“One of Cadillac’s most anticipated models is being delayed one year.” Automotive News [sub] breaks the story- and stretches the limits of credulity. Anticipated by whom? The luxury coupe market is a niche within a niche. And to this blogger’s jaundiced eye, the CTS Coupe is hideously overwrought (which probably means it would have been a hit). GM spinmeiser Joanna Krell says the CTS two-door will now appear in summer 2010. Meanwhile, Cadillac really needs to concentrate on flogging the new CTS Wagon, apparently. Oh, and the next gen SRX, which is about as brand faithful as you’d expect for a vehicle that’s so not an Escalade it Hertz. Not to mention the fact that GM may not exist per se in one year. Or that this “postponement” is just another example of GM’s on-again, off-again, on-again, off-again product planning. “Selected journalists were shown the 2010 CTS coupe last August at a private party held in conjunction with the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California. At that time, the car was scheduled to debut in November at the Los Angeles auto show. In early November that plan was canceled, and the car’s debut was postponed indefinitely.” Taxpayer-funded chaos.
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They don’t even make sense anymore. They already delayed it and un-delayed it once.
Didn’t they do the same waffling with the Buick LaCrosse? Is that actually going to come out sometime soon?
Meanwhile, the Camaro is hyped more and more. I was tired of that thing 2 years ago, and I suspect a good amount of the populace is, too.
The 2010 Mustang is already on dealer lots.
Good because from the side view it looks repulsive bloated and ugly and curiously lacking with no door handles, moldings and those god aweful wheels. They can do much better than this!
Strange you should say this. The CTS-coupe has been called the best looking Cadillac in decades. Even those who don’t like the CTS like the coupe version.
These delays are all part of new GM. Don’t be surprised if the W-body Impala is around another 5 years, which is not a bad thing since it is the only GM car people are buying in any kind of numbers. Really, it is outselling the Malibu even if you count only retail sales.
Gah. That thing looks fat.. not “gang-stuh rap phat”, just FAT. If any photo of a car can be said to give the car an appearance of a J.Lo butt, this one can..
I like the CTS sedan quite a bit more than the coupe. The proportions on the rear of the coupe look really odd, though I admit that *is* just the concept and it *could* just be the angle the pic was taken at.
Fat like an Eldorado, which appeals to GM customers. They’ll probably spend more money with focus groups moving the Pontiac Torrent to GMC than they will on designing this car, which would sell.
I actually kind of like it – in a wretched excess 50’s Caddy sort of way.
Seriously – give it a monster V8 and put vestigal fins on it, and I think that it can be argued that it qualifies as a spiritual child of one of
Elvis’ cars.
As a good use of GM’s funds though – it was always going to be a loser. The money spent in developing that car could have been spent in improving the interiors of GM’s low end cars.
I like it,, ostentatious, capable and evil looking. Would I? No, I’d buy a 3-series. I think there’s a good case for this car though, more powerful than the bmw alternative, flashier than the (also gaudy) merc and (if the pattern repeats) far cheaper than it’s class competitors. If they’re going to be wishy-washy on such a solid offering (and one in a high-end, profit making segment no less) I don’t see what hope there is on the Cruze being shepherded through the market with any skill or talent.
Seriously – give it a monster V8 and put vestigal fins on it, and I think that it can be argued that it qualifies as a spiritual child of one of Elvis’ cars.
I think you’ve hit upon the real salvation for Detroit: a federal tax credit for buying a car with fins.
tedward :
“I don’t see what hope there is on the Cruze being shepherded through the market with any skill or talent.”
Here’s what bugs me about the Cruze. It’s already on the road in Korea as the Daewoo Lacetti. I’m trying to figure out how the Cruze won’t turn out to be just a larger Aveo and I’m coming up blank.
As for your comments regarding the CTS coupe, I agree as long as they can work on tweaking the rear a bit.
To all mentioning the Cruze above. I think they’re hideous. Me-too design, already looks 5 yrs old even though they haven’t had their debut.
Call me weird but I like recent Caddys. Except the biggest sedan one. Can’t recall the acronym and will not be bothered to look (I mean it’s been said before but who has time to remeber these letter games. Bring on some real names). Yeah, to each his own I guess, but I like this one. The sedan, too. Heck I even liked the Licoln C concept car! Don’t care for the Caddy’s wheels either though.
The Cruze will be crap, but the CTS coupe is a masterpiece.
My first sight of this car was in profile at Chicago last Feb.
My brain instantly pulled up as an ID “old Celica hatchback”. Except tubbier.
I actually like it a bit. First gen CTSs are starting to look “early 80’s minus bumpers” to me.
Cruze. Hmmm, can’t see it being any great big deal. IMO some are excited because they (once again) are grasping at any offered hope that GM will produce a good small car for the US market.
By the time it hits the US market we will have the next Gen from Honda and Hyundia and Maz and Toy (and others) will be close. By then the Cruze will be a snuze.
Bunter
Bunter1…
“some are excited because they (once again) are grasping at any offered hope that GM will produce a good small car for the US market”
That sir, is exactly correct. I’m torn between hoping that they pull it off and my growing expectation that what we get will end up as a sub-30mpg, auto-transmission only, Korea spec. suspension equiped crap-box. Sigh…
From that particular angle, that car looks pretty bad, like it’s down on the ground with its (well endowed) butt in the air. Aside from this angle the overall design is bi-polar; with a front cut out with lots of sharp edges and creases and a rear that was overinflated and smoothed out. As a whole it isn’t bad looking, it’s actually pretty good, just not great.
On a related note I’m not a fan of most modern Cadillac designs, and this is probably one of the best they have at the moment.
Luxury coupe is a niche market. Makes sense.
As far as design goes, every Infiniti is hideous and they sell quite well, and this is miles better than any Infiniti.
Then again, who knows what will happen to GM in 1 year so…whatever.
If it had a nice stick-shift and were a viable contender to a BMW 335i coupe then it would be “highly anticipated” by me! Alas, neither is likely to be true.
elloh7 said:
Gah. That thing looks fat.. not “gang-stuh rap phat”, just FAT. If any photo of a car can be said to give the car an appearance of a J.Lo butt, this one can..
Good analogy. In fact, I like both. But my wife wouldn’t allow me to touch either.
It would have been better if the front opening is a little smaller.
Art and science on steroids…I like it.
Really, I do.
Yeah, there’s a bit too much going on visually but I think it puts muscle into their theme. Haunching. Menacing.
Imagine it with AWD and a Corvette-sourced V8…goldarnit it’s a Cadillac now. What everyone has been on about for a long time. Cadillac = ostentatious Americanism expressed. Swagger. Attitude. Luxury with some punch. Charles Bronson in a tux.
Just do it already!
And yeah, it’s a niche market. But can it eat away a little market share from A5s and G-coupes and 3-coupes? I think so.
I would imagine that there’d be more volume in the new SRX however, and since GM can’t do everything right now, SRX wins. Which is too bad. It really is. Because SRX says everything Cadillac shouldn’t be while the CTScoupe is a great start in expressing everything Cadillac should.
“Anticipated by whom?”
EXACTLY. It’s one thing that this “Ahhht’n’ceinsss” style is fugly but the only Cadillac I could properly set the driver’s seat, wheel etc for myself is so far the STS, nothing else – and I’m just 6’2″ (189cm), not a center player in the NBA…
…who’s going to buy this ‘nother fugly Caddy? Some 5’2″ Madoff-type scammer?
Please, Madoff types would only buy Japanese. After all they want quality and reliability in their cars. :)
Some of the assumptions in this thread are quite bizarre (why on earth would Madoff buy a Cadillac, he’s an East Coast Rich Guy or was one, those people would die before they are seen in an American car).
However, it shows that US brands are severely damaged in the public’s view and at this point there’s a huge portion of the population who would believe anything bad you say about the US brands, which leads me to the point that US automakers are screwed beyond hope EVEN if they start making class-leading autos tomorrow.
That CTS Coupe looks like a breadvan. It’s got all of today’s styling cliches wrapped up in a high-waisted, gun-slitted-windows style that’s ugly and non-functional. Now if they’d made it a really good looking car, maybe with a foreshadowing of styling to come on the rest of the line-up in a couple of years, and maybe with true hardtop side windows they’d have had something to boast about. Now it’s just another box with its ass up in the air. Fugly!
Huh. The pic caused me to:
1. Google a pic of a Nissan Altima coupe
2. Compare the rear end on the Nissan with that of the Caddy
3. Decide maybe the Nissan doesn’t look as bloated as I initially thought.
Too bad because I think this car is a stunner.
In black it’ll look slimmer.
Cadillac. The Government’s car.
goddamnit
I have fuckin $15,000 in the bank for this car…goddamnit.
Madoff leased a Cadillac DTS, along with a Range Rover, MB S550, MB GL450, and an unnamed Lexus. Link