver Shift Control and available steering wheel mounted shift buttons offered as an option. It will also come with rear- or all-wheel drive.

According to a previous announcement from GM, the CTS Coupe V6 will be joined in the near future by a range topping “V” model boasting the same 556-horsepower 6.2-liter supercharged V8 found on the CTS-V Sedan.

The CTS Coupe’s hardware includes an independent short/long arm (SLA) front suspension system, with hydraulic control arm front bushings, and a multi-link rear suspension. Also included are four-wheel disc performance brakes, a limited-slip differential and GM’s electronic chassis control system (StabiliTrak).

There are no pictures of the interior but Cadillac says that features include hand-sewn accents covering the door, center storage console and instrument panel trim as well as several techno goodies such as the 40GB hard drive, pop-up navigation system, rear camera and Bluetooth connectivity.

The option list will include a set of 14-way adjustable Recaro sport seats that were previously exclusively offered on Cadillac’s V-Series model

We’ll have more on the CTS Coupe at the LA Auto Show in December.