Archive for April, 2012
Cadillac XTS MSRP Announced
April 28, 2012 - 12:11 pmThe Cadillac XTS will go on sale in May with a base MSRP of $44995 including destination charge. While the XTS replaces the outgoing STS and DTS in the lineup, it’s price matches the starting point of the BMW 5 series with room inside similar to the BMW 7 series.
Not that anyone will really cross shop a BMW sports sedan if they are looking for the more traditional front-drive luxury that the Cadillac XTS offers.
XTS is based on the same Epsilon II platform as the Buick Lacrosse and will similarly be available in front and all-wheel drive. XTS will also be the first Cadillac with the Cadillac User Experience (CUE) infotainment system.
In order to familiarize dealers and potential customers with the CUE interface, Cadillac will publish an iPad application to the App Store when the XTS goes on sale to simulate the interface and help familiarize customers as well as dealer staff.
Additionally, the XTS will debut Cadillac’s new safety technology suite that features vibrating seats (to notify of not only a hazard but also the direction to the hazard), collision detection, radar-based cruise control, as well as lane departure warning.
The Cadillac XTS debuted as a concept car in 2010 at the Detroit auto show and then as a production model at the Los Angeles auto show in 2011. The XTS will be powered, at launch, by Cadillac’s 3.6l direct-injection V-6 routed through a 6-speed automatic. Manufacture of the Cadillac XTS will begin soon at GM’s Oshawa Assembly Plant in Ontario, Canada.
Front-to-Back CTS Ad is Real
April 27, 2012 - 6:00 amXTS Sized for Foursomes
April 26, 2012 - 8:00 amAs expected of the latest big Cadillac, the 2013 Cadillac XTS packs the room buyers expect with room for 4 grown adults and their full-sized golf bags.
Designed with Cadillac owners’ priorities in mind, the 2013 Cadillac XTS has the room inside for all the things that buyers said they needed to carry. This included a myriad of items from groceries, to luggage, to recreational equipment in the trunk and personal items like phones up front. This drove the design of the XTS’ trunk and interior storage bins including the compartment hidden behind the center console’s motorized, flip-up front face.
Read on for the press release:
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2013 Cadillac XTS First to Use Next-Generation A/C Refrigerant
April 25, 2012 - 8:07 pmCadillac XTS is being used to debut the latest technologies GM has to offer. One more is the first use in the US market of R-1234yf refrigerant. Mandated in Europe since January 2011, the XTS will be the first US product to make the switch.
R-1234yf will slowly replace R-134a (which became standard in cars in 1994) in automotive applications. The reason for this change is to reduce the ‘global warming potential’ vs the current substance. In fact, the new chemical has a GWP number 335 times less than R-134a.
In addition to the XTS, Cadillac will also equip the new ATS with R-1234yf when it goes on sale in the summer.
Source: Green Car Reports
Cadillac shows ‘Super Cruise’ automated driving technology
April 20, 2012 - 6:21 pmCadillac announced today their work on autonomous (self-driving) vehicles with a technology they are calling ‘Super Cruise’.
The technology builds on the suite of safety systems announced for the new XTS and ATS by adding capabilities like lane self-centering and automatic steering that would, when combined with existing technologies like lane departure warning, GPS map data, as well as forward looking radar and ultrasonic systems to provide the ability for a future Cadillac to drive itself in situations such as freeway cruising as well as in bumper-to-bumper traffic.
Cadillac has suggested this system could debut by mid-decade, which happens to coincide with when we expect to see a BMW 7-Series and Mercedes S-Class competitor styled to look like the Cadillac Ciel concept.
While this capability would ease driver workload during long trips or in stop-and-go, but it is important to realize the driver would need to be ready, when prompted by the system, to take over and…you know…actually drive.
XTS Lighting Overview
April 3, 2012 - 2:30 pmAs part of designing and differentiating the new 2013 XTS, Cadillac has put quite a bit of effort into making the car distinctive and welcoming to the driver through the use of lighting design.
The designers refer to the sequence played out by the light sources as ‘choreographed’ in a way to greet the owner as he or she approaches the car.
Unique Cadillac signatures we have seen before include the vertical light-pipe elements at front and rear, but new with the XTS are illuminated door handles (something we will also see on the new ATS).
Inside, the signature ambient light elements ring the cabin with extra thought for the XTS going into adding theater-like sequences to brighten or dim the cabin as needed while minimizing distraction and coordinating with the new CUE infotainment screens. Warmer colors are used for passenger areas while cooler lighting is used for control touch-points.
See below for a video the designers discussing the design and what they were trying to accomplish in the XTS.
XTS named Connected Car of the Year
April 3, 2012 - 6:30 am
Connected World magazine has bestowed their Connected Car of the Year award (Luxury) on the upcoming Cadillac XTS.
Available in late Spring/early Summer 2012 as a 2013 model, the XTS brings the advanced infotainment features of the CUE system as well as a network of safety cameras, radar and ultrasonic sensors to bolster driver vision and awareness of road hazards even acting on the driver’s behalf to stop the car before a collision can take place.
Source: Connected World
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