11 Cts 2dr Rwd Coupe One Owner Non Smoker on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Cadillac ad boss is happy controversial Poolside TV ad created debate

Remember Cadillac's controversial commercial for it ELR plug-in hybrid? Did you find it provocative? If so, that's a good thing according to the brand's advertising director, Craig Bierley. First aired during NBC's coverage of the Olympic opening ceremony, the minute-long spot returned to the tele again this weekend, bookending the Academy Awards on ABC. Titled Poolside, the bit was meant as "brand provocation" and whether you enjoyed it or not – sentiment is said to run 3:1 on the pro side – we can probably all agree it fulfilled its role as such. If you were one of those who felt the ad erred on the side of nationalistic consumerism (or what have you), your anger might be somewhat assuaged after reading this article from Advertising Age in which Bierley addresses most of what he believes are misconceptions about the message. For one, the spot isn't aimed at the One Percent, just those who make $200,000 a year. Or, as Craig Bierley, Cadillac's advertising director, calls them, "people who haven't been given anything." Bierley told Advertising Age that the spot doesn't celebrate workaholicsm, instead, "We're not making a statement saying, 'We want people to work hard.' What we're saying is that hard work has its payoffs.'" While our commentors seemed mostly to enjoy discussing the value proposition that is (or is not, depending on your point of view) the Cadillac ELR, the majority appeared to enjoy the commercial. If you were one of those offended, however, let us know if your opinion has changed upon reading Cadillac's defense. If you don't remember what all the fuss was about, scroll below to take another dip in Poolside.

GM intends to offer semi-autonomous vehicles by 2020

Prepare for a few years of technological saber-rattling, as the world's automakers begin pushing to bring self-driving cars to market. Earlier this week, Nissan announced that it aims to offer autonomous vehicles by 2020, while Google, BMW and several other marks are working on similar efforts.
General Motors is doing things differently, though. Rather than push for a fully autonomous car, it's continuing to refine its semi-autonomous Super Cruise, a product that we tested in April 2012 and that will eventually see use on some Cadillacs before trickling down to the rest of the General Motors family. Super Cruise, which is undergoing testing in the Cadillac SRX, doesn't take complete control out of the driver's hands. Rather, under a very specific set of circumstances on the freeway, it will marry the capabilities of things like lane departure warning and adaptive cruise control to allow the driver to take their hands off the wheel. All of which sounds a lot like the system Mercedes-Benz is launching on the 2014 S-Class.
The system is still in development, according to John Capp, GM's director of electrical controls and active safety technology. Now that that the biggest hurdle, steering control, has been cleared, GM's engineers can focus on things like teaching the system to adapt to differing road conditions and visibility levels. As we reported in 2012, Super Cruise is still befuddled in low-visibility situations or when road markings aren't particularly clear.

How GM's grueling 24-hour test gets the kinks out of its performance cars

One of the biggest challenges automakers face when designing a high-performance car is making sure that it is both fast and reliable. For General Motors, any car that might be taken to the track by its owner - like the Corvette, Camaro Z/28 (shown above) and the Cadillac CTS-V, for example - undergoes a rigorous and strenuous 24-hour test by engineers at the Milford Proving Grounds, as pointed out by Car and Driver.
We've posted on this topic in the past - on a video showing the Camaro ZL1 being brutalized, for instance - but this article gives a more in-depth look at what actually happens behind the scenes... including what that poor ZL1 went through. Though the test isn't for 24 hours straight, the cars are pushed as hard as possible by some of GM's best drivers with only the brakes and tires replaced frequently.
We don't want to ruin the fun for you, but it is an interesting article that tells just some of what GM does to develop its sports cars. Check out the full article over at Car and Driver for the rest of the story.