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2013 Cadillac XTS [w/video]

The Cadillac Of Stopgaps
As confusing as most alphanumeric car names have gotten in recent years, at least one constant has been that the letter "X" is generally indicative of a crossover. Then why did General Motors use this letter on its new 2013 Cadillac XTS luxury sedan? Well, for that, we'll have to look to the world of mathematics where "X" stands for an unknown variable or a placeholder. Now we're talking. The XTS is just an interim product sitting at the top of Cadillac's four-door food chain until the brand gets a true flagship in place. That sounds like a lot of resources to spend on what will likely be a one-and-done model, but the automaker needed to get something - anything - to replace the DTS.
So here you have the 2013 XTS. A big luxury sedan that was created to bridge the gap between Cadillac's recent past and its pending future. Going into our week with this XTS knowing that it was a stopgap measure proved to be both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, we know (or hope) that this car will act as a baseline for future high-end Cadillac models, but at the same time, we couldn't help but be mindful of past stopgap models, albeit in more entry-level segments, like the Cimarron and Catera.

Cool car technology is cool until it breaks

Ah, technology – the beautiful date that impresses all your friends but costs you a fortune to keep happy, up-to-date, and working. Automotive News puts some numbers to the economic toll we're paying to jockey this technological Trojan horse, an analysis it sums up with "Technology is great - until you have to replace it." Back in 2000, for instance, you could replace a Cadillac Escalade taillight lens for $56.08, or replace the entire unit for $220.49. Crack the rear lens on your 2015 Escalade and you have to buy a new unit for $795 - there's no such thing as just replacing a lens anymore. What about headlights? It was $210 for an Escalade headlight in 2000, it's $1,650 for the current unit (pictured). This is nothing we didn't know, these are just hard numbers to demonstrate it. Edmunds recently provided the same with its sledgehammer-bashing of the 2015 Ford F-150, Tesla Model S buyers have been shrieking about repair costs to their electric sedan's all-aluminum bodywork, and used-car sites are full of articles about which expensive-to-repair features to steer clear of if you want to avoid big repair bills. Those expensive bits increase the price of a car - Kelley Blue Book says the average price of a car is now more than $33,000 - and that raises rates for repairs and insurance. This comes in spite of some carmakers that have been collaborating with insurance companies and repair shops at the design stage in order to engineer parts that are easier and less expensive to replace. But the tech can have its cost-saving benefits: a 2011 study by the Highway Loss Data Institute found that Volvos fitted with that company's City Safety feature "filed 27 percent fewer property-damage liability claims" than luxury SUVs without it, and just last month the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety called adaptive headlights one of the top four crash-preventing technologies on cars today (after coming out against them in 2006). So yes, the technology costs a mint when it needs to be fixed - but being able to avoid an accident in the first place might make it worth it. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Copyright 2015 AOL Cadillac Car Buying Used Car Buying Auto Repair Insurance Maintenance Safety Technology Luxury replacement parts

eBay Find of the Day: Ryan Gosling Eldorado from Lost River

What's better than a car connected to Ryan Gosling? A car connected to Ryan Gosling and Matt Smith (the eleventh Doctor Who for our less nerdy readers). This 1966 Cadillac Eldorado convertible is driven by Smith in Lost River, Gosling's directorial debut. The movie was filmed in Detroit, with plenty of footage at the Packard factory, and the car is located in the nearby enclave of Hamtramck. Truth be told, this car has questionable star appeal and it needs a lot of work. Lost River currently holds a 20% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. I've never seen an episode of any Doctor Who – a fact that amazes Seyth Miersma. And while I agree with Kroll Show character Wendell Shawn that Gosling is a "beautiful idiot," that's not enough for me to buy a car with an exhaust leak. The body on this Eldorado looks clean, but there is plenty of restoration work for the next owner. The listing states that most of the exterior and trim needs to be installed, and the front seats are in rough shape. Other details are vague – the carburetor "might need to be rebuilt" and the radiator and fan "may need to be replaced" but neither statements explain why. On the upside, the 340 horsepower (gross rating), 429 cubic inch V8 runs well. Reserve is not met at the current price of $4,000, but this could be a chance to get a classic '60's convertible for cheap. Featured Gallery eBay 1966 Cadilac Eldorado View 18 Photos News Source: eBay Celebrities TV/Movies Cadillac Auctions ebay Find of the Day celebrity ryan gosling