Cadillac's Proposed Exciting New Coupe
Automaker Cadillac has a rich tradition of building exciting, highly regarded sedans as well as coupes. However, changes made to its line up over the past decade have resulted in a fleet of vehicles that now consists exclusively of sedans, crossovers, and sport utility vehicles. Gone are the days of the super size Eldorado and the Coupe de Ville, vehicles that long stood for Cadillac quality and excess. Today, plans are underway to bring in a coupe to compete against European rivals Mercedes, Audi, and BMW. Please read on for more information about the proposed CTS derived coupe.
The proposed CTS coupe being planned by Cadillac will not be an Eldorado nor will it be an updated version of the Coupe de Ville. As a large midsize two door model, the CTS coupe will be larger than its European competitors, but vastly smaller than preceding Cadillac coupes.
A 2008 Calendar Year Introduction
Slated for an overhaul for the 2009 model year, the CTS sedan will be the basis for the new coupe, thus virtually all of the parts will be shared between the two cars with the majority of the differences showing up in the roof pillars. Cash strapped General Motors wants to produce the car badly, but they don’t want to go overboard with development costs. Thus, the coupe and sedan would share an overwhelming majority of the same components.
Downsides to the New Coupe
The CTS coupe does have at least two downsides to it. First of all, the luxury coupe market isn’t that large and it has been shrinking. Second of all, the CTS will be larger than its European competitors more along the lines of the biggest cars from Mercedes and BMW. This could cause confusion for buyers, especially if the CTS is aimed at smaller cars but is sized with the larger models.
Upsides to the New Coupe
On the positive side, the CTS coupe throws open an important and profitable area of the car market to Cadillac. As part of its ongoing appeal toward harnessing younger buyers, the CTS will do for Cadillac in 2008 and beyond what the Escalade did earlier in the decade: lower the average age of Cadillac owners. The younger the buyer is, the better the chance that Cadillac will have them as customers for the long haul.
GM’s Money Woes Could Scuttle the Project
Of course, GM’s financial woes could cast doubt on the new model even though the CTS sedan is a go. Plus, it isn’t certain yet just how many coupes Cadillac would have to sell in order to turn a profit. Yet, if the car is built it could further signal GM’s commitment to building cars that buyers really want, a complaint that some consumers have voiced as reasons why they have left the general behind.
The smart money says the CTS coupe will be given the green light. Cadillac needs this car and consumers want a luxury coupe to light up their world. Who better than Cadillac?
By Matthew Keegan.
Visit the Blog about cadillac albany new yorkJohnson To Go Aboard The Cadillac CTS-V In SPEED GT
What's new for General Motor's? Well aside from unveiling new vehicles in recent domestic and international auto shows and manufacturing quality GM parts like GM running board, GM's Cadillac NASCAR team also got something new for racing fans.
GM's Team Cadillac has recently signed Jimmie Johnson, the current NASCAR Nextel Cup series champion to drive the No. 16 Cadillac CTS-V in the forthcoming SCCA SPEED World Challenge GT that will take place at Lowe's Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) later in May 2007.
Here is what Jimmie Johnson said in a GM official press release: "I've driven thousands of laps at Lowe's Motor Speedway and enjoyed success there, but it's going to be a new experience for me to turn right as well as left when I race in the SPEED GT event in Charlotte. I've always enjoyed driving different kinds of vehicles, so I'm looking forward to racing against sports cars with the Cadillac CTS-V sedan."
"When I tested with Team Cadillac on the Sebring road course in February, I discovered that the Cadillac CTS-V race car's handling and braking are similar to the setups we use in NASCAR Nextel Cup road races. I'm hoping that my experience at Lowe's Motor Speedway will benefit the team because we only have one day to practice, qualify and race," he continued. "I really enjoyed working with the Team Cadillac crew and my teammates Andy Pilgrim and Lawson Aschenbach during the test, and I think we'll be able to get our CTS-V race cars up to speed quickly on both the oval and the road course sections at Lowe's Motor Speedway."
Johnson began his career as a race driver in NEXTEL Cup series in 2002 when he entered the 2002 Daytona 500 and ended up in the 15th place. He was also the runner-up for the 2002 NASCAR Rookie of the Year. Johnson currently pilots the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS for Hendrick Motorsports.
"We're proud to have Jimmie as a member of the GM family, and we appreciate the cooperation between Chevrolet, Cadillac, GM Racing and Hendrick Motorsports that made this program possible." said Steve Wesoloski, Manager of GM Road Racing Group. "This is a great opportunity to have the defending NASCAR Nextel Cup champion compete in one of our GM road racing programs, and it will certainly put the SPEED World Challenge Series in the spotlight."
Moreover, Cadillac General Manager Jim Taylor commented: "As we've been reinventing and rebuilding the Cadillac brand over the past several years, we've made the conscious strategic decision to align Cadillac with the best of the best in everything we do. We'll have the past two SPEED GT champions, Andy and Lawson, for the full 2007 season, and we're absolutely thrilled to have 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup champion Jimmie Johnson drive our third CTS-V in the upcoming Charlotte race."
Jimmie Johnson will go aboard the Cadillac CTS-V and experience the race car's high performance and dynamic handling coming from the monstrous 6.0-liter V8 engine pumping out 500 horses under its hood.
By Noah Scott.
