2013 Cadillac Escalade on 2040-cars

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Cadillac's Super Cruise — look, Elon, no hands!

Cadillac is about to start selling vehicles with an autonomous driving mode and TechCrunch got an early look at the technology in a production car. "Wait for the green light and let go," the Cadillac engineer instructed. That's it. The car was driving itself. I, the person behind the steering wheel, was no longer the driver. Cadillac's Super Cruise system was driving. The 2018 Cadillac CT6 sped along U.S. 23 under the direction of Super Cruise. Traffic was light and the weather was perfect. The system held the Cadillac sedan in lane and responded appropriately to traffic. I spent an hour on the expressway and touched the steering wheel and pedals only a few times. Super Cruise made the drive boring. I think that's the point. Here's how it works Super Cruise is available once the driver navigates the vehicle onto an expressway. When ready, a little icon is displayed by the speedometer and the driver hits a button on the steering wheel to switch it on. Once the light bar on top of the steering wheel turns green, the driver can let go. Super Cruise is driving.This steering wheel light bar is key to the operation. When green, the driver knows Super Cruise is in control. Blue means the driver interrupted the system to change lanes and red means Super Cruise needs the driver to confirm they're paying attention and not checking Twitter. When active, Super Cruise controls the steering and speed, but again, only on an expressway. This is done through onboard sensors and using GPS and mapping data. GM employed GeoDigital, a startup in GM Venture's portfolio, to map 160,000 miles of expressways in the U.S. and Canada. The car company then used Super Cruise-equipped vehicles to test each mile. This combination of onboard systems combined with map data makes the system feel polished and sophisticated. During my admittedly limited time in the vehicle, the CT6 precisely held its position in the lane and confidently handled sweeping curves at speed. There was no wiggling or squirming — from the Cadillac or myself. The car was in control, and I felt safe. Although the driving conditions were perfect for my test ride, during adverse weather, the system will work normally until one of the key systems is unable to operate.

Canada opens probe into 250,000 GM pickups, SUVs over brake performance

Transport Canada, the auto safety regulator, has opened a probe into braking issues in nearly 250,000 General Motors full-size pickups and SUVs after U.S. officials launched a similar probe last year, the agency said on its website. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in November into 2.73 million U.S. 2014-2016 model year SUVs and pickups after receiving 487 reports of hard brake pedal effort accompanied by extended stopping distance that were attributed to deterioration of the engine-driven brake assist vacuum pump. Transport Canada's probe covers 249,700 2015 through 2017 model year vehicles including the Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon as well as 2014-2017 Chevrolet Silverado LD and GMC Sierra LD vehicles. The U.S. agency said it had reports of nine incidents of vehicles incurring damage as a result of colliding with another vehicle or fixed object at low speeds and reports of two injuries. NHTSA said if the pump fails to operate, the amount of brake power assist can be significantly reduced, extending vehicle stopping distance. The NHTSA sent GM an information request in a Feb. 7 letter. A GM spokesman said he had no update on the investigation. Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Jonathan Oatis

GM investing $2 billion in Tennessee plant to build Cadillac Lyriq, other EVs

DETROIT — General Motors said on Tuesday it will invest $2 billion to convert its Spring Hill, Tennessee, factory to produce electric vehicles, starting with the new Cadillac Lyriq, alongside existing combustion-engine Cadillacs. Spring Hill will be GM's third U.S. electric vehicle factory, along with existing plants in Detroit and Orion Township, Michigan. The Tennessee plant was built in 1990 as the exclusive source for GM's now-defunct Saturn brand. The Cadillac Lyriq crossover is slated to go into production in Spring Hill in late 2022, according to AutoForecast Solutions (AFS), which tracks industry production plans. AFS said it expects some electric vehicle production will be announced at a later date for a factory in Mexico. Among additional investments, GM on Tuesday said it will spend $32 million at its truck plant in Flint, Michigan, to increase production of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra heavy-duty pickups. GM will spend $100 million to shift production of the redesigned GMC Acadia crossover from Spring Hill to a plant near Lansing, Michigan. Spring Hill will continue to build the gas-engine Cadillac XT5 and XT6 crossovers. The plant also will build other future electric vehicles in addition to the Lyriq. The automaker's plans for investing in U.S. factories comes with two weeks left in the U.S. presidential election campaign. President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden are competing for support from auto workers in Midwestern swing states. GM Chief Executive Mary Barra has outlined plans to invest $20 billion by 2025 in new electric vehicles and battery technology. The automaker is spending $2.2 billion to overhaul and retool its Detroit-Hamtramck factory to build a GMC Hummer EV electric pickup truck in late 2021, followed by an automated robotaxi and other electric vehicles. GM builds its electric Chevrolet Bolt at a large assembly plant north of Detroit.