Cadillac joins the free scheduled maintenance wars by offering a 4-year/50,000-mile program called Cadillac Premium Care Maintenance. The one up on recently announced Lincoln’s program includes scheduled oil changes, tire rotation, engine and cabin air filters and a vehicle inspection. Cadillac stayed away from wear and tear coverage but the 4-year/50,000-mile deal will catch on with customers.
From AutoNews.com:
Cadillac said today it would offer free scheduled maintenance on its 2011 model year vehicles as part of its effort to improve customer service — and to match similar offers being made by other luxury brands.
The 4-year/50,000-mile program is called Cadillac Premium Care Maintenance and includes scheduled oil changes, tire rotation, engine and cabin air filters and a vehicle inspection.
Last week, Lincoln announced a similar free maintenance program for 2010 and 2011 models but only for vehicles purchased and leased through Sept. 7. Lincoln’s program is for 3 years/45,000 miles.
Cadillac has one sleek and elegant ride in the upcoming XTS if it’s to be real close to the concept. The Beijing auto show was fortunate to have this beauty in it’s presence and when it hits the road my guess is that sales will be strong. The interior is off the charts and hopefully an engine that resonates with buyers is part of the package.
From AutoGuide.com:
Ever since a report a few weeks back that Cadillac had signed off on production of the XTS Concept, execs at GM’s luxury arm have tried to deny any such thing. But last week GM decided to showcase the car at the Beijing Auto Show, and have released a gallery of new photos – indicating the XTS is moving ahead.
Looks like the Cadillac Converj prototype won’t see the production line and that’s a real shame. This concept ws one of the most talked about vehicles and now GM will literally pull the plug on any plans get this beaut in garages around America. Once Bob Lutz is officially retired it would be to get the full story on this decision.
From AutoGuide.com:
Cadillac’s beautiful plug-in hybrid concept car will remain a great idea, but nothing more. According to a report by Automotive News, GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz wrote in a text message that the Converj, first shown at the Detroit Auto Show in 2009 and well-received by the media, won’t be headed for production.
Lutz wrote that, “priorities and the conviction that the Volt and Ampera will use all available capacity for years to come,” mean that the Converj project has been canceled. This comes as somewhat of a surprise, as it was thought that a higher output version of the Volt’s motor, fitted into a Cadillac, would not only be appealing to consumers, but would also make for a profitable business case. The higher profit margins and higher dollar value of a Cadillac would help cover the cost of the expensive high-technology powertrain.
Cadillac will launch the all new XTS in 2012 as a single replacement for both the STS and DTS. From what we can see this is going to be a sweet ride!
From the Detroit News:
Cadillac has been tamed — in a green sort of way.
The days of a plush Cadillac powered by a massive gasoline-fired engine with 16 cylinders appear to be over.
Instead, General Motors Co.’s luxury division today displayed its idea of what a hybrid should be with the introduction of the XTS Platinum plug-in hybrid concept.
Packed full of conveniences, the sedan is expected to hit the market in 2012 as a single replacement for both the STS and DTS.
I had a conversation today with Bryan Nesbitt, General Manager of Cadillac, about the direction of the brand, and here’s what he wanted us to know: Caddy wants us back. (”Us” being young, affluent males.) And they are taking some big steps in the right direction to get us back.
Check out the 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe. Based on the popular CTS sedan, the new 2-door (hitting dealerships next fall), is sleeker, sexier, and has enough eyeball to turn the heads of the women whose heads we want to turn.
The car looks pretty sweet, and you can see more photos at his site. Caddy might have a winner here.
As a proud Lincoln owner, I know that they’ve been making great cars for years. The LS was a great vehicle, and the new MKZ is a great sedan as well. The MKS, the new flagship vehicle, is a beast that would satisfy most Lexus buyers with its styling and performance. Now they’ve added the new MKT crossover (pictured above) to the mix.
Generation X, often referred to as the “slacker generation,” has shed that stereotype and now is a coveted consumer group at the top of its earning potential, Ford Motor Co. officials say.
With pockets flush with cash, consumers born between 1965 and 1976 are the target of Ford’s Lincoln brand, which is trying to reinvent itself after years of giving ground in the profitable luxury segment.
“We have an aging owner body, and we have the ability to move it in the right direction and get younger,” Matt VanDyke-marketing communications director, tells Ward’s at a recent media event here.
“To think we could flip over and get young 20-somethings into a luxury product at this point and consider Lincoln is something that I think is too much of a stretch,” he says.
Lincoln brass spent considerable time determining the unique makeup of Gen Xers, which VanDyke defines as being in their mid-30s to mid-40s. Unlike traditional luxury buyers, these consumers don’t want to appear “ostentatious.” Rather, they are “folks that are time-starved and look at luxury as something that makes their life simple and easier.”
How are they approaching this? One is an emphasis on technology. The design of the cars evokes a high-tech feeling that bears little resemblance to older Lincolns, yet it’s not as edgy as the recent Cadillac designs so boomer buyers should feel comfortable as well. The other part of the strategy involves music. The campaign’s TV spots feature music that the Gen X group finds nostalgic. The ad for the Lincoln MKS features a remake of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” while the ad for the Lincoln MKT uses a version of the 1980s classic “Under the Milky Way,” by Australian alternative rock band The Church. Check out a clip of the video below.
The strategy makes sense. I remember the Cadillac ad several years ago featuring the Led Zeppelin song. Music can help to reposition a brand, so Lincoln seems to be on the right track.
The Cadillac CTS-V held the record for the fastest lap by a sedan at Nürburgring since May 9, 2008, but now that time has been beaten by the Porsche Panamera Turbo. Of course, as pointed out by AutoGuide.com, the Caddy costs about half of what you’ll pay for the Porsche.
That said, Porsche has to be pleased by the performance of this beautiful sedan.
The GM restructuring raises the stakes for Cadillac, one of the four brands that will survive the GM bankruptcy. The Detroit News explains that while the brand still has some challenges, quality has improved and the brand has other factors going for it as well.
Under bankruptcy, Cadillac will be able to cut its dealers from 1,500 to 500, enabling the survivors to reduce discounts and become more profitable.
Cadillac is revamping its lineup, too. It is developing a large sedan, the XTS, to replace the STS and aging DTS cars. It will build a small car to compete in the segment dominated by BMW’s 3 Series.
It is now launching the SRX crossover with taillights that evoke glamorous fins of the past.
Next month, Cadillac will roll out a CTS wagon and a coupe next year. “You’ll see us playing in all those segments,” Hill said.
By many measures, Cadillac holds its own against the top-tier luxury brands. “They’re there in quality,” Csere said. “Some models are absolutely there in styling.” The CTS-V, the performance version, “is perfectly capable of running with a BMW M5 or a Mercedes E63 AMG.”
Alexander Edwards, a partner at the San Diego consulting firm Strategic Vision, said Cadillac scores well in surveys measuring “things gone right” — features that appeal to customers, as opposed to the absence of flaws. In the latest survey, it beat out Lexus and BMW, he said.
In this year’s J.D. Power and Associates’ Initial Quality Study surveying new car owners, Cadillac came in third place, behind only Porsche and Lexus.
With its new vehicles, Cadillac is picking off import buyers like Oscar Cabrera, a salesman at Credit Suisse’s fixed-income trading desk in Boston. He and his wife went for Japanese models until three months ago, when they bought an SRX for $36,000. “It came down to the features and price. I like the car,” Cabrera said. “The interior is very nice. It feels very high end.”
Still, while Cadillac has improved its vehicles, analysts say the brand is not clearly defined.
Compared with the German carmakers, it has a lineup of models that bear little relation to one another, from the cushy DTS sedan favored by an older crowd, to the Escalade SUV that attracts superstar athletes and the crisp-handling, rear-wheel-drive CTS.
“You know what BMW stands for, and what Mercedes stands for. Cadillac is all over the lot,” said Art Spinella, president of CNW Research in Bandon, Ore. “They have to decide how to make that lineup cohesive.”
It’s easier to market vehicles when the brand is well defined, he said, and it costs less.
Cadillac also lags in showcasing advanced technology. It rolled out a plug-in hybrid concept at this year’s Detroit auto show, the Converj, with a drivetrain similar to that of the Chevrolet Volt. But, says Howell, “that’s not a project you’ll see in the next couple of years.”
Similar considerations led GM to drop the $80,000-plus XLR sportscar. “Part of that’s driven by the economic situation GM’s in,” Howell said.
The article goes on to explain how Cadillac will not be a major player in Europe, where competition is very tough, and will instead focus on emerging markets like China and Russia. That makes sense for the long term.
