Cadillac SRX likely to see next-gen built in China

Tue, 08 Jul 2014

Here's some shocking news to no one: People love crossovers, including those living in China. Since introducing the Cadillac SRX there in 2009, the model's sales have gone through the roof. Now, the brand is considering moving some production of the next-generation model in China to eliminate import tariffs and make it an even bigger player in the market.

According to a recent report in The Wall Street Journal, the crossover is leading Cadillac's Chinese growth, despite its US-equivalent price of over $67,000 after the country's high import tariffs. The CUV's sales are up 23 percent there so far this year, and it's responsible for over 40 percent of the brand's sales. John Stadwick, General Motors' VP of sales, service and marketing in China, told the WSJ that GM could "very possibly" build the next-gen model there.

The SRX is Cadillac's golden goose in China, and it just keeps pushing the brand's sales forward. "It's the vehicle that took us out of being a small niche in the market," said David Caldwell, Cadillac Communications Manager, to Autoblog. Before the CUV, Caddy was selling a little over 20,000 cars a year there, but partially thanks to the crossover's success, the brand sold 50,000 vehicles last year and could reach 60,000 this year. "The SRX is the most popular Cadillac in that market," he said.

Caldwell admitted that there are no official plans to build the SRX in China, yet. However, due to its popularity, the crossover would be an "obvious candidate" if Cadillac decided to assemble another model there. The Chinese-built vehicles would be specifically for the local market, and North American SRXs would continue to be built here.

Cadillac still has a little time to make a final decision about building the CUV in China. The next-gen SRX is rumored for the 2016 model year, but Caddy isn't saying anything official about it yet. Caldwell said that the current model still has "a little ways to go" before it gets replaced.

By Chris Bruce