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President Trump might get to start his administration in a new Cadillac limo [UPDATE]

(UPDATE: Jalopnik is reporting an unidentified source claimed the new limo would not be featured in today's inauguration ceremony. The source did say however that the limo would join the presidential fleet later this year.) A rumor is going around that President-Elect Donald Trump will have a brand new set of wheels the day he takes office. The Cadillac Presidential Limousine, nicknamed "The Beast," was last refreshed in 2009 and led President Barack Obama's second inauguration-day parade. Cadillac could not confirm any timeline for the new presidential limo, nor could it confirm any specifics about the car nicknamed Beast 2.0. That's as expected, because details on the presidential limo are closely guarded and considered matters of national security. The outgoing original "Beast" limo marked a switch to a custom-built vehicle based on a General Motors truck frame. Previous limos were based on the actual cars they looked like. As we've seen in spy shots, The Beast 2.0 limo looks more like an Escalade SUV or CT6 sedan but is reported to be roughly the same size and shape as the old Beast, which is built on a Chevrolet Kodiak/GMC TopKick medium-duty truck chassis. AutoWeek is reporting that the new limo is set to debut for Trump's inauguration, however those reports could not be confirmed for the reasons mentioned above. The new Presidential car is expected to accommodate seven passengers in conference-style seating in the back like the current version. The Beast isn't meant for road trips, as it is mostly used to ferry the President to and from Air Force One when traveling, or on short trips around Washington D.C. That's good, considering the current limo only gets 3.7 miles per gallon. Along with multiple screens for video conferencing, The next Beast will also definitely include advanced armoring and weaponry. For security reasons, it's impossible to know the extent of those systems, but any vehicle transporting the most powerful man in the world around has to be tough. The entire process of designing and building the Presidential limo is top secret, as the Secret Service figures the less everyone knows about the Presidential Limo, the better. The new Beast, we can safely assume, is likely the safest vehicle in the world. The Secret Service began taking bids on building a replacement in 2014 because integrating all of the required armor is technically challenging.

Cadillac picks Publicis as new agency of record, continues cutting ties with Campbell Ewald

Cadillac is setting itself up for major changes in the coming years with its decision to hire Johan de Nysschen as the brand's new boss and moving some of the staff to new digs in the trendy SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan. With those two big shifts in place, there's one more on the way with the company's announcement that Publicis Worldwide is now its global creative agency of record, effective immediately. The firm replaces former, long-time General Motors associate Campbell-Ewald; now a portion of Lowe and Partners. "This appointment is designed to accelerate the global expansion and elevation of Cadillac into a truly global luxury brand," said Cadillac Chief Marketing Officer Uwe Ellinghaus in the company's announcement. "We have spent much of this year refocusing on the core values of our brand." Although, some work may remain at Lowe and Partners for now. According to Cadillac spokesperson David Caldwell via email to Autoblog: "The bulk of work makes this shift. It is possible that maybe a small individual smaller project or two might still be handled by Lowe. Not certain yet." The fruit of this new partnership shouldn't take long to mature, either. "We will have substantially new marketing and brand identity work in early 2015." said Caldwell. According to Ad Age, Cadillac's advertising had been handled by Lowe and Partners, Campbell-Ewald in Detroit (now entirely part of Lowe) and Hill Holiday. Caddy had a relationship with the agency since 2013 but has changed firms several times in 2006. GM had a long collaboration with Campbell-Ewald, though. Chevrolet was its partner for nearly a century until the automaker also jumped to Publicis in 2010. The firm was responsible for campaigns like, "The Heartbeat of America", "Like A Rock" and "An American Revolution." Scroll down to read Cadillac's full announcement of the change. Cadillac Appoints Publicis Worldwide 2014-12-04 DETROIT – Cadillac announced today the appointment of Publicis Worldwide as its global creative agency of record. Publicis Worldwide is the largest creative agency of the Publicis Groupe network and its appointment to Cadillac is effective immediately. A fully dedicated team, comprising key managers from Publicis Worldwide, will lead the account and have access to specialist and premium resources within the larger Publicis Groupe.

GM earnings rise 1% as buyers pay more for popular pickups

DETROIT — General Motors said Thursday that higher prices for popular pickup trucks and SUVs helped overcome slowing global sales and profit rose by 1% in the second quarter. The Detroit automaker said it made $2.42 billion, or $1.66 per share, from April through June. Adjusting for restructuring costs, GM made $1.64 per share, blowing by analyst estimates of $1.44. Quarterly revenue fell 2% to $36.06 billion, but still beat estimates. Analysts polled by FactSet expected $35.97 billion. Global sales fell 6% to 1.94 million vehicles led by declines in North America and Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa. The company says sales in China were weak, and it expects that to continue through the year. In the United States, customers paid an average of $41,461 for a GM vehicle during the quarter, an increase of 2.2%, as buyers went for loaded-out pickups and SUVs, according to the Edmunds.com auto pricing site. The U.S. is GM's most profitable market. Chief Financial Officer Dhivya Suryadevara said she expects the strong pricing to continue, especially as GM rolls out a diesel pickup and new heavy-duty trucks in the second half of the year. "We think the fundamentals do remain strong, especially in the truck market," she said, adding that strength in the overall economy and aging trucks now on the road should help keep the trend going. Light trucks accounted for 83.1% of GM's sales in the quarter, and pickup truck sales rose 8.5% as GM transitioned to new models of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, according to Edmunds, which provides content to The Associated Press. As usual, GM made most of its money in North America, reporting $3 billion in pretax earnings. International operations including China broke even, while the company spent $300 million on its GM Cruise automated vehicle unit. Its financial arm made $500 million in pretax income. Suryadevara said GM saw $700 million in savings during the quarter from restructuring actions announced late last year that included cutting about 8,000 white-collar workers through layoffs, buyouts and early retirements. The company also announced plans to close five North American factories, shedding another 6,000 jobs. About 3,000 factory workers in the U.S. whose jobs were eliminated at four plants will be placed at other factories, but they could have to relocate. GM expects the restructuring to generate $2 billion to $2.5 billion in annual cost savings by the end of this year.