Edmunds CarPool

I spent the better part of last week up in Napa, California, driving around in the soon-to-be-released 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe. Rough life, I know, but I managed to survive. Here are some of my initial thoughts...

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Categories: Cadillac, Test Car Notes

Editor's Note: After this blog post was published I was contacted by a Cadillac representative who told me the Chevrolet Equinox and Cadillac SRX are not based off the same platform. The rep also told me he could provide an Equinox and SRX at the same time at a shop (with a vehicle lift) to point out the lack of common achitecture. I took him up on the offer and will happily report the findings after said event. 

So Mr. Riswick beat me to the punch on 2010 Cadillac SRX coverage for CarPool, but I took a cool photo of the crossover on California's cost, and I refuse to let it go to waste! So there, that's my test car notes entry.

Alright, alright -- I'll provide more than just a pretty picture here, which actually makes a good segway into how I feel about this latest SRX. Cadillac's new crossover is more than just a pretty version of the Equinox or Terrain. The GM folks hate it when anyone suggests there's a connection between cars like the Equinox and SRX, but I'm pretty sure the Caddy's platform didn't just materialize out of thin air.

Obviously there's a relationship between the two, but you can't tell from driving either one, and that's the real trick. In today's automotive marketplace every division within a car company can't have a clean slate from which to make its models. Economic reality requires shared resouces, but if the end product doesn't scream "Rebadge!" it's all good.

The new SRX doesn't even murmur "rebadge." 

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Categories: Cadillac, Test Car Notes

I've driven from Los Angeles to Las Vegas numerous times over the years in a wide variety of different vehicles: Honda Pilot, Dodge Journey, Lexus IS 350C F-Sport, Toyota Prius, my Jetta VR6, our Saturn Aura and our Nissan GT-R just to name a few. And that's not counting all the Fuel-Sipper Smackdown cars.

While I probably need to give "my favorite" nod to the GT-R (nothing like passing left lane hoggers with its jet-like thrust), the 2010 Cadillac SRX 2.8T is a solid second place. I will admit this title says more about the questionable quality of my past rides, but the SRX nevertheless proved to be an excellent choice for the trip.

Here are some highlights:

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Categories: Cadillac, Thoughts from the Curb

Produced from 2004 to 2009, the Cadillac XLR is a classic case of a car that had a lot going for it but never quite got the love due to stiff competition and a stiff price tag. Let's face it, battling the iconic Mercedes SL is like trying to beat Superman in an arm wrestling match. The upside is that used XLRs for relatively short money are plentiful. Note that I'm focusing on the standard XLR here. I purposely left out the ultra-high performance XLR-V as it is much more expensive, much more rare and much more than most luxury roadster fans could possibly need. 

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Categories: Cadillac, Dream Car Corner, Rants & Musings

If you've been reading my "Karl on Cars" blog entries for any length of time, you already know how I feel about modern vehicles. Essentially, there are no truly "bad" cars today. Sure, there are some subpar cars, but even they aren't truly bad.

(I could Focus on such vehicles, but that would be a low Caliber and unPatriotic approach to this topic, and might annoy people living in Colorado -- or in a Canyon. BTW, Cobalt blue is a nice color).

Anyway, saying there are no truly bad cars isn't news, but I think we've hit another paradigm shift in the last 12 months or so: There are an increasing number of downright great cars.

Sure, the "just fine" part of the graph is still the fattest, but the top part (representing "great cars") is taking on mass and could threaten to topple the whole thing over if things keep going in this direction.

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Categories: BMW, Cadillac, Dodge, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Karl on Cars, Lexus, Volkswagen

Let me make one thing clear in the second sentence of this column. I am not saying GM has already pulled off a successful turnaround.

But events of the last few weeks have established a momumental realization (at least for me): I think it's possible GM might actually pull off a successful turnaround. You know what they say, 12th time's the charm.

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Categories: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Domestic Manufacturers Problems/Challenges, GMC, Talk Back Tuesday

"Oh...um...sorry to bother you...disembodied OnStar voice. Hope I didn't interrupt any truly important calls."

That's my first reaction whenever I hear that OnStar "ding" followed by "OnStar Ready" in a GM vehicle. And that's why my apprehension level goes up when I see that OnStar button under the rearview mirror.

See, I like to think of myself as relatively self-sufficient. Sure, I'll ask for help but I have to really need it first. However, on a semi-regular basis, when I'm in an OnStar-equipped car I find myself unintentionally activating the system, which in turn causes tremendous guilt because I feel I'm bothering an OnStar employee who could be helping another driver, maybe even someone with a true emergency.

I'll give you a few examples:

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Categories: Buick, Cadillac, Car Audio and Technology, Chevrolet, GMC, Safety Systems, Talk Back Tuesday

General Motors introduced its latest sales incentive/ad campaign yesterday -- a 60-day money-back guarantee with a "May the Best Car Win" attitude.

If you saw the new commercial about this program (in heavy rotation during the NFL season kick-off on Sunday) you saw (and heard) a plain-talking GM Chairman, Ed Whitacre, talking about how "Before I started this job, I admit, I had some doubts." But Mr. Whitacre likes what he found at GM, and he thinks "Car for car, when compared to the competition, we win."

There are two key elements to this latest ad campaign:

1. Are GM's cars really as good or better than the competition?

2. Can GM convince a substantial amount of potential customers its cars are as good or better than the competition?

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Categories: Buick, Cadillac, Car Buying Advice, Chevrolet, GMC, Talk Back Tuesday

It doesn't get much more turbulent in the automobile industry than the last 24 hours, and a little birdie told me there's plenty more coming in the next couple weeks, not to mention the next 24 hours...

But for now let's focus on what we know.

We know Rick Wagoner is gone. It doesn't matter if you agree or disagree with how he ran GM. It doesn't matter if you think his dismissal was prudent change or simple posturing (one guess as to what I think). The bottom line is he's viewed as the man at the wheel when GM steered into the sun, and the president's administration wanted a "fresh" approach.

We know Obama wasn't satisfied with either Chrysler or GM's viability plans and has asked for a "do over" from both. The president seems fired up by the idea of a Chrysler/Fiat merger (more fired up than he should be?), but he was nebulous about GM's next steps. It seems "go futher" and "work harder" on restructuring is the only concrete takeaway.

We know the president left open the concept of bankruptcy as a possible pathway to viability in his speech. After the speech GM's new CEO, Fritz Henderson, reiterated the bankruptcy option and spoke of likely government aid to expedite bankruptcy proceedings.

Finally, we know the government is now guaranteeing the warranties on all domestic automobiles. This is good because it means current and potential new domestic car owners can be comfortable knowing the government has backed up their vehicles (versus leaving them "out to dry" on warranty work).

Add these indisputable facts up and I think we all know something else: A GM bankruptcy is inevitable. 

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Categories: Automotive News, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Domestic Manufacturers Problems/Challenges, GMC, Hummer, Pontiac, Saturn, Talk Back Tuesday

I just read this New York Times article about the financial problem enveloping the domestic automakers. It discusses many of the challenges facing them, all of which we've heard before (slowing sales, costly production, too many dealers and brands, etc.). 

But the author also takes a close look at what bankruptcy would mean for GM and the other domestics. In short, "Bankruptcy sucks as a way to achieve real business resolution." As an example the story offers Delphi, a company 4 years into the process of bankruptcy with no clear end in sight. GM's size, and challenges, are far larger than Delphi's, and the complexities involved in using bankruptcy to solve GM's problems are difficult to even fathom.

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Categories: Automotive News, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Domestic Manufacturers Problems/Challenges, Talk Back Tuesday

I spent last week vacationing in the Denver area, but on two separate occasions my vacation was interrupted when work came a callin' in the form of disguised test mules (or prototype vehicles) undergoing high altitude testing.

On Tuesday of last week I spotted a taped-up 2009 Mercedes-Benz CLK driving on the C-470 loop from south Denver to I70 (where it promptly headed up into the mountains while I head down into Wheat Ridge). It was being tailed by a C320 and both cars wore numerous antennas to record sensor data. 

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Categories: Cadillac, Future Vehicles, Mercedes-Benz, Talk Back Tuesday

If you saw last Friday's blog you know that the Jaguar XF Supercharged comes standard with 20-inch wheels, and in my opinion those wheels reduce ride quality to an unacceptable level. The car's confidence around corners is undeniably enhanced by such large orbs, and many would say it's appearance benefits as well. Yet I would argue the car could/should handle exceptionally without wheels of this diameter. As for style, the large circles are actually too large in my not-so-humble opinion, further compromising the XF's already questionable looks.

However, in a world where entire TV shows can be named after automotive wheels it may be heresy to suggest a uniqe whip could actually be...too large? But I'm suggesting it all the same. The Jaguar XF by no means owns this "excessive rim" status. The new Dodge Challenger with 20-inch wheels? Too big! Makes the car sit too high, giving it more of a "monster truck" versus "performance car" stance.

Same goes for the 20-inch wheels on high-end luxury sedans like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and the 22-inch rims on Cadillac Escalades both of them make the vehicles in question look like one of those circus clowns on stilts IMHO. Conversely, the 20s on the Rolls-Royce Phantom neither look too big (likey because it has such large proportions to begin with) nor upset the ulta-luxury sedan's ride quality. Consider the Rolls the rare exception, as I'd argue it's nearly impossible to put 20-inch wheels (or larger) on a vehicle without drastically sacrficing ride quality.

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Categories: Cadillac, Dodge, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, Talk Back Tuesday

"Why doesn't Ford bring back the Zephyr?"

I can't believe anyone ever actually said this, but lo and behold that paragon of 1970s Mercury style and performance did return in 2006 -- as a Lincoln. Actually, the Zephyr was originally a 1930s-era Lincoln before it was a '70s Mercury, but how many people know (or care) about that? Should Ford have revived this nameplate? I guess its staying power (Lincoln changed that model's name to MKZ after one year) is answer enough.

I was recently thinking about dead nameplates that should not come back after someone brought up Edsel in conversation. I'm assuming Ford will never revive that nameplate, and I don't expect to see the words "Aztek," "Chevette" or "Volare" on a future model, either. But then again, who would have predicted the rise of "Aspen" from the automotive underworld. Which brings up today's burning question:

What dead vehicle nameplates do you most fear the return of? In my opinion there are two reasons for a nameplate to never come back: (A) it's associated with a horrendous vehicle (Aztek) or (B) it was a horrendous name itself, regardless of the vehicle it was affixed to (Probe).

Here are my Top 5:

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Categories: Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Toyota

More seat time in the 2008 Cadillac CTS has only cemented my choice of assigning it the bulk of my voting points for the 2008 North American Car of the Year title. Of course the Chevrolet Malibu won, and given its "everyman" nature (and pricing) I can't really argue the point.

But this Cadillac CTS is still the car that most impressed me as an all-new model for 2008 (plus it's not a knock-off of an existing model, ala Saturn Aura). Probably the smartest thing Cadillac did was to tap the same German supplier that BMW uses for suspension and steering components. That ZF Sachs underpins the CTS is obvious every time you turn the wheel and feel that Germanic, BMW-like weightiness imbuing the car with un-Cadillac-like confidence and poise.

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Categories: Cadillac