GM @ NAIAS '09: 2010 Cadillac SRX

[Chris_Doane]

http://www.leftlanenews.com/cadillac-srx.html

[pow]

Not much of an improvement over the current SRX, hm?

[Croc]

Exterior is much more dynamic, but the interior has several issues that IMO make it a downgrade over the current model. The smaller size and drivetrain certainly do not excite me much, either.

[mustang84]

Nice vehicle! I like the attention to detail (see: Cadillac script on the rear hatch chrome bar). I still think they should have gotten rid of the chrome vent on the side...it detracts from an otherwise fairly clean design.

[regfootball]

Not much of an improvement over the current SRX, hm?

it is from the standpoint of marketability.

this one will score with women (someone caddy desperately needs in the stable). plus, this is a 'crossover'. the now prior srx was a 'wagon'. this new one has hotter styling.

not to mention this can sell at lower price points and higher volume.

[Drew Dowdell]

not to mention this can sell at lower price points and higher volume.

well pricing is supposed to be the same.... so hopefully just higher volume.

[Drew Dowdell]

Exterior is much more dynamic, but the interior has several issues that IMO make it a downgrade over the current model.

What is your issue with the interior?

[Satty]

So very underwhelming, its like they re-invented the Cimarron.

[GMTruckGuy74]

How much does the SRX share with the upcoming Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain?? Also, since the Equinox & SRX are being shown at the Detroit show, does this mean the Terrain will be shown at Chicago, or will it wait to New York??

[turbo200]

great. while infiniti brings us the manly FX45, Porsche has the broad shouldered Cayenne, BMW's X5 kept its muscularity and traded nothing for extra refinement to its look, Mercedes dropped the minivan sctick and got new religion with a superb ML, Acura's motherly MDX converted into a techy bold brute..........while all this was happening, CADILLAC, of the brute sophisticate Escalade fame, brought us a flinty SRX to do battle with seemingly no one going after a cute ute in terms of size and proportions, and a soft flower in terms of looks. oh so sweet it is. It seems the first gen SRX was hindered by Cadillac's strict adherence to the science design theme 1.0 and the structure's hard points. in this iteration the proportions of theta have gotten in the way, along with wanting to translate all of the themes going in the CTS sedan. pity the interior also looks kinda cheap from photos, but there it reallly is hard to tell the final outcome. as i've been saying all along those controls, which are grafted straight from CTS minus the faux alluminum finish on the center stack, those controls look cheap, and the looks don't lie in this case. the interior still looks like in person it could be a winner, but it's hard to say the interior on looks alone tops anything in its class. this will appeal to suburaban moms, but urban trendsetters will stay away and opt for more fashionable choices.

Edited January 4, 2009 by turbo200

[Croc]

So very underwhelming, its like they re-invented the Cimarron.

Yup.

[Croc]

What is your issue with the interior?

Interior downgrades:

1) Seating

2) Comfort (major drop in width)

3) Storage (loses handy dash cubby)

4) Ambiance (not enough wood)

5) Questionable plastics (live photos make the plastics look cheap. I want to judge it in person, but the outgoing model has a very nice interior, though the design could be more cohesive. Materials are very nice.)

Basically, new models should offer more than outgoing models. The only "upgrade" I see to this interior is the dash design--not necessarily dash materials or "things" available on the dash.

Maybe I'd be more inclined to like it if it were called something other than SRX, but this would be akin to Cadillac bringing out a really nice Delta compact and calling it DTS. It just doesn't work.

[z28luvr01]

It's.....still a FWD Caddy

[Camino LS6]

I HATE this thing!

[Satty]

The new SRX is the same length as the Acura RDX. That ain't right.

[regfootball]

the SRX is much wider than the thetas also. i think the large overhangs are throwing everyone for a loop.

[regfootball]

The new SRX is the same length as the Acura RDX. That ain't right.

rdx is a joke by the way. but the press doesn't seem to mind it.

[Satty]

According to the Wikipedia page, the new SRX is a couple tenths wider than the current, but lower and significantly shorter.

[Satty]

rdx is a joke by the way. but the press doesn't seem to mind it.

The turbo-4 idea is a fantastic idea for Subaru, because they know what they're doing. Acura, not so much.

[Intrepidation]

According to the Wikipedia page, the new SRX is a couple tenths wider than the current, but lower and significantly shorter.

2009 Width: 72.6 in.

2010 Width (in / mm): 75.1 / 1910

[Satty]

Wiki has the 2010 at 72.8.

Still, even with an extra 2.5 inches of width, its way shorter and lower, it doesn't have the presence. It does have the overhangs. Not what Cadillac needs.

[Intrepidation]

Wiki has the 2010 at 72.8.

Still, even with an extra 2.5 inches of width, its way shorter and lower, it doesn't have the presence. It does have the overhangs. Not what Cadillac needs.

You know what they say about wiki's credibility.

BUt I agree nonetheless, just pointing it out.

Edited January 6, 2009 by Dodgefan

[regfootball]

what is the wheelbase? sigmas all have long wheelbase. this must be around 108 inches for such huge overhangs. that' my official guess.

in the FWIW department, my aztek, which is also a GM crossover, i think the wheelbase is around 108 inches and it makes for a nice turning circle and doesn't feel so long like the flex does.

[Croc]

2009 Width: 72.6 in.

2010 Width (in / mm): 75.1 / 1910

No way in hell are those apples-to-apples width comparisons. If they were, then GM has serious packaging issues to widen a vehicle by several inches but lose significant amounts of hip and shoulder room.

My guess: one of those width measurements includes side mirrors, and the other does not.

[Intrepidation]

No way in hell are those apples-to-apples width comparisons. If they were, then GM has serious packaging issues to widen a vehicle by several inches but lose significant amounts of hip and shoulder room.

My guess: one of those width measurements includes side mirrors, and the other does not.

I'm just going by what the official specs releases are. Insideline also reports that the SRX is 2 inches wider.

[Intrepidation]

what is the wheelbase? sigmas all have long wheelbase. this must be around 108 inches for such huge overhangs. that' my official guess.

in the FWIW department, my aztek, which is also a GM crossover, i think the wheelbase is around 108 inches and it makes for a nice turning circle and doesn't feel so long like the flex does.

The new vehicle, which goes on sale in the second quarter of 2009, has the coveted SUV-ish proportions Cadillac felt the old vehicle lacked. It's shorter in overall length by 5 inches than the old car, and rides on a wheelbase that's 5.5 inches shorter. But it's 2.5 inches wider than the long-and-slender 2009 model. Maximum cargo space shrinks from 69.5 cubic feet to 61.2

The current SRX has a wheel base of 116.4 inches. So that would make the new one's 110.9 inches.

Edited January 6, 2009 by Dodgefan

[regfootball]

this truly is sort of a tweener then? not as portly as an MKX or Veracruz, not as small as a crawling recreational vehicle?

[Croc]

this truly is sort of a tweener then? not as portly as an MKX or Veracruz, not as small as a crawling recreational vehicle?

And once again, fitting into only the "segment" GM created for it, I question what sales will be like.

And again, if this is wider, why in hell do rear seat passenger width dimensions fall so much?

[Intrepidation]

And once again, fitting into only the "segment" GM created for it, I question what sales will be like.

And again, if this is wider, why in hell do rear seat passenger width dimensions fall so much?

Because FWD packaging is superior like that.

[The O.C.]

And once again, fitting into only the "segment" GM created for it, I question what sales will be like.

And again, if this is wider, why in hell do rear seat passenger width dimensions fall so much?

The reason the old-school, BOF, huge, gas-guzzling Escalade sells so many more units than the current SRX, IMHO, is.......BLING....presence....and the statement it makes.

While I like the styling direction of the new SRX.......I really think making it smaller than, say, the RX350 is a very damaging decision.

If the new SRX comes on the market as anything less than a true Caddy (think a rebadged, FWD Chevy) then it will have been a HUGE mistake.

(Keep in mind I don't think the RX looks or feels anything like the Highlander that it shares so much with.....SRX seems to share WAY too much with the new Equinox.....especially in the interior......not good....)

[Intrepidation]

The reason the old-school, BOF, huge, gas-guzzling Escalade sells so many more units than the current SRX, IMHO, is.......BLING....presence....and the statement it makes.

While I like the styling direction of the new SRX.......I really think making it smaller than, say, the RX350 is a very damaging decision.

If the new SRX comes on the market as anything less than a true Caddy (think a rebadged, FWD Chevy) then it will have been a HUGE mistake.

(Keep in mind I don't think the RX looks or feels anything like the Highlander that it shares so much with.....SRX seems to share WAY too much with the new Equinox.....especially in the interior......not good....)

I'm not too keen on it sharing it's platform with the Equinox either, but point out to me exactly what it seems to share, especially in the interior?

[RBB]

I'm not too keen on it sharing it's platform with the Equinox either, but point out to me exactly what it seems to share, especially in the interior?

Judge for yourself:

They're similarly styled, yes, but it doesn't look like there's much parts sharing there.

EDIT - is it just me, or does it look like they use the same air vents on the center stack flipped upside down?

-RBB

Edited January 9, 2009 by RBB

[smk4565]

The SRX is still larger than the RX350, but they went the wrong direction with it. They will lose current SRX owners, and won't steal any away from Lexus, Lexus retains customers like crazy. The air vents in the SRX, Equinox and LaCrosse are too similar. It's not a Cadillac if there are all kinds of similarities with Chevy and Buick. Cadillacs have to offer value to make people want to spend $50,000 on a new one, rather than just waiting for a 1-2 year old used model that sells for $25k.

[turbo200]

putting them side by side really reveals just how similar the setup is. that is the problem with GM. these interiors have to have different concepts, different ideals behind them. the concept behind the interior is too similar, and mentally at least it reeks of costs savings. you don't see other carmakers doing this....the segment they are pitched at, they design for.

EDIT: the similarities in setup does not necessarily prove they are on the same platform or share other real points of consequence. these similarities only show that GM still beleives in sharing the same prototypical interior design amongst many models. take lacrosse and cruze even for example.

Edited January 9, 2009 by turbo200

[Croc]

putting them side by side really reveals just how similar the setup is. that is the problem with GM. these interiors have to have different concepts, different ideals behind them. the concept behind the interior is too similar, and mentally at least it reeks of costs savings. you don't see other carmakers doing this....the segment they are pitched at, they design for.

Yup, but look at those two interiors: very few parts are actually shared. But they look the same. So GM is spending the money for two unique interiors, yet they look like the Plan A and Plan B of the same damn interior. That's wasted money in the worst way.

[Camino LS6]

I'll never look at the interior because the exterior sends me screaming into the hills.

[CSpec]

How much does the SRX share with the upcoming Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain??

They are not on the same platform... The SRX and 9-4X are on the new TE platform (also called Theta Premium). It is uses a mix of components from Epsilon II, the updated Theta, and some bits from Lambda. The Equinox and Terrain are just on an updated version of the old Theta platform. However that doesn't seem to stop GM from styling cars similarly even if the underneath isn't the same, such as the Astra and Cobalt share a lot of design features.

[Drew Dowdell]

The SRX is still larger than the RX350, but they went the wrong direction with it. They will lose current SRX owners, and won't steal any away from Lexus, Lexus retains customers like crazy. The air vents in the SRX, Equinox and LaCrosse are too similar. It's not a Cadillac if there are all kinds of similarities with Chevy and Buick. Cadillacs have to offer value to make people want to spend $50,000 on a new one, rather than just waiting for a 1-2 year old used model that sells for $25k.

amazing how none of that happened. They moved from also-ran to 2nd place in the market. The least expensive one I could find on Cars.com near you and I was a base 2011 with the 3.0 and FWD for $29,864. All of the others are well over $30k used.

[daves87rs]

Not bad...