Cadillac Cts Sport Luxury 5spd With 20" Chrome Rims on 2040-cars

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Car and Driver 10Best list cracked by Tesla Model S, BMW 3 Series left off

Car and Driver is keeping new blood pumping into its annual 10Best cars list with three new entries making it on for 2015 and a perennial favorite falling off. Among the biggest shocks this year is that the BMW 3 Series and 4 Series are no longer named, despite years of some portion of that lineup earning a mention. In another surprise, the Tesla Model S (specifically in S 60 trim to fit under the $80,000 cost cap) makes it to the 2015 roster and is the only electrically motivated member of the group. Despite the loss of the 3 Series, BMW isn't entirely shut out this year, because the M235i gets its name on the list. Car and Driver argues that the little coupe feels like a welcome throwback to the E46 chassis M3 of the early 2000s. In addition to the Model S, the final newbie to the annual group is the 2015 Ford Mustang GT. The inclusion of these new members knocks the Audi A6/A7 family and Ford Fiesta ST out from the 2014 rundown. The other seven models carry over from last year, including the Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, Honda Accord, Mazda3, Mazda6, Porsche Boxster/Cayman and Volkswagen Golf/GTI. The 2015 10Best cars list certainly seems to have something for everyone from the hot hatch fan to the family man and even the green car driver, thanks to the addition of the Tesla. Head over to Car and Driver to read its detailed explanations for each vehicle's inclusion, but if you've got a difference of opinion or just really like the list, let us know in Comments. Featured Gallery Car and Driver 2015 10Best Cars List View 10 Photos News Source: Car and DriverImage Credit: Car and Driver, BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, Mazda, Porsche, Tesla, Volkswagen Auto News BMW Cadillac Chevrolet Ford Honda Mazda Porsche Tesla Volkswagen Convertible Coupe Hatchback Performance Sedan 10Best

Cadillac V-Performance Academy joins free driving school party

Just in case you needed another reason to want one of Cadillac's hottest performers, starting with the 2017 Cadillac CTS-V and ATS-V, the first owner of each vehicle can score a free two-day course at Spring Mountain Motor Resort with the V-Performance Academy. According to Spring Mountain's website, the V-Performance Academy "is designed for drivers of all experience levels and includes dynamic car control exercises, visual skill development, and proper cornering techniques," with "brief" classroom sessions sprinkled in. Driving programs like the V-Performance Academy are all the rage right now. In the last few weeks alone, both Fiat and Ford announced free one-day academies baked right into the price of cars like the 124 Abarth and Focus RS. As with the Ford and Fiat courses, Cadillac is providing the learner cars. But where those other courses call on vehicle owners to shell out for airfare, food, and in Fiat's case, lodging, Cadillac covers tuition – a $2,420 expense for non-owners – along with two nights in one of Spring Mountain's "luxury condominiums" and breakfast and lunch during both driving days. Students are still on the hook for airfare, although Caddy will shuttled attendees from Las Vegas McCarren to the track/resort, some 55 miles away. If you can't shell out for the flight to Las Vegas, a new CTS-V or ATS-V, or simply can't spare two days for a driving school, Cadillac is ramping up for another year of its one-day, traveling V-Performance Lab, which will run at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut and at Circuit of the Americas in Texas. Related Video:

Cadillac still planning for big things in China

Despite some hiccups, China remains the auto industry's great hope for new vehicle sales, with significant sales gains and a huge upside. Nowhere is that hope more fervent than at General Motors, which offers eight different marques in the Asian nation. China has been GM's single biggest market the last three years running, and is unlikely to give up that title anytime soon. Yet its premiere brand, Cadillac, has remained essentially stagnant, selling just 30,000 units in China last year. That's in a segment where sales of luxury vehicles has outpaced that of the larger Chinese market. So what gives?
According to Cadillac officials Autoblog spoke with in China this week at the Shanghai Motor Show, it's been a problem of product - they haven't had the right ones. Displacement taxation issues, import tariffs and currency fluctuations have all conspired to make the brand's products less appealing than they might otherwise have been. But GM is stepping on the gas with Cadillac, and executives are eyeballing 100,000 sales by 2016 - more than triple the Wreath and Crest's current volume. And the expectations for the brand only get more ambitious from there - they're shooting for 10 percent of the luxury market by 2020. Bob Socia, President of GM China, promises that there will be a new Caddy launched in the market each year from now through 2016 and most will be built in China. Characterizing the company's efforts to revive the brand's fortunes as a "relaunch" of sorts, Cadillac also figures to gain dealers as GM expands its sales outlet footprint westward.
New products like a made-in-China XTS sedan (with a market-specific 2.0-liter four-cylinder to avoid heavy displacement taxes) will help, and Socia hinted that the ATS sport sedan could be next in line for in-country production. The SRX crossover - currently the brand's best-selling model in China - will also likely get a long look for future local production when the next-generation model is introduced. In the meantime, Cadillac unveiled the Escalade ESV Hybrid (shown above) as its latest model addition to capitalize on the market's white-hot luxury SUV segment.