Cadillac Flagship, Redesigned LaCrosse To Be Made In Detroit By 2016

Well put.

Amen. It's like listening to the 911 people on the Porsche forums. I have a Cadillac bias but it's not totally irrational. You just can't buy anything quite like a Cadillac. Like it or not, the brand usually has differentiated products that follow their own nose. Until Merc launched the CLS, the Germans were tit-for-tat in the B, C, and D segments. It was boring. Caddy split the size and engine differences and played its own game. I'm 100% fine with an American luxury maker that has American tastes in mind. I'd rather have a Cadillac than anything German so I don't have to listen to all the (curiously) non-enthusiasts who buy German luxury cars.

+100. But these guys are too blind, and will willfully stay too blind, to see it. How asinine of them.

"When Audi gives the public a $40K souped up Jetta or Mercedes puts some new new sheet metal on the A class econo-hatch and call it the CLA, few seemed to have any problem with it." I have a problem with it and I see these things everywhere and chuckle. Whats the real problem though, yuppie or yuppie wannabes having no concept of refined product just being badge whores, or that the Germans picked up on it and started phoning it in? "When Cadillac gives you the light, entry level RWD car that you say you always wanted they whine about trunk space and infotainment." I would love if any brand would just come out and suggest real cars shouldn't seek to emulate Star Trek but instead the smooth ride of a Rolls/Bentley etc. Never happen mind you but I would love it. OMG I can't change a song while I'm staring at a navi screen and checking the weather instead of, um driving and watching the road. "Cadillac is far from perfect but its a brand that is at least focused on products" Sure about that? Perusing the list of the thirteen "models" listed at Cadillac.com: The three Escalades are either the Chevrolet Tahoe or Suburban. Front clip change, back clip change, tailights, other slight variations I don't care, they are and always were rebadges. This isn't a problem in my mind, I'll allow some rebadges its not unreasonable. The SRX is also a Chevrolet clone, although I don't know enough about the model to say how much a variation it is vs the lesser Chevrolet Equinox. Lets hope its more than cosmetic stuff, although I doubt that it is. Hecho en Mexico dont'cha know starting at $37,505 going up to $65,355. XTS is a Epsilon II sedan shared with Buick and Chevrolet and offers the same motor and possibly drivetrain (transmissions may vary slightly I'm not sure). Somehow they managed to make the Chevrolet look the best of the three. Really if any of the previous four models were not available in lesser brands this might be more acceptable to me, but this isn't the case. ELR is the Electric Cimmaron, period. I'm not going to dwell on this too much because it speaks for itself, but of course it is Delta II and built alongside Volt using Volt technology. This I too could forgive if the above now five models were not directly related to or rebadged from the lesser brands. So... five out of thirteen are directly available in the parent brand, while ELR is unique in the sense it is a coupe, and in that its probably the biggest flop in GM history. Moving on we have several variants of two platforms, Sigma and Alpha. CTS Coupe and Wagon are all variants of the Sigma platform, including the so called "V" series, which of course are V8 Sigmas and not really standalone models. GM pretends they are so I'll play along, we have CTS Coupe, Coupe V, Wagon, Wagon V, and Sedan V all offered from the outgoing Sigma platform, for a total of five models. Sigma to GM's credit was kept Cadillac only during its production run and therefore could all five be considered exclusive Cadillacs, even though its simply the same model offered in three configurations with an optional V8 package. Finally we have the new Alpha platform, which as of now is Cadillac exclusive offering the ATS and CTS sedan, and in the future will replace CTS coupe with one of its own. So two somewhat midsize platforms, the newer of which is to eventually replace the older, offered in today three different configurations with optional V8 on the older platform, a series of Chevrolet trucks, and an electric car nobody wants. Great products. So what would I do differently? Pretty much copy whatever Lexus is doing. -ATS Coupe gets a name, and is offered with a hardtop conv. -ATS Sedan is history. Why? Its redundant. CTS sedan is 195.5in with a 114.6 wheelbase, ATS sedan 182.8in with a 109.3 wheelbase. I very much doubt the 5.3 in wheelbase and 12.7 inches in length matter in the grand scheme of things, only in your already high pricing. Most of it is probably to add trunk room anyway. You're giving them away with offers and the resale on the block is laughable on the base I4s which are probably fleet fodder in any event. Learn from this and drop it. -CTS Sedan gets a name, is offered as the standard sedan, and gets a LWB option for people who actually want rear seat room. Build the LWB in China for all I care and import back to the States. -ELR is history, I hope you gained the knowledge you sought out to gain. If you want to offer something electric and expensive, think roadster and/or convertible next time. You embarrassed Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac himself with this escapade. -XTS gets a name, a makeover, and depending on what's happening with your so called flagship, a potential FWD replacement. Why not slide the Opel Insignia out of Buick and stretch it as your FWD if you actually do come out with a kick-ass "flagship"? I realize it was a quick Deville replacement and you need a FWD offering (also a livery offering), but its time to correct it. CTS LWB and Escalade can be your livery replacements. -SRX gets a name, and possibly a platform change. Why not build on Alpha and make a gaudy Cayenne? Try not to build the $65,000 dollar ones in Mexico too. -Introduce an SRX Jr, something incredibly small with zero utility similar to Mokka. Imagine the already odd Cadillac styling on an oddly designed vehicle. Could work. -Escalade stays a rebadge. http://autos.aol.com/cars-Cadillac-CTS-2014-Luxury__4dr_Rear_wheel_Drive_Sport_Wagon/specs/

@28-Cars-Later Going back further the SRX started life as a Saturn Cue. Nice sum up but what's your point. Should GM or anybody just offer platform cars and trucks? So, GM has say a small, medium and large car platform, so I would go to the local GM dealer and buy a Medium platform with four doors. No badges, no variety, oh, you do get to pick black, silver or white. Gee, what fun, but it's honest, huh?

@28-Cars-Later: Cadillac, like all car brands, has some models that are better than others, there is no arguing that. What I am arguing is that Cadillac get treated differently than other car makers by most commentators on this forum. When other makers are guilty of the same transgressions there seems to be an immediate acceptance and even defense and excuses. Cadillac seems to get such a hostile reception here that unannounced and unknown models get dismissed sight unseen. Sure you would agree that this is a symptom of irrational behavior? Take what you call "badge engineering" as an example. When other brands do this it's called "platform sharing" and I have never heard anyone call out Bentley for using the Audi A8 platform for cars twice the price of its donor yet with Cadillac SRX its a big issue (which it isn't as it outsells its German competition). Or how about the E class coupe (which can hit $100K+ in convertible guise) which is nothing but a stretched C class? The CLA which is based on the A-class economy car? I am not a Caddy fanboi but all I ask is that all brands and model be treated equal on their merits alone.

Tesla. V8s as the sine qua non of luxury are a very 2005 idea.

@dal20402 I see your POV and yet I don't see the serious marques emulating Tesla, or even talking about it.

Cadillac's post 1980 high tech V8s have mostly been headaches, and they have a high tech V8 in Chevrolet. I don't see V8s as being the problem, I see I4s and the model line as more of a problem.

I think most commenters on TTAC have fond feelings toward the Fleetwood Brougham, Continental Mark VII, and Lancia Thema 8.32. Then again the idea can also end up with a Chrysler TC by Maserati.

@ajla Wow, the idea of a Type Four platform car with a Ferrari V8 makes my head explode. Think you could retrofit one to an old Saab 9000? Now that would truly be Aero.