Click to enlargeUPDATE 1: Post body has been updated to reflect complete information. GM press release and additional photos (all hires) have also been added.One of the SEMA project cars mentioned in GM's release
last week was a Cadillac's SRX design study prepared with input from women's fashion designer
Dana Buchman. A quick perusal of her 2007 collection reveals that the Tribeca denizen's clothing designs are classy and understated, themes that she carries forward in her SRX show car.
Automobile magazine notes that the Buchman SRX was a decent starting point, seeing as it had the new-for-2007
"cut and sew" interior, which is attractive on its own merits. After seeing the Dana Buchman treatment, however, one hopes GM finds a way to justify a run of special editions, as she transforms the passenger cabin into a truly lush, chocolate-themed environment.
She used leather, silk, and suede to elevate the surroundings to a higher level, and it's a feast on the eyes. Brownstone leather covers the seats, dash and upper door panels, while lighter Cashmere-colored hides trim the consoles and lower door panels. The aforementioned silk is what the carpets are made of (not at all practical, but good-looking as applied here). The Cashmere tone reappears in faux suede on the headliner , pillars and sun visors. A snakeskin fabric pattern lines the storage bins and outlines the vanity mirrors. We particularly like the quilted seat pattern, which looks like something you'd find in a Mulliner-enhanced Bentley, and the shiny chrome trim on the center stack surround, steering wheel, and corner vents looks completely appropriate here.
The back seats are custom 40/40 buckets, and their occupants can enjoy refreshments from the custom refrigerated snack/beverage drawer in the rear center console, which also incorporates aluminum-ringed cupholders set in "Cocoa granite" Corian (the countertop material). Though not mentiones specifically in the release, the Corian also appears to adorn the forward center console and dashboard trim as well. Autoblog can be read on-the-go thanks to a KVH mobile internet system with Wi-Fi capability, and Cadillac's SRX theater package provides additional on-road entertainment capabilities.
Outside, the car's DuPont Gold Mist finish dovetails nicely with the brown and tan theme inside. It also sports 20-inchers, an Eibach suspension that drops the car 1.5 inches, Brembo stoppers, and an upgraded cat-back exhaust system by Corsa. Dana Buchman may design women's clothing, but this SRX has a unisex appeal (well, OK ... maybe not the snakeskin linings) . Nice is nice, no matter how you cut it. The Dana Buchman SRX Sport looks to be a serene oasis in the maelstrom of
billion-watt stereos, horrifyingly garish bodykits, and highly-inappropriate lambo doors that will join it on the floor at SEMA.
(Press release, Photo gallery after the jump)
[Sources: Automobile magazine, GM]