smk4565

I think it is a good update, the front looks better now and I am generally not a Lacrosse fan. The trim upgrades on the interior are needed because I think the new Impala's interior is very we'll done and Buick needs to keep up. The back end does look a bit Hyundai Equus but I like it more than the current car.

I think it would be cool if their LED lights were in the shape of a V similar to the old logo. They could also do a wreath in a circle which would give it a bit of a BMW look, but I'd like to see this shape, minus the "16" as their LEDs. That vertical bar you can find on a Ford Edge, boring. E350 Bluetec is gone for 2014, the E250 Bluetec will take it's place. 195 hp, 369 lb-ft, that will probably push 40 mpg. There is an E-class hybrid too, but that seems pointless.

Well, it is going to be better than the XTS, so at least that is a plus. But I don't think it is knocking the E-class of it's throne any time soon. The E-class only as 1 more year of the 4.7 liter V8, in 2015 it will be gone, which is what the market is going towards, but it will be sad to see it go.

I am not a fan, the rear looks too much like the XTS (which has boring trunk design) and the front looks too much like the ATS, which I think is the weak point of the ATS. The XTS has a strong front end and ATS strong from side profile, yet they didn't use those. I wish they did this car with sharper angles like the original CTS and without the headlights that go halfway to the windshield. I have a feeling this car will come off a bit tacky looking in GM's effort to make things look bold or expensive, they tend to over bling it and then you get a design that gets dated in a hurry. I'm curious to see the whole thing when they release it but I don't think this car is beating the Germans, it is will probably outsell the A6 and Infiniti M (or Q-whatever) and Lexus GS, but those 3 have been getting whipped by the E-class and 5-series since they day they were born.

They don't have much time, Lexus had an 8-speed transmission in 2007, Hyundai even has their own in house built 8-speed. When Cadillac first got 5-speed autos in the CTS and STS the other guys went to 6, when Cadillac got 6-speeds, Mercedes, Infiniti, Lexus, BMW starting using 7 or 8. If the ATS gets an 8-speed on the 2017 refresh, BMW will probably be on a 10-speed by then.

I seem to remember BMW saying the 8-speed they switched to a couple years ago weighed less than the ZF 6-speed they had been using. The new 8-speed was something like 25 lbs lighter than what they had been using and had fewer moving parts as well. Mercedes 7G transmission starts in 2nd gear for forward and reverse unless it is in sport mode. I read only the twin turbo CTS will get the 8-speed, which is sort of sad since even a Hyundai Genesis Coupe 4-cylinder has an 8-speed transmission. I see no reason as to why every Cadillac doesn't have a standard 8-speed on everything, at least on their rear drive vehicles.

It's good to have the XJR back.

My guess is the TT V6, since the CTS will ride on Alpha, it lets them use the same gear in both. Plus it helps sell CTS twin turbos if it is a v-series engine, because my guess is the CTS turbo is going to cost near $60k.

Cadillac could actually use LED light bars to create either the wreath or the wide V they put on cars in the 60s. That would be a lot better than just a vertical light.

Mercedes does sell a dealer installed option for an illuminated grille logo, but it won't turn on while the car is in drive.

The XTS isn't too low, it is the crazy high belt line that is the problem. Likewise with the LaCrosse, there is hardly any side window glass in those cars and it isn't due to a low overall height.

The Livery market does not want or need a 400 hp car, they want fuel economy and low cost of operation. Hearses rarely top 30 mph, and Limos can't do sporty driving because you can't make the people in the back sick or roll out of their seat. A turbo 4 (which I know is coming) or a turbo diesel 4 with big low end torque makes more sense than a twin turbo V6. As far as the 65+ crowd buying the XTS (or Lexus ES) they don't care about speed either.

The XTS AWD has a 58/42 weight distribution, with a heavier turbo engine and beefed up front end that will probably be 60/40. The Audi A6 has a 55/45 weight distribution. Either way, those cars aren't 50/50 and Benz and BMW outsell Audi by a large margin. The 2014 CTS on powertrains already shows promise, 25 mpg from a V6 is nothing great but buyers in this segment don't care too much about fuel economy anyway. I do think they need the turbo 4 and V6 around 30 mpg though, since all the other guys are there.

XTS and SRX carry a lot of weight over the front axle horsepower doesn't fix bad weight distribution, it makes it worse. I did read that on the XTS it will have 370 lb-ft and a 6-speed automatic. They could do that with the SRX also, but what's the point. It is like making a 400 hp Lexus RX, the people that buy those don't want power or RWD handling, they want the feeling of driving wallpaper paste. I think the XTS is about to get really irrelevant in a hurry when this new CTS arrives. The CTS will probably have a better interior and it wouldn't surprise me if it had more interior room since the XTS wheelbase isn't very long. Combine that with RWD superiority and more potent engines, and game over XTS.

My guess is this is the ATS-V engine. I also predict the 3.6TT CTS to be around $60,000+, sort of where the V-series is now, so that will be interesting to see how that plays out. No idea why this engine will be in a FWD barge like the XTS, didn't they notice that no one bought the MKS Ecoboost because a super power FWD car makes no sense, even with AWD.

Now Cadillac is in the game, this is the best engine they have had since 1993 when the Northstar came out. They finally have something that can go head to head with the Germans, and the 8-speed transmission is key. The power output is plenty, 0-60 in 4.6 seconds is quite fast for a luxury sedan. On real roads with real traffic you probably won't even be able to use all that engine's power. This gets them on par with the Genesis V8, and sort of splits the difference between the European V6s and V8s. I like this move. The only complaint would be fuel economy, 17/25 isn't bad, the Jaguar Supercharged V6 is only 1 mpg more and has less power, and the E550 V8 with awd gets 26 mpg, but that is rather high for a V8. Would have been nice if they got another 1-2 mpg out of it. The turbo 4 needs to be over 30 mpg, and the N/A V6 should be 30 mpg also. The 535i and E350 have 300 hp and 30 mpg, that is sort of expected now in this class. The Germans have more diesels on the way, Cadillac needs one, especially if they want to sell cars outside the USA.

Interior awesome, not only best in their class, but it is as good as the Ghost or Flying Spur when you take the technology advantages into account. The current S-class has a good interior, with great build quality but it is simple. This new one has more of a designer feel, it is more exciting. I love the look of the current S-class, the rear end and wheel arches especially. I like this new rear end too, it has a bit of a Bentley vibe, and a bit CLS, but I wouldn't have minded if the tail lights were a little more like the current car or more horizontal like Benz of old. My only complaint on the exterior is the LED bar with the eyebrow look, that has been done, what they should have done is make the daytime running lights circles (like BMW) but with 3-point stars. No car has daytime running lights in the shape of their logo and they could have been the first.

It is the whole package that matters. Look at how the E350 with a 268 hp V6 for all those years dominated the sales chart. It outsold the 5-series, A6, Lexus GS, Infiniti M, Volvos, CTS, Jaguar XF, you name it. Yes Mercedes had the V8 option but most are V6 sales. The steering, suspension, build quality, NVH, etc are just as important as the engine.

They can put a ZR-1 engine in the ATS-V, the Wreath and Crest still doesn't carry the weight of the 3-point star or a blue/white circle. That's the problem, the people in Beverly Hills that Hyper spoke of are still going to be a 3-series just because it is a 3-series.

The Germans are still not hurting, in fact BMW, Audi and Mercedes have had record years in terms of sales and profit the past 3 years while many others have struggled. And where else are people that spend over $80k on a car going to go? Suppose you have $100k to spend on a sedan or $150k to spend on a sports car. There are the Germans or Aston Martin and that's it. The Americans and Japanese don't make cars in that price range, save for things like the ZR-1 or LS600 hybrid. Same with Jaguar, they go above $100k, but only the top trim of a car starting around $75k. The German owned brands: Rolls-Royce, BMW, Bentley, Porsche, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Audi, Mercedes, are all doing well globally, and all have more sales now than they did 10 years ago. Compared to Lexus, Infiniti, Acura, Lincoln, and Cadillac which are mostly in decline or treading water. Cadillac at least is starting to fight back in the USA, but Cadillac globally is weak. Jaguar depends on how much money Tata wants to put into them.

Absolutely.... though I'm not sure their current 2.0 liter is up to the task. They can make a new one then. Need an 8-speed too. But this is often the problem with Cadillac, the powertrains are not up to the task or out of the corporate parts bin. GM needs to pump some money into Cadillac to get them some new engines.

Hold on, how are the Germans hurting. The 3 most successful (mainstream) luxury brands in the world are BMW, Mercedes and Audi. The 2 ultra high luxury brands Bentley and Rolls-Royce are owned by Germans, and the 3 ultra high performance sports car brands are Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Bugatti, and 2 of those 3 are owned by Germans too. The Germans have the high end car market cornered.

I hope Cadillac is paying attention. ATS and CTS need to get them some diesel power.

Even at $80k, Cadillac, Lincoln, Infiniti and Acura aren't there. And the US economy and auto industry has been struggling, sales may be down but they are still #1 in the segment. Sales will pick up with the new model. Few cars define the segment, Camry/Accord share midsize sedans, 3-series has compact luxury, 5-series/E-class share mid-size luxury sedan and S-class has full size luxury. I suppose you could add F150 for pickups to that list as well. S-class is the segment benchmark and the rest have been chasing for 25 years now, few cars can hold that distinction, the 3-series is probably the only other.

328d should be good, that should get over 40 mpg. They are considering an M8 supercar that looks similar to the M1, that could be cool too.