Bimmer325

The current Accord has arguably the best driving dynamics of any midsize car and is still at or near the top of its class even at the end of its life cycle.

This car would look much better without the huge, dopey headlights.

Pictures of the wagon show the updated front-end. Sedan would look much better with the wagon's taillights, too.

If people buy 7ers and S-Class' as status symbols and nothing else, GOOD FOR BMW AND MERCEDES. Decades of consistent engineering, design and branding gets you somewhere after all. The fact that brands like BMW and MB can attract buyers on name alone is a GREAT thing and might have something to do with years and years of consistency. Yet somehow this is reduced to dumb luxury car buyers with more money than brains who don't know or care what wheels drive their car. How could it possibly be perceived as a bad thing that a brand has reached the level of being an aspirational product? Cadillac might want to think about positioning itself as a marque these mindless idiots will spend their money on based on name alone.

The argument that "there is a market for this car" and "not everyone wants a CTS-V" is not valid IMO. I'm sure there is a market for this car, and GM has Buick to cater to it. Cadillac should be focusing on aligning itself with tier-one brands if it wants to be considered a world standard. And 'Pervez,' calling the XTS' infotainment system "the Apple iOS of the industry" is premature. Everything we know about CUE at this point has come from Cadillac's PR team. Every brand in this segment puts out highly advanced technology. We don't know yet how CUE will stack up against Audi's MMI, BMW's iDrive, etc. Ford and Lincoln's MyTouch is touch-capacitive like CUE and has been met with universally negative critical reception. Let's hope Cadillac's execution is far better than Ford's.

So, essentially, this is a competitor to the 2012 Hyundai Azera.

Ah, yes. And having moved to Philly in March, it wasn't until just NOW I even knew of such a thing...taking a closer look at that picture. Interesting. These look very, very cool in person with great presence. Spotted another black one yesterday. A red Veloster pulled up opposite me at an intersection the other day. I couldn't quite make out what it was until I passed it--this car looks very different in person. The rear is still a bit overdone for me, but I tend to like simpler designs. The front is much better in person. And the shade of red looked great. Also, I've been seeing new Civic sedans all over. Very few coupes though.

This looks great.

Love the concept. >2,700 lbs is impressive.

The Greenwich, CT dealer is about 15 minutes from me. They have Ferrari, Bentley, Alfa (8C only, for now), McLaren, Bugatti, Maserati, Aston, Rolls, and now, Fisker. I go up there occasionally to look around and can't wait to check one out.

I don't see what's so impressive about that. I wonder if he did any damage while teetering on the car's underside more than anything else.

Got about 8 inches here in SE NY. Roads were a mess on Saturday.

Because names like "Cruze," "Verano," "Sonic," and "Spark" are so meaningful.

Preliminary reviews point to this new GS being a class leader in terms of driving dynamics, so this should be interesting.

Do I think the XTS will outsell the A6? Yes. Do I think buyers will cross-shop the two? No.

Ok. Fine. The A6 then. The ZTS is coming to slot above the XTS. Regarding the ZTS: fair enough. The Ciel is a good start. But regarding the A6 comparison...I'm not buying it. I don't see the XTS as a real competitor to the A6--and it doesn't look like GM is that confident it'll compete in that segment either.

This might be off-topic, but I'd like to say I think the Volt should be a model for other Chevys from a design perspective. Shape aside (it's compromised for fuel-efficiency), the Volt's detailing and front and rear fascias are purposeful and have a strong identity. I find a lot of newer Chevys (Spark, Sonic, Orlando, Malibu, etc.) to be really fussy and overdone. The Volt's front fascia (headlights, especially) is really well done and looks way more upscale and cleaner than other stuff the brand is coming up with.

I'm not sure the A8 vs. XTS comparison is a valid argument. The A8 is a direct competitor to the S-Class, 7, LS, etc. The XTS is not; it's aimed at a different segment entirely. Its main competition seems to be more in line with cars like the MKS. The bottom line--for me--is that Cadillac should have something to go up against tier-one luxury sedans like the A8, S-Class, 7, LS, etc. The debate over sales numbers is kind of beside the point. The XTS won't compete with these cars. Like smk said, GM has Buick to compete with tier-two and three luxury marques. Cadillac should be competing with Mercedes, Audi and BMW. Cars like the XTS won't elevate Cadillac to tier-one status, especially if a good deal of sales are aimed at fleets. For me it comes down to this: Cadillac should be positioning itself against TIER-ONE brands. The XTS might sell well, but it doesn't accomplish that.

The VW Up is a perfect example of how a small car should be done.

It's not the concept; it's the execution. Chevy has had some serious design misses lately and this is one of them.

Needs bigger headlights.

CTS-V vs. C300? That was irrelevant to begin with. And why tow the C300 away at the end? Are we supposed to be impressed that a vehicle in the Escalade's segment can tow a C-segment sedan? I have news for Cadillac: the GL450 can do the same thing--MB isn't wasting its time with stuff like this. Cadillac should stick to advertising its own products' merits. This "snarky" nonsense comes across as forced.

Agreed. I fell in love with the 159 when I lived in Spain. It manages to pull off what few cars can--it's gorgeous without coming across as pretentious. Sad to see it go.

Are you sure? The Verano and Astra appear to share the exact same interior (minus the Buick's plood/color schemes), the same greenhouse from the B-pillar forward, identical doors, hood, all hard points between the headlamps and taillamps, mirrors, etc.

The Astra is so much more modern, cohesive and upscale looking. I don't understand why they tampered with it. This is one watered-down design.