hyperv6

I just love how people are expecting a volume brand model to be a AWD sport sedan when they never factor in the cost and weight penalty. AWD was left out here and the Bu because 250-300 pounds in weight loss was of more value to 95% of the customers. Also once these features are added it will add to the cost and there is a limit what people will pay for a Chevy before they move on. A Fusion AWD is just over $40K and I would really have to be infatuated to pay that much For a Fusion and Malibu. The fact is if you loo at the numbers AWD is a very small part of their sales. This car is headed for the meat of the market and will provide a very welcomed model to choose from. FYI even if a RWD Impala happened it would not be $32K. Get real. The Bu will command the $30K-40K range and the Impala will over lap the top end and higher. It's mission is not volume as it once was. The Cruze and Malibu are the volume models as well as the new Trax and Nox. Yes the CUV is the fastest growing segment and last year out sold the sedan segment for the first time. The Cruze is about volume, MPG and just being the best most comfortable car in the segment. Performance will be better than the last and few complained there even with the Eco.

You can see what ever you want here but it for sure will not be mistaken for anything but a Chevy. In a year I will expect they will say the Hyundai looks like a Chevy. This is a big deal here. We are taking a 3200-3350 pound car and cutting 250 pounds that is huge!. while doing that adding more room, More power and More torque and delivering more MPG. Add in more stylish design and more functional better refined interior. What is missing here? And stop with the SS crap as that would account for about 6000 in sales. This is the money car that brings in most of Chevys non truck income and it should do well. I predict top two in sales in 1-2 years in the segment. The next shoe is about to drop with the Malibu and it should make a lot of noise in the market. Chevy really has a good line up and only needs to skillfully market now and get the butts in the seats, While it is a risk the diesel is not a major risk. With the Global sales the financial commitment diminishes much. I just wish all those who begged for the car would put the money where their mouths were and buy one. You asked GM to do it so go buy it,

The truth is the Ford F 150 was a total pig to start with and is why they would only compare weight loss to the out going model. The real fact is Ford needs to do some real engineering now they have exhausted the material part of the loss of mass. As for the part they did get right is that they have convinced so many in the public that their trucks have a major advantage because the unwashed masses just assume. This is where GM should hit them right in the truck nutz and state the facts head to head. I would love it if GM picked up the 1 MPG they lack with the V8 over the V6 Turbo and hit Ford with that too. The new Ford is a good truck with out question. The reality is it is not really any better truck than the Chevy and to be honest it may have a hard time keeping up once Chevy applies the lighter materials. Also the truth on repair is coming out as so few shops can deal with it and in the near future repair cost will also show up in the insurance premiums too. While you may be able to replace panels you can not repair them as we do with steal. No paintless repair here as Aluminum has no memory. You get a dent you replace the panel at a higher cost vs. repair. The same applied to the Turbo V6 as Ford has made a killing by generating excitement over the engine. But the MPG is marginal at best by one MPG over the Chevy. Also the cost to buy the engine is more. The only thing the turbo does offer is a flatter torque curve that makes it feel good but is it $1400 better than the Coyote? It is for the profits for Ford. As for payloads that is just a pissing contest for all of them. The fact is most trucks ride empty most of the time and 95% of them never reach even near capacity. So that point is very irrelevant. I think you are seeing the truth on the Colorado and Canyon that people really want more rational sized trucks. I am out of the truck market now because I really have no use for a full size truck as they are. I passed over the Colorado in the past because it was a piece of crap. Today I may get back into the truck segment for a daily driver because of the new smaller truck. As for now I use my father in laws new Z71 if I need to haul something. It is my truck when I need it. It is the best riding full size I have ever driven too. If they could just get rid of the lag in the kick down. I think it is the cylinder drop that causes it. It is 4 time more lag than my turbo. The only thing Ford has won here his they have done a terrific job on marketing with the excitement they have created. GM could do better as they have just as good and even better product but they need to get the word out. This is one area still lacking post Chapter 11 as you can build the best car in the world but you still have to sell it. This applies to Cadillac as they have some compelling cars but the fact so few have even tried or considered them. The Autoweek fantasy camp proved you get their ass behind the wheel they will be impressed. It came away a very convincing number one of the group that consisted of the Germans and some Asian cars. It beat overall in the opinion of the campers the best of Germany. As for Ford they had a lead on GM because they went broke first. They have been rebuilding for 5-6 more years than GM and this gave them a lead. As of now GM is closing the gap and doing it pretty fast considering all they had to do and even while dealing with the ignition issue. The key of late is the money GM just committed to the tech center and proving grounds. This is key as most MFG put more in product vs. development. This investment will pay off much as the CAFE rises and as cars continue to be more competitive. The increase in engineering and GM finally able to fund programs till they are finish vs. just as much as they could afford will make a major difference. I just love how Ford has joined GM to build trannys. Even they know who builds the best transmissions.

In the end it should be the total mass that matters and not the materials. Ford marketing has made everyone think they have invented the DI Turbo and the Aluminum body but they didn't. GM just needs to do a better job marketing their smart and careful engineering as it is very impressive but no one knows about it. Many still are shocked I have a Turbo DI 4 cylinder predating Ford in a 08 HHR. I even have more power than theirs yet today. Ford really has done well with marketing and I can only hope GM catches up there. For once they have something good to market but yet they are still not doing as much marketing as they could or should do. People today are so ignorant as they only know what the latest thing posted on their phone is true or not. Just look at the people who go out and interview people on the street on global news and politics. I just saw some guy ask people about Jon Bonjovi's run for president. They never even caught on to the joke when he said he was livin on a prayer. These soft minds need to be mined and collected with info and excitement for the product anymore. If GM does not do it others will and do it with inferior product at that.

Well sound may have a small marketing part in this but cost is the prime mover not only in building but repair. GM is using all assets to build cars this day and try to retain cost not only for profits but for the sake of saving customers. In todays market with lines like Chevy they still have to provide value and a $45K Malibu would do no one any good. GM is smart engineering as they are reducing weight and doing it the hard way with engineering. It is easy to apply aluminum to a body. I am not sure what all the fuss over the Ford trucks was all about as many automakers have used it for years and most Semi MFG have used it for even longer. Weight in large rigs is lost income so everything from the largest semi to the local UPS or potato chip truck has used it. Cost and repair has always been the issue in the auto segment. As for steel there is so many different grades to use for strength to sound to what ever. Most cars anymore for sound use small pads on the doors to make them not have any resonance from the road or even when they shut they thud better. Sound control today is done so many different ways. Dampening, Electronic etc. The key to the future is the MFG that controls cost and losses the most mass is going to gain a very strong advantage in performance, MPG and the size of their cars. GM's investment so far and the more money they sent to R&D will pay off very much. Ford to me took the easy way out in losing weight and the hard way with dealing with repairs and cost. If they had engineered the weight out on top of the Aluminum they may have really had a real advantage. The old trucks were pigs and the new ones just have a slight advantage on GM who has not even gone to Aluminum yet. With the pending rules that just were announced it will become even a greater challenge and the Colorado may be a God send in the right direction as they move people to a smaller truck.

I expect the mix to be the same as it is now but as the platform is evolved I expect other and more lighter materials to be added. I am looking at the Alpha 2.0 or Omega 2.0 or what ever they call it. But I never expect them to fully go Aluminum for a good while yet to retain cost. I do expect more use of molded composite in the future like the new molded carbon fiber that GM and others have invested in. Look for it in things like Mirrors and the like. I expect they will attack components like this to save weight over the next 5-10 years. Cost are coming down with short and faster production times. The material is cheap just the labor is intensive to make it. Cadillac will see it first with their price point and lower volumes.

As Stated it is about hard points. In the past it was about wheel base like the Camaro, GTO and SS on the Zeta where they were adaptable to a point. With the new models like the Alpha and Omega they are now more adaptable as not only length and wheel base are more varied but also the width is more adaptable now. Now a little more engineering has to go in as they have to rework the geometry of the suspension in some cases like the Camaro and CTS but the general points and parts are similar to save cost. The Omega has taken it to the next level with weight loss as they have taken thing farther with out going totally exotic on all the materials. In the case of both platforms they are looking at every single part as to where they can cut weight. Even things as simple as fasteners that are longer than needed. They found in the Camaro 25 pounds of weight cut just on fastener lengths that were longer than needed. Now they may have to carry more different size fasteners but they need the weight savings more. Once they do move to more aluminum they will drop even more weight. It is not over engineered it is more precise engineered. In the past close enough worked today they have to have more exacting specifications in more areas to exploit strength and lighter weight. Today it is much more possible with computer design as in the past it would have been too expensive and time consuming to do. So because of this you have a CT6 that weighs in at nearly the same weight of a CTS and we will see the CTS in the next gen drop even more weight. The weight loss even on the FWD like on the Malibu with 300 pounds lost and the weight loss on the coming Cruise are major accomplishments. They could have just done Aluminum everything but at the risk of lost profits or higher cost. GM has done it the hard way and it will give them a greater advantage going forward. GM tried this with the Zeta and while it was flexible it just never was to the point they wanted and the weight was still higher than they wanted. Case in point the Camaro was as heavy and large as it was because of the Hard points as they could not move them more than they had. With the new money post chapter 11 GM could take the time and do the job to the point they needed this time. Weight loss is going to be the new race over Horse Power. Companies will work to cut weight and will reap the benefits of it and not just in MPG. The fact is less mass will improve not only MPG but performance, handling and stopping. Because of this they can enhance a car much with out even changing the engine with more HP. I would expect an Alpha II in the near future for the next Gen CTS. It will be bases on the present car but receive much more enhancements to lighten the mass as they have on the Omega. I am not sure we will get the name change but the enhancements will be seen. The next Cruze in some forms under 3000 pounds and the next base Malibu right near that. That is big in todays market. It is all about not over engineering but the details. Little things add up. Lighter seats, fasteners. Panels etc. while yet still holding a 5 star crash rating. Computer design has really changed the industry and it is far from where it is going. 3D printers are now doing things faster than ever for prototyping things to see how it looks or will work.

Drew you are correct as the budget for the CT8 was done when the business case was approved. The CT6 sales will not have any impact on what they do and how much they spend on the CT8. The CT6 was relegated from where Cadillac's destination to another stepping stone. I suspect it was approved back in August when all the noise happened. As for the Omega it has to be leveraged out and Buick will see a version and I even speculate Vauxhall and Holden may get a version. The Omega is much more advanced than the Alpha and the improvements have been put in place. It is more flexible and lighter than GM has let on. I would not be surprised if we do not see a SUV on this at some point and have stated so from the start. It is possible we may even see a Chevy too.

The fact is two things from what I was told. #1 Bench seats are just out of favor to the point it is not worth even offering them. Yes there are some folks who still want them but there are too few to make sense economically. Second in some cars it is the air bags. It is much easier for two bags and two people up front vs. trying to catch two people with the left bag. Same thing applies to many other things like white walls and letters. White rubber has no structure and creates hot spots and normally are relegated to low speed rated vehicles if at all anymore. Automakers have been making faster cars and just do not want the liability even if limited. Few people come out and say this and just play it off as Euro influence but it is more about not getting taken to court. Back seats are a non factor as no bag required.

Yes even you and I can be wrong. Nothing in color? the blue really sets off the car.

Just going by what was on concept cars.com. Anyways this is the car I had in mind what ever it was. It looks much better in a side or rear 3/4 photo in color. This is the worst angle of the car.

Well that is not the car the one I refer too is the two door sedan version of the same color. It has that 4 door coupe like roof line and less formal and much more dramatic and modern. I just checked it was a 1936 Cadillac Aerodynamic coup e is what it was called. It was the production version and was much nicer. The Sixteen is nice but was never meant for production. make the hood shorter and the wheels smaller to where it is realistic and you loose a lot of the things that make it compelling. While you want to draw attention you need to do it in a way that it is still practical. No unrealistically long hoods, no wheels that would add a quarter ton to the weight or any other odd show car traits that just do not translate well to the real world. you have to keep it real. The Sixteen would have been very heavy if produced as it was and not all that easy to drive in places it would be popular like LA.

Thanks. My poster from the Glenmoore Show did not show a date and tried do it from memory.

FYI the CT6 is good but not good enough. Remember the appeal of the Elmirage or the new Buick Avenir when they were shown. Even the competitors offered compliments. This is what they need to do in the CT8 and the rest of the line. Like the feeling you get when viewing a Ferrari Lusso 250 GT that is what needs to be done. So much of todays styling is guided by aero and safety they need to take the time and look at the results and keep the styling to the point you not just see it but feel it inside. Few cars today have compelling styling that make them interesting just to sit and look at. The Avenir accomplished that now it is time for Cadillac to do it with no goofy gimmicks like retro or hard lines.

SMK you really need to go back and learn. GM made enough money to survive in the 90's on trucks but had little to plow into ventures like Hybrids that 15 years ago were a risky move. By the time they proved themselves GM did not have the money to pay attention. When they drop cars like the Camaro because they had little money to invest in a new platform because of crash standards it was very telling of their condition. GM had been hemorrhaging money since the 70'S and like market share at some point it runs out no matter how large you are. Toyota had the money to risk and it paid off. Today the models are here and growing so it is not longer an issue. The new Malibu and CT6 will be leading edge and show it does not have to look like a Science experiment. Cmicasa A&E was a Freudian slip. I caught the others. As for the CTS, ATS and CT6 as building blocks I once agreed but today that has changed. Today they are a foundation that was placed but the house to be built upon them is no longer the same house. We now have more money to build a better house so the present models are no longer going to evolve as they once were projected. The ATS and CTS will see major changes much sooner than most anticipate and will take a step up to where they are not just meeting the others but besting them in all areas. I expect the styling also to change some. First until there is a Euro market there will be no wagons. Americans hate wagons and there is just no money there till Europe is on line. No matter how you feel reality is just too much in the way. The convertible well It would be nice and wonderful but yet again too little profit for the time and money expended for right now. The efforts into a better CUV and SUV models will pave the way here to not just a Convertible coupe but very likely a small roadster too. A company like Cadillac first needs to master the basics on their comeback. They need to be the best in Sedan, SUV and CUV. They offer coupe now of which I have only seen one on the road and I was driving it. Once they become profitable in these other segments and convince people to buy them in the most popular segments the less popular segments are non starters. They need to get people to drive these cars and realize this is not another false GM start of the past. This will take time and marketing that just has started a few months ago. Just look at the photos in advertising as they now have the best photos of the CTS and ATS I have ever seen. They truly look enticing. Low 3/4 rear shots in the right lighting. For now GM will have to lose some to the other MFG as they can not yet do it all as well as needed. Sure they could rush out some slow selling low volume models and end up like the Golden Corral of automobiles. Sure Golden Corral is one of the few places you can get about anything you want but all of it is half assed. All you wish and dream of is coming but you have to let it happen in the time it will happen. You have to walk before you can run and that is just what Cadillac is doing. They are coming from an era few divisions could have survived with what was equal to two broken legs and a broken arm. Today they are making that comeback but like someone in rehab it takes work and time. If you try to rush it you risk damage that could set you back fatally. The key to all this was GM getting the right people in place and the money to let them do their work. We got that 10 months ago. To me they have been moving pretty fast already even though much of what they are doing is not visible to outsiders. The Convertible you desire could have been out next year but what if they are planning to do it now on the new CTS or ATS? Sure it may add 3 more years but why spend the money on the model you are moving away from and put it ino the one that is your building block. I get the vibes once they move to the CT4 and 5 we will see more variation. Lets face it the CT6 is the car Mark Ruess had to fight those over him in trying to get better more expensive door handles. He lost. Today he was able to get them to agree to the proper funding and the proper people to pull this off. The results will be much more dramatic in the end. For the most part the Cadillac and the direction it was moving was blown up last year and now we are at a major reset where the in progress models will be finished and many that were not as far along will be reset. I believe the SRX replacement was delayed to make it better than it was originally projected. There was no other reason to delay it. There have been some internal battles being fought and I think the good guys won and while it will cost some time it will pay off in the end.

SMK you have to consider what has and is taking place. #1 GM had no money so we had the W for way too long. #2 The CUV and SUV segments have been hotter than hot and the CUV has passed up the best selling car the sedan in volume last year. It is not the lack of confidence but the allocation of money and man power to where the greatest return is. People today love the CUV and it will continue to grow. Cadillac will have two new ones soon and both will make more many than anything else they could put fourth. No one ignored hybrids but with the expense involved and the lack of money it was hard to invest. Now GM is on the other side we have seen a major growth of them in GM and it will continue. They are years ahead of Chrysler who had as none and Ford who have a few but none that are all that exciting. Coupe and convertible sales are niche anymore and while it will be nice to have them later you must first face the needed product you need to generate revenue and maximize profits with allocation of man power to projects that will proved the capital that will help produce these fun segment products. I love how people scream about diesels, Wagons, Coupes and Convertibles but seldom factor in the numbers sold and profits realized. The fact is these are added profits not profit centers and are secondary concerns. Fix the profit centers first and the rest will come. Build smart and your head not your heart.

I still go back to the old Saturday Night Evening Post ad for my inspiration. "The Penalty Of Leadership" I gave it to my boss a German car enthusiast and he even had it framed and hung on his office wall. Read it if not familiar. It was the Dare Greatly of 100 years ago.

Casa Cadillac has made many more direction changes and have yet to get their sedans even where they need to be. A very limited Convertible would be nice but have so little impact till they get the rest of the line ready. The fact is people may come in to look at the convertible but leave with a reality sedan most times. The Camaro is well advanced and established as the segment leader and is a well established coupe model on a single model. At Cadillac there is so much more that is needed before we worry about a car that may sell less than 3,000 units. Priorities and good solid product comes before the niche products.

First off we need to step back here and understand this is the first of the new Cadillac cars done by people from the segment that it is intended for. Too long Cadillac has had people running things that were not of the global society segment. Today Cadillac now has people in charge with international taste and luxury backgrounds. The first step is for dramatic and compelling design and I do not mean polarizing A&E hard lines. Cadillac has done well with A&E to attract attention but today they need to attract buyers. Nothing sells a car better than a design well done. Cadillac already has the mechanical pretty much right and even the interiors are nearly spot on accept for the Cue that is now having it's interphase sorted out. First off I would not expect what is in the photo here as they are basing it on a car that was a show car and will be about 6-7 years old by production time. It may hold elements of their direction but do not expect a Elmirage sedan. We also need to stop using the CT6 as a measuring stick. The CT6 is much like the XTS and a car to advance Cadillac but yet does not represent the future of Cadillac as it is the last of the old regime. The division made it clear that the CT6 was no longer a flag ship but they were not in a position to say it was no longer the future of Cadillac at this point. So at this point the CT6 is only here to advance Cadillac and do no harm but it is not where all this is going anymore. Now back to design. GM needs to make this as I have said a compelling car that makes you feel it inside when you look at it. Returning to the hard lines of the A&E are not going to do that as they are so very polarizing. They need a well done, stylish model that uses nothing from Benz, Audi and BMW in the design. It must remain true to itself. It also may do away with some hallmarks that have defined Cadillac but yet it must still be recognized as a Cadillac even if it had no emblems. It must be loaded with the highest quality materials of a nature we have not seen at GM for years. No more lowest bidder contracted parts. It also mush have the highest standards of quality and reliability. technology must be relevant, sorted and on the leading edge. In the past they have been leading edge but never well sorted in cases like the 8-6-4 and night vision. The CT8 must show case the new Cadillac engines too. This will help set them apart. It must be powerful but not necessarily a sport sedan by any means as that will be left to the AT 4-5-6. Benz has been the car of kings. Porsche has racing heritage what does Cadillac have. They do have a extensive history as the best car of the 30's and 40's that survived. They did it on many of the things I pointed out above. They can fall back on some of their history to show where they once were and where they are returning to. The Cadillac that I feel sums up the future of Cadillac is the 1936 Worlds Fair Series 90 Aero-Dynamic Coupe Style 5859 Fleetwood look it up. I have seen this car inside and out and it was to 1936 what the 2020 CT8 needs to be. It held all these points I have made and was the panicle of Cadillac's history. It was advance but not polarizing, It was dramatic with out being silly. It has flow to the design and with the grill was not mistaken for anything but a Cadillac. It also held the most advanced engineering of the day. It was a no compromise car. This kind of lighting was man made and can once again be captured in a Bottle or in this case sheet mental and Aluminum. To be the standard you must set the standard. No more bench marking and meeting the standard it must be exceeded. On another not anyone notice the Autoweek issue where they held a fantasy camp with some of the best sport sedans in the world. The cars all competed and the winner by a large margin was the ATSV. Most all were very shocked and impressed on how well the car performed in all situations track or road. Many stated they would love to own one. I hope Cadillac uses this in their marketing. This is proof if they can get ass's behind the wheel they can convert many buyers. At this point they cried wolf so many times people just do not realize where we are today. Even some true Cadillac fans here who have not driven a CTS or ATS today have no idea we finally have the real thing. Perfect no but well on the way to becoming what they always aspired to be. By the way the next 5 years will encompass product that will advance Cadillac and do no harm but the real change will be the CT8 as it will be the first model of the true future. Till then the rest is clean up on what those who are no longer there have done.

The driver is not going to be replaced very soon. If and when one of these systems fail and kill someone it may also be short lived due to litigation. This is a difficult thing to do and it may get so complicated that it may not be worth the hassle. People fail but it is so much different when machines fail.

Bud it was just good marketing. If it were a Mustang you would be tenting up right now. LOL! God we really have run this one beyond the final call.

Kabong I would stay they have thrown out the good products and that is why they have what they have. But the cars before this were not any better. The last real Lincoln was around 57-58 Continental. I drove a 51 once that was nice too.

T movies If you mean Terminators I am not sure I fell asleep after the second one. On the whole I would rather watch Grand Prix in Surround sound. The sound track alone is great.

Throwing out good product till it sticks? That has not really worked at Lincoln has it? May be it was not really good product either? Big sunroofs on a Taurus make not a Luxury car.

Autobots unite! Bumble Bee remove the Wings from 4 life. I really was disappointed in the last movie but still liked it. GM made a great move here and one of the best since Smokey and the Bandit. Ford has had their movies too so stop pissing and moaning. You must be running out of real substantiated comments? As for time there is only so much time and so much man power. 5 years for each new model. GM and Ford both have commited recently to Cadillac and Lincoln so it will take time for then to reach their destination. In the mean time GM has several CUV and SUV models coming in the next two years. To make their mark in this market they need to really make compellingly styled cars that hold all the advanced technology they can supply that is fully sorted out. The way to attract customers at Cadillac is styling. I hope the Elmirage is a signal of where this is going as that car would sell on looks alone. Add in the highest quality of materials and technology and you will make a compelling argument to bring people to the show rooms. Lets face it Hyundai has sold a lot of car based on styling after they sold several series of cars that were not really to the level you could call ok quality in the 90's. They improved the cars but attracted the people to the new models with styling that could not be resisted by many. Not saying Cadillac is bad now but it is not as compelling as it could be. Also the models all look too similar just in different sizes. I think if they take it from good styling to the kind of styling you would love to hand wash because of the curves of the sheet metal it will attract a lot of attention. The strongest sense that is stimulated with an Automobile is sight. If done right you feel it in your soul right inside. A Ferrari Lusso 250 GT is one car that can stir the soul. Now don't get silly and get outrageous but it is time to be compelling and stirring to the visual sense. Put that on a world class platform with a world class engine and you will sell a lot more cars. Now I am not saying to go back to the A&S hard edges. You want to be stylish but not controversial. We have already done that and need to move on.