Top in Automotive: Cadillac XTS

Showing posts with label Cadillac XTS. Show all posts

Drop Top Customs Gets to Work on 2013 Cadillac XTS Convertible Sedan

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

If it rolls on four wheels, has a roof and it's made by Detroit, then Drop Top Customs will gladly turn your ride into a convertible, regardless of the number of doors.

Not too long after we brought you news on the Florida-based company's open top interpretations of the redesigned Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 sedans, Drop Top Customs released two images of a 2013 Cadillac XTS being stripped down in preparation of its transformation into a convertible.

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

The Dodge Dart compact is the first completely new product to come out of the Fiat-Chrysler alliance and it has just been tested by Consumer Reports (CR). While buyers don’t necessarily adhere to what the motoring press has to say, CR’s tests still command enough heft in the U.S. market to make a carmaker dread its verdict.

So, how did the Dart do? The good news is that CR, which tested two versions of the Dart, the US$20,680 2.0-liter SXT and the US$24,490 1.4-liter Rallye, praised their quiet cabin, nimble handling and taut yet compliant ride. The bad news is that, neither of them scored high enough to earn the coveted “recommended” tag.

“The Dart is the first decent compact car from Dodge in decades,” said CR’s Auto Test Center director Jake Fisher. “It has some solid positives. But overall it can’t yet measure up to the best in class.”

Thursday, November 15, 2012

General Motors has issued the first recall for its 2013 Cadillac XTS saloon that was launched in the U.S. market in the second quarter of the year.

The Detroit automaker told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that on certain models, the rear seat head restraints might not lock in the upright position after being folded forward.

Monday, September 10, 2012

General Motors may have increased its US sales in August by 10 percent compared to the same month in 2011, but last Wednesday it notified its dealers to stop deliveries of some of its most popular models.

The reason is a software glitch on the OnStar communication system that affects the 2013 Chevrolet Cruze, Equinox and Volt, the Cadillac ATS, SRX and XTS, the Buick Verano plus the GMC Terrain.

GM spokesman Alan Adler said that the issue has been identified as the system failing to alert the OnStar call center in an accident that the vehicle’s airbags are not deployed, like a rear-end collision.

Monday, July 23, 2012

The next 24 months will be a busy time for Cadillac in terms of new products as the Detroit automaker has plenty on its plate including the presentation of a flagship limousine loosely based on the well-received Ciel convertible sedan concept.

A report from Automotive News (sub. required) citing sources from within General Motors outlines Cadillac's plans for the 2013-15 model years.

According to the insiders, GM has given the green light for the development of a full size, rear-wheel drive luxury sedan that will sit atop of the range rivaling the Audi A8, BMW 7-Series, Jaguar XJ and Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Someone alert the hipsters; there is a new fad going around the auto industry and it's called reconfigurable instrument clusters.

Just last month, BMW announced that it will offer a customizable digital instrument display on the 2013 model year 5-Series and facelifted 7-Series, while recent spy photos prove that the next Mercedes-Benz S-Class will also have this future.

For once, Cadillac is not trailing behind its rivals in features introducing an available Reconfigurable Gauge Cluster on its new top sedan model, the 2013 XTS that just went on sale in the States.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

It is only a matter of weeks, if not days, before Cadillac begins U.S. sales of its new flagship XTS sedan model that will hits dealerships with a starting MSRP of $44,995, including destination.

Today, we have a fresh batch of high-resolution photos to share with you, which preview the Cadillac sedan in new shades and from different angles.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

General Motors is lifting a page from Hyundai's initiative to replace the traditional owner's manual book with an Apple iPad on the Equus, by offering a standard iPad on the new 2013 Cadillac XTS full-size sedan to assist owners with the CUE infotainment system.

What differentiates Cadillac's move from the Korean automaker is that the XTS's iPad is more interactive as it will come pre-fitted with several special apps including one that replicates many of the controls and features of the CUE center stack along with the MyCadillac App and OnStar RemoteLink.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Last year, Buick sold 177,633 vehicles in the States and 645,537 cars in China, with the Excelle, which is the local version of the Verano sedan, taking the first spot overall in the passenger car segment.

Cadillac, on the other hand, delivered 152,389 vehicles in the U.S. but only about 30,000 in the world's most populous country, despite an increase of 73 percent over 2010.

Given China's thirst for luxury products, it is no wonder that General Motors would like to repeat the success of Buick with its flagship brand.

According to General Motors CEO Dan Akerson, who was speaking on the company's first quarter earnings call for 2012, there is a plan in motion to boost Cadillac's sales in China six-fold in the next few years.

Friday, April 27, 2012

This week, we learned two new things about the 2013 Cadillac XTS, the first being that it features a new capless fuel filler assembly and the other that General Motors has plans to build the full-size sedan in China for the domestic market.

We will begin with the new capless fuel filler system that replaces the traditional twist-off cap, with Cadillac promising a cleaner and safer experience.

Friday, April 20, 2012

These days, a number of automakers including Audi, Volkswagen and BMW are testing various semi-autonomous driving technologies. In fact, even internet giant Google has given it a shot, so it should not come to a surprise that GM's flagship brand Cadillac is also heavily investing in this field.

Cadillac's semi-autonomous technology is named "Super Cruise" and it is capable of fully automatic steering, braking and lane-centering in highway driving under certain optimal conditions. The automaker said that the system could be ready for production vehicles by 2015.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

When the brand-new 2013 Cadillac XTS full-size sedan arrives at U.S. dealerships later this spring, it will have a starting MSRP of $44,995 (€33,980) including destination, GM announced today.

The XTS will be offered exclusively with a 300HP 3.6-liter V6 engine linked to a six-speed automatic transmission that drives the front wheel, with an all-wheel drive system using Haldex technology to transfer power front-to-back, and side-to-side along the rear axle, being an option.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

After learning that the all-new Cadillac can squeeze in four adults with all their golf gear, General Motors is now informing us about an innovative safety feature that will make its debut on the full-size sedan when it launches later this Spring.

The patented Cadillac Safety Alert Seat is an industry first system that uses directional tactile sensation, or to put it in Layman's terms, the driver's seat base vibrates, to warn of crash threats while driving and parking.

Friday, March 9, 2012

We just wanted to show you a few new pictures and a video of the brand-new 2013 Cadillac XTS but since General Motors went to all that trouble to convince us that its full-size sedan is compatible with the life-style of golfers, we opted to share the company’s thoughts.

Mind you, young and enthusiastic gearheads aspiring to be designers or engineers may want to skip this post altogether.

Monday, January 30, 2012

General Motors has revealed new details on its plans for the limousine variants of the 2013 Cadillac XTS, which made its world premiere at last year's Los Angeles Auto Show.

The XTS will replace the DTS sedan not only in the passenger car market but will also take its place in Cadillac's professional vehicle lineup.

At the upcoming 28th Annual International Limousine, Charter and Tour Show that takes place February 13-15 at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Cadillac will unveil the XTS "W20 Livery Sedan Package" for professional use, which from what we understand, will retain the regular XTS' wheelbase length.

However, GM said it is currently working on two more versions of the XTS, the extended sedan and limousine, which Cadillac Master Coachbuilder (CMC) licensed manufacturers can build for the chauffeured transportation market by the end of the year.

Monday, December 19, 2011

With more than a decade on its back, the current Chevrolet Impala is well overdue for a replacement. Introduced in 1999, the eighth generation of the Chevy's full-size sedan switched to a front-wheel drive layout with GM redesigning the large sedan in 2005.

According to the Automotive News Data Center, Chevy has sold more than 2.8 million units of current model since 1999, with 2007 proving to be the vehicle's best year with a little over 311,000 deliveries. This year, through the end of November, GM has sold close to 161,000 Impalas.

But as we said, it's time for the current Impala to give its place to a new model. Last week, GM confirmed plans for the development of the 10th generation Impala, which will be produced at both its Oshawa Assembly Plant in Canada and the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Plant.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

The big news for Cadillac today was the presentation of the all-new XTS full-size luxury sedan, and we've got some fresh pictures as well as two new videos including one that shows the car on the road (admittedly, not in the best quality) to share with you.

There's been some confusion about which segment the XTS belongs to since it will replace two models in Cadillac's range, the rear-/all-wheel drive STS and the front-wheel drive only DTS.

While the new XTS is Cadillac's largest sedan and as such, should be the brand's flagship saloon model, it does not target the likes of the BMW 7 Series nor the Mercedes S-Class.

The newest addition to Cadillac's sedan lineup, the 2013 XTS was fully revealed on Wednesday in advance of its first public appearance at the Los Angeles Auto Show later in the day.

The XTS takes its place as Cadillac's largest model replacing both the DTS and the STS. And large it is at 202-in. (5,131mm) long, 72.9-in. (1,851mm) wide and 59.1-in. (1,501mm) tall.

The XTS rides on a hefty 111.7-in. (2,837mm) wheelbase with Cadillac laying claims to 40 inches (1,016 mm) of rear legroom, which is about four more inches than the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class and about two more inches than the Audi A6. It also gets a capacious boot with 18 cubic feet (509 liters) of space.

The new Cadillac's exterior styling is more adventurous than the DTS/STS models and almost identical to last year's XTS Platinum concept study.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

On Wednesday, for a split second only, General Motors posted a photograph of the new 2013 Cadillac XTS on its U.S. website by mistake, but that was more than enough time for the picture to be shared all over the world.

Since there's no point in hiding anymore, GM today released a full-blown version of the same image in high-resolution providing us with a more detailed look at Cadillac's new flagship model that replaces both the DTS and the STS in the carmaker's lineup.

Previously, we had a chance to get a peek at the new XTS's interior with a cutout dashboard meant to show off the firm's new CUE (Cadillac User Experience) infotainment, navigation and communication system that will launch in 2012, not only in the full-size sedan, but also in the ATS compact saloon and SRX crossover.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

An official photo that was published allegedly by mistake on Cadillac's public site earlier today, gives us our first glimpse at the production 2013 XTS luxury sedan, one week ahead of its world premiere at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

The picture was captured before it was removed from the website by a reader of Jalopnik, which then confirmed its authenticity with Cadillac.

The production model is almost identical to last year's XTS Platinum concept study that was displayed at the 2010 Detroit motor show. In fact, from this angle, the only noteworthy styling changes appear to be limited to the headlamp and fog lamp assemblies and the larger and more practical mirror housings.