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Thursday, May 5, 2011
Update: Our spy shooters have nabbed several great new pictures of the XTS, including an interior shot, so we’ve updated the story below. Additionally, this article previously ran with a few shots of another future Caddy in the mix. Those pictures are of the smaller ATS; fresh images of that car are here.
We’ve known for some time that Cadillac is working on a smaller rear-wheel-drive car to battle the BMW 3-series, likely to be called ATS. Other intel has recently uncovered plans to crown the brand’s range with something big.
Big Cars Can Beget Big Sales
The car seen here isn’t the latter model, but it is big. Previewed by a concept of the same name and seen here lightly camo’d, the XTS is a large, front-wheel-drive sedan that’s set to replace the aging STS and for-the-aged DTS. Yeah, we had relegated those cars to the back of our minds, too, but as irrelevant as they may seem, Cadillac still needs a bigger-than-CTS sedan; together, the STS and DTS still make up a decent chunk of Cadillac’s U.S. sales—about 16 percent in 2010. That, and the Chinese market will eat this thing up. (We’ve heard some rumors that the name may be changed to ETS for production, so don’t be too surprised if that happens.)
The Buick LaCrosse will lend a hand—or, more precisely, a platform—sharing its Epsilon II underpinnings. The XTS is likely to be the longest Epsilon-based car, quite possibly outdoing the LaCrosse’s 197.0-inch stem-to-stern measurement. The 3.6-liter, direct-injection V-6 that’s also used in the CTS will be the only engine at first. Later, Cadillac will add a hybrid version, possibly a plug-in, using the front-drive two-mode system briefly offered on the Saturn Vue. A smaller, less powerful V-6 and a turbocharged six making well over 300 hp also are possibilities for the future, as is the addition of all-wheel drive.
Concept Shape Retained, Interior Shaping Up Nicely
As far as extra-stretched Buicks go, the XTS looks pretty good. At least covered in camo, this mule looks a lot less ungainly (more gainly?) than the XTS Platinum concept. The greenhouse shape is similar to that of the concept; a skillful tape artist has obfuscated the detail, but it’s pretty clear that the backlight’s angle has been preserved, draping back over the trunk and likely hiding the cargo compartment’s bigness. Under the front camouflage, it appears this mule is wearing a spiffier grille that’s very similar to the concept, complete with a single section of the egg crate appearing on its chin.
While the concept’s proportions may not have been graceful, its interior was, and we’re delighted to see a center stack in these spy photos that looks a lot like the concept’s. Note the lack of physical buttons and switches, meaning this brightly-trimmed interface is going touch-sensitive like Lincoln’s controversial MyLincoln Touch. On that large central screen, we’re expecting to see a version of GM’s recently announced, MyLink infotainment system. Hopefully it will be accompanied by a few unique features for this big, not-a-flagship sedan.
As to when we might see the results and what’s wrapped around the new cabin, we expect the car to show up within the year. The “where” is a little more tricky; Cadillac may decide to unveil it at a Chinese auto show or one on our turf. We’ll let you know when it happens.
We’ve known for some time that Cadillac is working on a smaller rear-wheel-drive car to battle the BMW 3-series, likely to be called ATS. Other intel has recently uncovered plans to crown the brand’s range with something big.
Big Cars Can Beget Big Sales
The car seen here isn’t the latter model, but it is big. Previewed by a concept of the same name and seen here lightly camo’d, the XTS is a large, front-wheel-drive sedan that’s set to replace the aging STS and for-the-aged DTS. Yeah, we had relegated those cars to the back of our minds, too, but as irrelevant as they may seem, Cadillac still needs a bigger-than-CTS sedan; together, the STS and DTS still make up a decent chunk of Cadillac’s U.S. sales—about 16 percent in 2010. That, and the Chinese market will eat this thing up. (We’ve heard some rumors that the name may be changed to ETS for production, so don’t be too surprised if that happens.)
The Buick LaCrosse will lend a hand—or, more precisely, a platform—sharing its Epsilon II underpinnings. The XTS is likely to be the longest Epsilon-based car, quite possibly outdoing the LaCrosse’s 197.0-inch stem-to-stern measurement. The 3.6-liter, direct-injection V-6 that’s also used in the CTS will be the only engine at first. Later, Cadillac will add a hybrid version, possibly a plug-in, using the front-drive two-mode system briefly offered on the Saturn Vue. A smaller, less powerful V-6 and a turbocharged six making well over 300 hp also are possibilities for the future, as is the addition of all-wheel drive.
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As far as extra-stretched Buicks go, the XTS looks pretty good. At least covered in camo, this mule looks a lot less ungainly (more gainly?) than the XTS Platinum concept. The greenhouse shape is similar to that of the concept; a skillful tape artist has obfuscated the detail, but it’s pretty clear that the backlight’s angle has been preserved, draping back over the trunk and likely hiding the cargo compartment’s bigness. Under the front camouflage, it appears this mule is wearing a spiffier grille that’s very similar to the concept, complete with a single section of the egg crate appearing on its chin.
While the concept’s proportions may not have been graceful, its interior was, and we’re delighted to see a center stack in these spy photos that looks a lot like the concept’s. Note the lack of physical buttons and switches, meaning this brightly-trimmed interface is going touch-sensitive like Lincoln’s controversial MyLincoln Touch. On that large central screen, we’re expecting to see a version of GM’s recently announced, MyLink infotainment system. Hopefully it will be accompanied by a few unique features for this big, not-a-flagship sedan.
As to when we might see the results and what’s wrapped around the new cabin, we expect the car to show up within the year. The “where” is a little more tricky; Cadillac may decide to unveil it at a Chinese auto show or one on our turf. We’ll let you know when it happens.
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