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Cadillac LTS flagship to bow at NY Auto Show

There is widespread agreement across the industry that Cadillac needs a proper, rear-drive flagship sedan that completes legitimately with the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Audi A8 and BMW 7 Series.
Fortunately, the same view is held within the company, and just such a car - possibly dubbed LTS - is under development. According to a high-level source at Cadillac, the new four-door, which is said to incorporate design cues from the marque's celebrated Elmiraj coupe concept, will debut at the New York Auto Show next April.
If the car needs a cheerleader, surely incoming president Johan de Nysschen is just such a person. De Nysschen doesn't arrive at Cadillac until late in the month, but certainly he will want a proper flagship to do battle with his old foes at Mercedes-Benz and BMW and old friends at Audi and Infiniti.

Despite De Nysschen saying it won't, Cadillac cuts struggling CTS prices

Ah, well that didn't last long. Not even two years after elevating the price of the then-new third-generation Cadillac CTS by $7,000, the company is now stepping back, telling dealers it will be slashing the price of the 2015 model by anywhere from $1,000 to $3,000. It seems that there are two reasons behind Cadillac's move. First, and most obviously, are its slumping sales, down seven percent last year. That figure is made worse, Automotive News reports, by the seven-percent gain made by the greater luxury market, not to mention gains from fellow American luxury brand Lincoln. Cadillac, meanwhile, also likely faced pressure from its dealer body, which AN reports hasn't been so keen on the price increases. The price reduction is something of a surprise following statements made by Cadillac President Johan de Nysschen shortly after he took office. In September of last year, the 54-year-old exec, who took charge of Cadillac in July of 2014, defended the company's decision to raise prices, telling Automotive News a price cut was "not going to happen." It seems current conditions contradict de Nysschen's statements, though. "We're taking what we've seen are the more desirable optional features for customers and making them more readily available," Cadillac's Dave Caldwell said of the price cut. "Once a car has been on the market for a while, it's not unusual to look at the customer behavior and try to optimize for it." In what's sure to be a pleasant surprise for anyone in the market for a CTS, the most expensive models are getting the biggest price cut, with the price on the Premium and Performance Collection sedans dropping $3,000, AN reports. The 2.0T will get a $2,000 drop, while certain optional extras will now be standard on the Luxury trim, including a panoramic sunroof, navigation and Bose stereo.

GM's redesigned full-size 2021 SUVs face delay over coronavirus

As General Motors works to conserve cash for the coronavirus pandemic, the automaker reportedly told suppliers that it is postponing development of several future vehicles. The situation may cause GM to delay the launch of the 2021 Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon, Chevrolet Tahoe and Chevrolet Suburban SUVs, which had been planned to roll out in April. The original launch plan for the redesigned full-size SUVs, which are some of the most profitable vehicles produced by GM, had called for production of the current models to end at its plant in Arlington, Texas, this week. After a retooling process, the redesigned SUVs were slated to begin production late in the month of April. In an email to suppliers viewed by Reuters and confirmed as authentic by GM, the automaker also said it was suspending development work on six future vehicle programs, including updates of the Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain, Cadillac XT4, Bolt EV, Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra. GM said preproduction work on those programs would be pushed back to calendar year 2021, with most of the updated vehicles scheduled to be launched as 2022 models. According to the Detroit News, work has also been paused on the Chevy Camaro and a future version of the Corvette that has yet to be unveiled and wasn't planned for production during the 2020 calendar year. Last week, the automaker told employees and suppliers it was delaying work on some future vehicles while pushing ahead with near-term models such as its redesigned full-size SUVs and the GMC Hummer EV, Cadillac Lyriq, Chevrolet Bolt EUV and Cruise Origin, as well as its new Ultium battery system. A GM spokesman who spoke with Reuters reiterated on Monday what the automaker had said last week — that the situation with its U.S. plants was "fluid" and that the automaker would "continue to evaluate" whether and when to reopen those plants on a week-by-week basis, with "employee safety" guiding that decision. GM said previously that it was closing most of its U.S. plants indefinitely. In its Monday email, GM asked suppliers to stop work on all pre-production tooling and pre-production parts manufacturing, but also not to dispose of any tooling or materials. GM told Reuters it had solicited volunteers from its workforce to finish the build-out of the current SUVs on a single shift in Arlington.