Inside Line - Cadillac's product plans

Edmunds Inside Line got a chance to talk to Cadillac General Manager Jim Taylor about Cadillac's future product plans. It appears that work is progressing on both a sub-SRX crossover SUV (tentatively referred to as the BRX) as well as a 2nd gen BLS that just might be made available in the US. (Autoweek is also reporting on this story and say that the BLS has been eliminated from the future US product mix due to how close its price would come to the CTS though Inside Line only says that the BLS will come here if the price is right). Expect that the 2nd Generation BLS will have available all-wheel drive for the first time and that a US version would almost certainly come standard with this drivetrain as well as a 2.8l VVT V-6. The 'BRX' is expected to be V-6 powered as well and based on an updated version of the Theta chassis that currently underpins the Chevy Equinox, Pontiac Torrent, new Suzuki XL-7, and the Saturn VUE. A Cadillac version could bow as soon as 2008 as a 2009 model and would have all the upgrades needed to compete head-to-head with the BMW X3 and upcoming small SUV's from Mercedes and Audi. One interesting tidbit from both the Inside Line and Autoweek articles are that the ultra-Cadillac sedan has been put on the back burner. A move I'd have to agree with since Cadillac still has not fully fleshed out their mainstream luxury lineup to compete against the smaller, higher volume, and more profitable offerings from their competition. An uber-sedan might make the Cadillac execs feel good, but they won't bring in the profits that Cadillac needs to develop even more models. Other product tidbits: The current DTS may be the last of the large, front-drive Cadillacs and will be cancelled at the end of its run, depending on how sales hold up and if a front-drive Cadillac is still considered an asset to the brand in a few years. XLR should get a styling tweak for the 09 model year with a full replacement in 2011. CTS should get its coupe variant and the new CTS-V a year or so after the launch of the new CTS sedan as a 2008 model. SRX is up in the air at this point. If BRX steals a significant number of buyers, Cadillac may drop the model in 2011/2012. If kept, it might move from the expensive Sigma chassis (shared with CTS and STS) to the less expensive 'global rear-drive' platform developed in Australia in order to improve margins or otherwise keep it in the line at its lower volumes. Read all about it at: IL Insider: Cadillac Eyes Smaller Crossover, Compact Sedan for U.S.Autoweek: Future Products — Cadillac