Archive for the 'BRX / BTX' category
A BRX by any other name
July 9, 2007 - 8:18 amMotorTrend.com has an article where they detail what they are calling the 2011 SRX.
Given the vehicle is stated to move from the SRX’s Sigma architecture (shared with the CTS and STS) in favor of a version of the Epsilon chassis that will be shared with a new Saab crossover (the 9-4). This sounds much more like the rumored BRX that MotorTrend itself is responsible for starting talk about several months ago.
Given what the competition has shown, Cadillac could easily re-work the SRX as a big brother to the BMW X3 fighting BRX while maintaining the Escalade as competition for vehicles like the Range Rover and the Mercedes GL series. The BRX would have 5-passenger seating, the SRX and Escalade would fight it out in the mid-to-large, 3-row seating segments.
If the 2011 model year is correct, expect to see the new small crossover debut in 2009 at one of the major auto shows and go on sale sometime in 2010.
MotorTrend.com: Cadillac SRX set for 2011 update
Why the SRX is failing
May 16, 2007 - 10:02 amFrom the news and rumors circulating lately…we can see the writing on the wall. The SRX is not going to be with us for much longer.
This got me wondering exactly what failed with the SRX – a vehicle that has received critical acclaim while not really selling anywhere near the numbers that Cadillac or the press might have expected.
I think it comes down to it being the wrong kind of cross-over (which can be forgiven since the segment was brand new when the SRX debuted). Consumers seem to want their cross-overs to be more efficient and better driving SUVs. As such, they want that SUV macho look even if it is really a car underneath.
In the case of the SRX, we have an SUV that looks too much like a car/wagon. So, SUV buyers rejected it as being too much of a car while car buyers rejected it as not being enough of a car.
Expect the replacement of the SRX in the form of both a CTS wagon and a new BRX cross-over. The CTS will appeal to luxury buyers who like their utility in a car package while the BRX is very likely to err more on the SUV/truck side of the cross-over continuum with more masculine styling.
We expect the BRX to sell much better than the SRX while the CTS wagon will do well in Europe and get incremental sales in the US – all for very little investment from Cadillac.
Where have I heard this before? - RWD plans for Cadillac
May 7, 2007 - 12:51 pm
GM Inside News is reporting on information they have from GM insiders as to GM and Cadillac’s future rear-drive plans.
Of note for us Cadillac fans:
BLS will debut on the Alpha platform in early 2011 as a 2012 model in rear and all-wheel drive and will be targeted in size and mission directly against the BMW 3-series.
What? Isn’t the CTS supposed to be Cadillac’s 3-series (if slightly larger) competitor? Not anymore.
In 2010, Cadillac will make a significant refresh of the new CTS to move it upmarket to 5-series territory.
What? What does that mean for the STS? Well, at about this time, Cadillac will discontinue the STS to make room for this re-positioning of the CTS.
Expect the 3rd generation CTS to bow in 2012 as a 2013 and leave the Sigma chassis behind in favor of a version of the Zeta platform.
Other significant product additions include a CTS coupe and wagon around 2009, a small utility (BRX) that will take parts from the Epsilon and Theta chassis. The CTS wagon and BRX will make the SRX redundant and expect it to leave the lineup in the 2009-2010 time frame.
BRX will have a short life before being redesigned early in the next decade on the new Alpha chassis (and making the first BRX a short-lived excursion from Cadillac’s all-rear drive/all the time strategy).
While not mentioned in this piece, we also have heard many times that Cadillac is chomping at the bit for a large off-shoot of Zeta to fill-in the top of the line and give the brand a viable competitor for the BMW 7-series and Mercedes S-class, and expected to have V-12 power (at least as an option).
Read all about it at:
GMI: A Future Glimpse of GM’s RWD Plans
Edmunds recaps Cadillac future product plans
March 29, 2007 - 2:01 pmEdmunds’ Inside Line sub-site decided recently to give a run-down of all the latest rumors of Cadillac’s future products. Lots of this isn’t really news to regulars of the Caddy Edge – but it might be interesting to put all of this in one post for future reference.
I’ll put the abbreviated version here – if you want more commentary you can check out the link to their post below…
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Gasp! - Cadillac to build CTS coupe?! Who’d have thunk it?
August 28, 2006 - 7:54 am
Imagine my surprise when I heard this morning that Automotive News was reporting that Cadillac is considering to build a Coupe version of the next CTS?
Come on guys, we’ve been talking about that one over here for months.
Now, what we had not heard before was a the suggestion that there might be a new crossover built on the new CTS. There is no clarification as to if this might be a new SRX, SRX replacement, alternative to the rumored Theta-based BRX, or an ‘Outback’-ish version of a rumored CTS wagon.
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