Filed under: Trends, Etc., Euro, Cadillac
Decision on CTS siblings coming soon
PHOTOS UPDATED
Cadillac is already on the upswing here in the US, and has been for some time. The image repair that GM has been able to carry out is impressive, and the rebirth is poised to enter phase two. GM Vice Chair Bob Lutz and Cadillac General Manager Jim Taylor both commented at the Geneva Motor Show that Lexus, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are in their gunsights, and that a 3-series-esque family of models could emerge from the CTS. A wagon version of the CTS is getting serious consideration as Cadillac looks at taking the fight to European turf.
[Source: Automotive News – sub. req'd]
While there's a wagon variant of the BLS model, based off the SAAB 9-3, the CTS wagon is on track to be a RWD affair. An estate version of the CTS would give European buyers, who are more fond of wagons than we are here in the US, a further reason to consider the Cadillac brand when car shopping. The RWD layout would also help the vehicle be in the same league dynamically as the brands they have targeted. While we're sure the BLS is a nice vehicle, FWD is not the way of the future for Cadillac, according to Lutz. The DTS could make a move to GMs Zeta platform that will be coming to the US as the Pontiac G8 – or it could stay on its current platform. Lutz is no fan of sitting tight, however, and has voiced the opinion that the next DTS should be a RWD car. There has also been talk of an entry-level Cadillac, slotted below the CTS and priced in the mid $20-30,000 range. Lutz and Taylor aren't in total agreement over the plan to step into that crowded segment. We remember the Cimarron, and hope that Cadillac does, too. The CTS makes a fine entry point to the Cadillac brand, and selling a Cadillac for Chevy money is fraught with danger and could cheapen Cadillac's newly revived image. Another potential land mine is a high-end model that plays in the $100,000 plus realm. As with an entry-level model, a halo model should be analyzed very carefully, lest it pull a Phaeton. The Ultra-Lux Caddy is probably far less a priority than fleshing out the CTS offerings, so we may not have to worry too much about an amazingly turned out but languid-selling Cien or Sixteen production model killing Cadillac's recent forward momentum.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
ellerton 12:38PM (3/12/2007)
OMFG I
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SSBR 12:42PM (3/12/2007)
GM is smart about getting the popular Euro styles (G8 and Sky) here to the US. But one thing they should avoid is making weird stationwagon varients to their models. Remember the Lexus IS300 wagon? ugh....
http://www.rolesor.com
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emw 12:45PM (3/12/2007)
I personally loved the IS300 Sport Cross. I hope we get a six speed CTS wagon. http://www.motortrend.com/features/auto_news/2007/112_0703_cadillac_future_models/
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why not the LS2LS7? 12:59PM (3/12/2007)
Oh yes. CTS wagon, please. I'd like the 300HP V6 with a stick and a wagon butt.
Or at least make the rear seats fold down in the sedan.
I also liked the IS300 Sportcross. It had AWD, which I expect the CTS wagon will not have (and I'll live without).
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BOB 1:07PM (3/12/2007)
I AM SOOOOOOOOOOOO SICK OF THIS CRAP ABOUT MAKING CADILLAC INTO A EUROPEAN COMPETITOR------
ESPECIALLY when they are about half through fixing the brand back to what it should be in the US.
Now they added a wagon to the BLT, which I read is not selling (wonder why?? short on mayonnaise, I think)
If you are BMW, you need a 3-series: if you are Cadillac, you have Pontiacs and Buicks in the family, at lower price points. BMW established itself as a sporty younger car 35 years ago, and built back up to the luxury segment -- different history!
A CTS station wagon to sell in Europe, when the CTX exists, but no Eldorado, no convertibles??? (oops, I guess that Corvette Cad joke IS a convertible, sorry.) You gotta be smokin' somethin', boys.
As for the $100,000 car -- hey, start with a car that competes with the Lexus LS, which you are way short of having, Then, a SEDAN above that would be feasible.
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Calguy 1:18PM (3/12/2007)
That CTS wagon is definitely the first Cadillac I've ever been interested in. RWD wagons are a blast to own and drive. If their quality keep up and the mpg isn't dumb, it could tempt me. Keep on innovating Caddy-
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Michael Karesh 1:25PM (3/12/2007)
There were only two things wrong with the SportCross:
--the same interior as in other first-gen IS's
--no manual transmission offered
If Cadillac offered the 2008 CTS as a wagon with a stick, they can also count me in.
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Michael Karesh 1:27PM (3/12/2007)
I should add that I expect to have initial reliability results for the 2008 CTS 4-6 months after it goes on sale, probably in mid-February 2008. So hopefully anyone wondering about the reliability of the new car won't have to wonder for long.
http://www.truedelta.com/reliability.php
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Jeremy 1:28PM (3/12/2007)
Why wouldn't the wagon have AWD? The new CTS is going to be offered with it in the sedan version. And don't get me wrong, I love Caddys but that wagon looks a little too Dodge Magnum for me. And BOB why should Cadillac try to compete with a rebadged Toyota...I mean Lexus? If you ask me the Japanese "luxury" cars are a completely different market than the European ones. And haven't you heard the phrase "rides like a Cadillac"...that phrase didn't come from nothing. Cadillac was the standard of the world and soon enough it will be again. And why do you care what they do, you wouldn't buy it anyway because it's a Cadillac so YOU'RE not part of their market so your opinion doesn't matter. It could be the same car with an L on the front and you'd buy it in an instant. Don't post about vehicles you don't give a damn about. Because honestly, those that do care, don't give a crap what you say.
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Alex 1:42PM (3/12/2007)
#2: you should realize that if you don't like the wagon variant, others will. The U.S. market is not very hot for wagon sales but if you read the post by Mr. Roth, the variant will be targeted more toward the European market. To be a real competitor in the entry-level segment, they need to have variants/wagons.
Possibly, however, wagon sales might be on an upswing here as well (U.S.) from the high gas prices. We'll see.
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asilon 1:45PM (3/12/2007)
it would be nice if they would make a cts coupe to go after the 3 series.
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Jeremy 2:06PM (3/12/2007)
A CTS Coupe now that would be sweet. Are there any production version pics of such a vehicle yet?
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Lee Gibson 2:11PM (3/12/2007)
CTS-V wagon in Arrest-Me Red, please.
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BOB 2:40PM (3/12/2007)
---#9 -- YOU ARE A POOR MINDREADER......
I would walk before buying a Lexus, but THAT is the car Cadillac needs to be sure it is competing against.
The LS is soft and luxurious and cosseting, like a Cadillac has historicaly been. It is the LEXUS which "rides like a Cadillac", certainly not any European car.
AND my other point is that the LS is an EXCELLENT car at what it tries to achieve, although rather soulless and thus more vulnerable to Cad competition. I have been furious at GM for falling down and letting a Japanese car take their business.
BMW is a ridicuous name to use as a Cad competitive goal, but if the silly writers mentioned Mercedes, I could understand it a bit more. -- True BMW customers would laugh at owning a Cad, but those who just buy BMW as a luxury car are possible to get. BMW is a sporty car that is luxurious, Mercedes a luxury car with some sporty models.
Cadillac's niche is AMERICAN luxury and style, not imitation European.
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BOB 2:40PM (3/12/2007)
AND PS -- Mister Mind Reader with high school petty swipes at me
-- I possibly WAS part of Cadillac's market, but they went away from me, I did not go away from them.
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Kevin 2:41PM (3/12/2007)
I'd buy a CTS wagon. Just picked up a 2003 C320 wagon and I love the packaging. I have as much room as the SUVs some of my friends drive without all the weight, parking issues, and baggage, and it's a good looking car. Done right a wagon looks quite sporty. It's when they try to disguise the wagonness that it starts to look weird, a la Lexus IS.
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Jeremy 3:16PM (3/12/2007)
I'd be afraid to read your mind. However, I believe that Cadillac should compete with the LS, not Lexus as a whole, but I don't think it should be their target. If they really want to re-establish their reputation as a great American luxury company then they need to look at competing with the Europeans. Not because the Lexus isn't as "good" (I'd never even consider buying one) but because it seems to me that the Europoeans are better at bringing the new, cool, stuff to the market and Lexus just re badges it and calls it their own. I think that if they try to target Lexus too much they will become just an American Lexus where you just rebadge your number 1 seller (the camry) and charge 5 grand more to it because you put an L on the front. I agree that the LS is a great car for those that prefer that but I don't think it should be their focus. And the difference between "possible" and probably is the simple fact that one might happen and the other doesn't have a chance.
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Nicole 4:22PM (3/12/2007)
That CTS wagon looks great. I'd love to have one as my daily driver!
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Mike 7:20PM (3/12/2007)
I'm not ready for a Cadillac station wagon.
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Lee Gibson 8:55PM (3/12/2007)
Mike, you have seen the SRX, right? And the Escalade? Those are station wagons. They call them SUVs, but same thing.
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