There’s a product drought coming to Cadillac dealers, and the earth will stay scorched a good two years.
After the recent introduction of the XT5 crossover and CT6 sedan, buyers will have to wait until mid-2018 before the next new model arrives, according to a product update published in Automotive News. Dealers can use the time to learn Cadillac’s new model name strategy, which stays stubbornly alphanumeric.
The first new model to trundle along is the XTC XT3 compact crossover, which sounds like a club drug or rocket-powered space plane. That crossover, built in Kansas City, bows as a 2019 model and fills an important product gap in Cadillac’s lineup.
Also in 2018, expect new names to find their way onto older models. The ATS magically transforms into the CT4 after the sedan receives a redesign later that year. (A refreshed coupe will follow later.) The CTS gets its own redesign and renaming (CT5) in early 2019, with a coupe version on the way for 2020.
The CT6 gains a plug-in hybrid version next year and should see a design refresh in 2019. The brand’s previous flagship sedan, the front-wheel-drive XTS, won’t live to see the end of the decade, but should stick around until 2019.
Changes to the Escalade are few. A 10-speed automatic transmission should arrive next year, with a design refresh the year after. Expect the XT5 to get a facelift by 2018, and a new turbo 2.0-liter base engine.
The next new product after the XT3 is the XT7, a larger crossover built on a stretched XT5 that arrives in late 2019. A XT2 subcompact crossover should see the light of day in 2020. A rumored mid-engine sports car based on the rumored mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette remains, well, just that.
If you’re seeing a trend with these new models, it isn’t your imagination. Crossovers and SUVs sell, and Cadillac isn’t exactly overwhelmed with demand for its sedan-heavy lineup. So, utility is the name of the game. That means once-anticipated products like the CT8 flagship sedan and CT3 entry-level sedan will collect cobwebs until buyers’ attitudes change.
[Image: General Motors]
Not really interested in a CT3, as the ATS/CT4 is already as small as anyone could possibly want a Cadillac sedan to be (especially in the back!) The CT4 would also be more appealing with an upgraded interior and, most important, lower MSRPs.
I do hope they get rid of the XTS soon. It’s sold well, the interior is lovely, and the V-Sport model is legit fast, but it was only ever meant to be a placeholder, and it’s awkward-looking.
Now that the new, bigger CTS and CT6 are around, hopefully it can saunter off to Cimmaronia soon.
I’m surprised with the unveiling of the new GMC Acadia that Cadillac won’t be getting a crossover to split the size difference between the XT5 and Escalade, nor is a smaller CUV coming soon, but the XT5 and Escalade should be enough to keep sales respectable.
“I’m surprised with the unveiling of the new GMC Acadia that Cadillac won’t be getting a crossover to split the size difference between the XT5 and Escalade, nor is a smaller CUV coming soon, but the XT5 and Escalade should be enough to keep sales respectable.”
But…they are. The article mentions an XT7 (which would sit between the XT5 and Escalade, probably being a little roomier, in fact, than the standard SWB Escalade because of the Escalade’s live rear axle). It also mentions a compact XT3 and even a subcompact XT2. Given that the XT5 just seems to have jumped substantially in price versus its SRX predecesor, I think there’s definitely room for at least one small crossover below it.
“the CT6 gains a plug-in hybrid version next year” WHY?
“A rumored mid-engine sports car based on the rumored mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette remains, well, just that.” We all know how the XLR did – 15k copies over *9* years’ time.
This story is raw meat for DeadWeight; I want to hear his thoughts.
Why a CT6 plugin hybrid? China.
They love long, chauffeur-driven sedans. A hybrid makes perfect sense for them because they spend most of their time in gridlock. No need to run a gas engine just for the AC and to go forward a few feet at a time.
China is the reason why GM does everything these days, except pickups.
Nice observation about GM and China.
Come home, DW…we miss you.
I went to Cadillac House last week. The website said 7a – 7p. I showed up at 10:30a, the right time for a coffee house. The front gate was locked, but a/c streamed out to the sidewalk. This isn’t allowed in NYC. Closed. There was a 50’s car in the front, and nothing else.
Cadillac house is clearly a party space for the new NYC execs. It is a large play for NYC real estate-custom building and renovation in an up and coming area, but off the subway system.
If you aren’t open, put it on the web….morons. GM spent a LOT of money on a vanity play here.
Thanks for the boots-on-the-ground report!
Because emissions requirements aren’t dying even though Caddy’s traditional brand-captive base is?
ANYTHING that Cadillac is doing right now that takes away from their Crossover/ Fullsize SUV sales is probably wasted effort. The entire industry is talking about the death of the traditional sedan, and the take rate on the ATS is telling.
BMW, MB, Audi have made it impossible for Cadillac to compete. The Germans have global volume, so they can make money on ‘niche’ cars like the 7 Series/A8/S, M-cars/RS/AMG, i3/etron, etc. that sell in small volume in the States, but when added with volume from Europe, Asia, etc. they do enough global sales to make money. Cadillac doesn’t exist in Europe, which is why it doesn’t have any diesels to compete with the Germans, it doesn’t do enough volume in China to afford developing V-12s and a real S-Class type flagship. The Germans have something for every niche from green mobile to autobahn scorcher, and Cadillac just can’t make a business case for most of them – and Lexus, Acura, Jaguar, etc. are not in much better positions.
I completely agree, but RenCen just doesn’t want to see the writing on the wall.
Sounds like Cadillac should stick to what it does best and go all-in on the Escalade.
Pch has suggested something along those lines in the past, he may be right. Cadillac’s main issue in implementing this is it’s 933 dealers. RenCen is essentially trying to create an entirely unique distribution channel for Cadillac vs Chev/Buick in order to satisfy those dealers and expand abroad. Maybe they will prove me wrong but I don’t think its going to work unless there is a *major* shake up in the industry. The German marques can afford to undercut Cadillac as stingray65 points out, and I imagine will do so if they feel threatened.
If Wayne Gretzky was an auto analyst, then he might say that GM is skating to where the puck used to be about 5-10 years ago instead of where it will be. That part of the rink is going to be pretty lonely.
You really can’t lump Lexus in with Acura, Jag, and Cadillac.
If things are that dire for Cadillac, then it’s that much worse for the Japanese lux brands, esp. for non-entry level sedans.
As for China, Cadillac sales have been growing at a significant rate.
Sure, they’re not going to catch the Germans any time soon on the sales front, but that’s largely a by-product of having a lack of products, esp. crossovers.
The previous decision-makers at Cadillac really messed up by (1) making the Alpha platform too small/space inefficient and (2) not expanding Cadillac’s crossover lineup any sooner (part of that going back to the Alpha platform being unsuitable for crossover-duty).
Met a Caddy salesman with 20 yrs experience who told me his older customers wont touch the product with a 10 foot pole now, due to its over complicated infotainment system and even the shifter in some of the latest models. Especially the shifter, cause the info stuff they just can’t leave it alone and not bother with it.
Alienating the existing customer base is a GM hallmark.
I wonder what they buy, then. Every luxury car is buried under all the dashboard tech.
Depends on how old they happen to be. Deville customers will probably be unhappy, but even the Sigma CTS/STS were better in this regard.
My 82 yo FIL just had his CTS destroyed by a kid in a Vette. He wants another one. I dread having to teach CUE to this computer illiterate. I may be safe, he probably won’t get past the 4 cylinder thing.
agree with corollaman’s friends. CUE is a frigging nightmare. 3-4 touch commands to change a/c setting. wont buy one. no way. govna.
2) Yeah- wait a minute. Oh No. What has happened to Deadweight? Was he banned & outcast????? Have not read his observations on a long time. Important voice in this forum.
He was sent to the cornfield, and apparently decided he liked it there better. Just as well, he was stuck on his anti-Cadillac schtick and had pretty well worn it threadbare.
The mods have said he was only banned for a weekend, but has chosen not to come back.
He told me the GM fans turn to Buick or even Chevrolet, those who are not turn to Avalon and such!
Whoever does product planning for Cadillac should be fired. Why wasn’t the XT3 being RUSHED to market? Since it will be based on the ATS platform, why is going to take TWO MORE YEARS before it hits? This is one of the hottest market segments in the industry, and Cadillac’s entry is still years away. And why has it taken them so long to place an SUV below the Escalade, and above the XT5? A no brainer.
Historically when Cadillac rushes things to market, it tends to be a disaster.
V8-6-4
4100
Northstar
Cimmaron
and so on.
If they’re taking the time to get it right,okay.
If they blew their development budget on opening Cadillac store in NYC…
Complete whiz away of big bucks. Saw it in person. Nowhere West Village, cost no object renovation.
You went there and didn’t take pics!?
Yeah, because the same engineers who were working there in the ’70s and ’80s are all still there.
Don’t be silly. They’re younger now, and make much less money.
And they do what their bosses tell them to.
The XT3 is already 5 year overdue. What is another 3 years at this point?
The XT3 won’t be based on the Alpha platform as the Alpha is unsuitable for crossover duty.
If there is to be a Cadillac RWD crossover, it would have to be on the Omega platform – of which there has been talk (which since has died down).
Beside the XT7, which will be on the LWB Chi platform, Cadillac really needs to do a sportier and more luxurious CUV based on the Omega.
Well I give Caddy points for having plenty of SUV’s in their upcoming lineup, one thing I am not sure about is how are the last 5 years of caddy holding up repair wise , are they more towards lexus or MB?
My personal experience with a series of Cadillacs since 2006 is incidence of repair is considerably lower than what my peer group has experienced with any of the Germans, and on par with Lexus. Can’t say about Escalade, as I’ve never owned one, but the series of V cars, ATS, SRX Turbo and ELR have been eminently reliable for me, with no service costs to speak of even after warranty.
Phil
If you’ve owned four of them in ten years, that’s only roughly 2.5 years of ownership per vehicle. I’d be more interested in reliability marks of one on say the seventh year of ownership/84K miles period (12K per year avg).
A family friend of ours has a 2006 STS-V (4.4-liter supercharged Northstar V8 making 469 HP or thereabouts), and it has been quite reliable. She’s had it since 2010.
Cadillac did get the Northstar sorted by 2004-ish, where it saw its final era of products (DTS, STS, SRX, XLR, Lucerne). The CTS, which has always used the corporate V6 and (in V guise) LS-block V8s, has above-average reliability records, as does the FWD-based (and now-departed) SRX and the XTS. Both of those are parts-bin cars, and they tend to be as reliable as anything else on the road. I can’t imagine the Escalade being much trouble, either…although there have been complaints about panel fitment and wind noise on the new K2XX-based ones (2015 and later).
Where Cadillac struggles is in the nightmare that is CUE, although both the CT6 and the new XT5 seem to have an improved version of it, with less shiny, fingerprint-prone plastic to boot.
I’d say that a Cadillac is probably a better gamble than an Audi or BMW, but GM in general tends to cut corners in surprising ways.
My 2010 CTS has so far eaten an alternator at 80k, I replaced the shocks with FE 3, and did front brakes. Not bad so far, less than my 3 series. Working on the Cad vs the BMW, the Cad is way easier to fix, less special tools, and set up for Goober to fix, not Hans with six years of auto repair apprenticeship and a perfect shop. Works well for this hack mechanic. Suspension bits tend to last longer, save the shocks themselves. I’m still convinced that the FE3 settings are what the engineers came up with, and the 2 and 1 settings what marketers came up with. The car was transformed when I went from FE2 to FE3-and like how I’d not buy BMW without sport suspension, I’d not buy Caddy without FE3
My dad has leased 4 CTS over the years. This last one(CTS V Sport) has been a nightmare. On third rear differential. The stereo/nav system has failed twice. His lease is up in the fall, and his dealer called him. My dad said he was getting a Lexus this time. The dealer keep calling back offering lower and lower prices on a CT6 lease. He still said he is going to get a Lexus.
He’s not interested in any Lincolns?
I wouldn’t avoid Cadillacs due to reliability concerns. Even the Northstar time-bomb is less money to fix these days than some of the larger (but still relatively common) stuff on German cars of the same age.
My big problem with current Cadillac is that their products are about $10K-$20K overpriced, you can’t get a V8 for under $75K, and the tactile quality (and detail-sweating) still just isn’t there.
I had finally had a chance to check out someone’s CT6 on Monday. It wasn’t a *bad* car and the Panaray impresses the Plebs like me. However, panel and trim alignment was about equal to that of my much, much cheaper Dodge and overall it felt like something that competes against the K900, Q70L, MKS, or even 300C Platinum instead of in the $60K+ mega-class.
The XT5, in particular has a unique shifter for the brand, sort of like the Jeep that killed Chekov. This push button park thing is a travesty, it should be banned.
“unique shifter for the brand”
Evidently stupid comes standard in all XT5 trims.
At least the XT5 is available with AWD for the low low price of $9,000.
Wasn’t the Buick Verano cancelled so Cadillac dealers could have a Cimmaron, I mean CT3, to help make up volume?
Also, what is taking GM so long with the next generation of crossovers?
“what is taking GM so long ” They are incompetent. Haven’t you been paying attention the last 60 years?
Once Cadillac’s planners developed the Alpha platform so that it was unsuitable for crossover duty, Cadillac’s crossover lineup had to be based on GM’s FWD crossover platform and had to wait until the new platform (Chi) was ready (which GM just started to roll out with the XT5 and the new Acadia being next).
“the XT3 compact crossover, which sounds like a club drug”
My favorite terrible Cadillac alphabet soup name is DTS. What genius decided that a term for alcohol withdrawal would make a great name for a luxury car?
@sloomis
The DTS name dates to about 1990 and was the name of the special touring trim introduced for Deville.
It became the actual model name for the DeVille after Cadillac transitioned to alphanumeric names and stuck around until a few years ago, didn’t it? I know it’s no longer produced, but it’s still a memorably terrible name.
You are correct on all counts.
The same one who came up with Etcetera for a car that is supposed to show your special and unique nature.
the last caddie I bought was a 98 seville.great car except the seats were hard trying to be like the germans. every time I drive a new one its the same story.you would think that a company that is in touch with its customer base would at least provide an alternative. you want to be a sport you get hard seats. you want to be touring, you get soft seats. is this so complicated? I don’t even bother looking any more.
if the Volvo wasn’t so expensive I’d be driving one. most comfortable seats in the business.
So just in time for Audi to be rolling out its second gen (presumably fully modernized) Q3 and second Q5, and for Mercedes and BMW to be working on their second GLA, and THIRD X1 and X3.
I remain astonished at the utter cluelessness of this company. How is it that LINCOLN of all brands is already competing in this space, and Cadillac just can’t be bothered? It’s almost as if they purposefully do not want to sell any cars. Maybe they should just give up entirely, and just sell coffee.
I tried to buy coffee, but they were closed :)
Wait, so let me get this straight…
Caddy is replacing all of their alphabet soup model names with alphanumeric soup model names, EXCEPT for the Escalade?
FFS Cadillac, be consistent or something.
Agreed.
Their SUV lineup should be Cadillac Escalade 3, Escalade 5, Escalade 7, etc.
Their cars can be the Cadillac Escalade A, Escalade B, Escalade C, etc.
Would probably boost sales.
But they are competing with Lincoln to win the alphabet soup random letter contest.