1978 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe 2-door 7.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Cadillac drops the base engine in the 2017 ATS

Cadillac, in an effort to boost sales of the slow moving ATS, is making some changes to the 2017 model. Most notably, the luxury manufacturer is dropping the base 2.5-liter normally-aspirated four-cylinder engine from the lineup, leaving the 272 hp 2.0-liter turbocharged four as the base engine. The base 2.0-liter ATS will start at $35,590, $1,380 more than the 2016 model, though that's partially offset by more standard equipment. The base model now comes standard with Cadillac's controversial CUE infotainment system with an 8-inch touchscreen display, a Bose surround-sound speaker system, and a backup camera. Despite the bump in price for the base model, all other ATS trim levels will see prices reduced between $650 and $1,100, depending on the model. The ATS was designed to be Cadillac's answer to the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. Though the ATS was originally released at a time where the Germans were slightly off their game, it's never quite matched up in terms of performance or customer perception posting disappointing sales figures compared to the competition. Cadillac has had problems getting customers into cars, and few ATS customers are converts from luxury competition. In order to offload inventory and lure in new customers, the company has previously been forced to offer big lease deals. Many of these customers have come over from more mainstream brands like Chevrolet and Ford. ATS sales have fallen 23 percent through May versus 2015. The car's market share has fallen every year since 2013, currently occupying just 4.5 percent of the compact luxury market. Unless Cadillac can offer some truly amazing deals, we don't expect many shoppers to buy American over the strong German competition. Related video: Cadillac Luxury Sedan

2015 Cadillac Escalade

Cadillac has been an interesting story in the auto industry over the past several years. Its comeback bid may be well over a decade old, but it's only recently that the Wreath and Crest has transformed from the auto industry's retirement home into its hot new thing. Today's Cadillac is a powerful marque working to instill passionate design, sound driving dynamics and cutting-edge technology into each model it builds, with vehicles like the ATS and redesigned CTS leading the charge.
Now, its latest model has arrived. This fourth-generation Escalade is among the most important new Cadillacs since the division's renaissance kicked into high gear. It's the brand's de facto flagship, and the first vehicle many young people think of when hearing the name "Cadillac." In the past, the Escalade was the chosen vehicle of the rich, flashy and famous. It's suffered over the past few years, though, particularly as new and more luxurious competitors have come to the fore.
With this latest redesign, General Motors is aiming to retake the spotlight as purveyors of the market's premier luxury SUV. To find out if it's been successful, I ventured down to the South Carolina Lowcountry to test the all-new 2015 Escalade.

Best and Worst GM Cars

Oh yes, because we just love receiving angry letters from devoted Pontiac Grand Am enthusiasts, we have decided to go there. Based on a heated group Slack conversation, the topic came up about the best and worst GM cars. First of all time, and then those currently on sale, and then just mostly a rambling discussion of Oldsmobiles our parents and grandparents owned (or engineered). Eventually, three of us made the video above. Like it? Maybe we can make more. Many awesome GM cars are definitely going unmentioned here, so please let us know your bests and worsts in the comments below. Mostly, it's important to note that this post largely exists as a vehicle for delivering the above video that dives far deeper into GM's greatest hits and biggest flops, specifically those from the 1980s and 1990s. What you'll find below is a collection of our editors identifying a best current and best-of-all-time choice, plus a worst current and worst-of-all-time choice. Comprehensive it is not, but again, comments. -Senior Editor James Riswick Best Current GM Vehicle Chevrolet Corvette We were flying by the seats of our pants a bit in this first outing and my notes were similarly extemporaneous. When it came time to tie it all together on camera, I failed spectacularly. Thank the maker for text, because this gives me the opportunity to perhaps slightly better explain my convoluted reasoning. I chose the C8 Corvette because it's simply overwhelmingly good, and it's merely the baseline from which this generation of Corvette will be expanded.  While the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing (more on that in a minute) is an amazing snapshot of GM's current performance standing and its little sibling so enraptured me that I went out and bought one, their existence is fleeting. Corvette will live on; forced-induction Cadillac sport sedans, not so much. So while all three are amazing machines when viewed in a vacuum, the Corvette stands above them as both a reflection of GM's current performance credentials and a signpost of what is to come. So, given the choice between the C8 and the 5V-Blackwing right now, I'd choose the C8. In 10 years, when the Blackwing is no longer in production and Corvette is in its 9th generation? Well, that might be a different story. Now, just pretend I said something even remotely that coherent when we get to the part of the video where I try to make an argument for the 5-V Blackwing as best GM car I've ever driven. Or just laugh at me while I ramble incoherently.