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Cadillac to ditch China-only LWB models for global 'right size'

We often think of Buick being General Motors' poster child in China, but would it surprise you to hear that Cadillac is just doing a bang-up job in the People's Republic? It's true, the Standard of the World is on fire, and it's doing so with a surprising group of buyers that are going to push through globe-spanning changes for the brand. Cadillac's average buyer age in the People's Republic of China is just 34. Yes, younger buyers dominate the Chinese market, but according to Reuters, Cadillac's young buyers want to drive and they don't want the typical businessman's German-badged sedan. Cadillac understands this, and is setting about to exploit it with a shift in its Chinese strategy. According to President Johan de Nysschen, the company will begin moving away from the China-only, long-wheelbase models, like the ATS-L. Instead, it will push for a global "right size" design, along with some stylistic changes. "You will see a softening of some of the hard edges, and more three-dimension styling on the side of the car," de Nysschen told Reuters, while noting that the cars will still be "instantly recognizable as Cadillac." Even without these changes, though, Cadillac has bucked the trend in China. At 17 percent, the company's sales exceeded the PRC's overall market growth of 7.3 percent by a significant margin. In fact, Cadillac's 2015 gains outpaced the overall market growth in China over the past three years, as the brand jumped to nearly 80,000 units. And the company is hoping to push that even higher, Reuters reports, with President Johan de Nysschen targeting a 25-percent increase in 2016. Related Video:

Cadillac ELR, Nissan Resonance and Ford Atlas win Eyes on Design awards

This year's annual Eyes on Design awards were presented at the end of press days for the Detroit Auto Show on Tuesday. Given out for the best production and concept car designs that debuted at the show, and voted on by an esteemed panel of actual car designers, this year's award for best production vehicle design went to the 2014 Cadillac ELR. The 2014 Chevrolet Corvette, which was the show favorite among Autoblog editors, apparently did not impress the Eyes on Design judges enough with its all-new vent-festooned design.
The award for best concept design was actually split as a tie among the Nissan Resonance and Ford Atlas concepts. Last year's winners were the 2013 Ford Fusion and the Lexus LF-LC concept.
The Eyes on Design organization also presented a new honor this year called the Catalyst Award to Bob Lutz, former Vice Chairman of General Motors. Lutz is reported to have given a defense of design in his acceptance speech, arguing that advancements in quality across the industry as a whole have made good design a key differentiator for buyers.

President Trump might get to start his administration in a new Cadillac limo [UPDATE]

(UPDATE: Jalopnik is reporting an unidentified source claimed the new limo would not be featured in today's inauguration ceremony. The source did say however that the limo would join the presidential fleet later this year.) A rumor is going around that President-Elect Donald Trump will have a brand new set of wheels the day he takes office. The Cadillac Presidential Limousine, nicknamed "The Beast," was last refreshed in 2009 and led President Barack Obama's second inauguration-day parade. Cadillac could not confirm any timeline for the new presidential limo, nor could it confirm any specifics about the car nicknamed Beast 2.0. That's as expected, because details on the presidential limo are closely guarded and considered matters of national security. The outgoing original "Beast" limo marked a switch to a custom-built vehicle based on a General Motors truck frame. Previous limos were based on the actual cars they looked like. As we've seen in spy shots, The Beast 2.0 limo looks more like an Escalade SUV or CT6 sedan but is reported to be roughly the same size and shape as the old Beast, which is built on a Chevrolet Kodiak/GMC TopKick medium-duty truck chassis. AutoWeek is reporting that the new limo is set to debut for Trump's inauguration, however those reports could not be confirmed for the reasons mentioned above. The new Presidential car is expected to accommodate seven passengers in conference-style seating in the back like the current version. The Beast isn't meant for road trips, as it is mostly used to ferry the President to and from Air Force One when traveling, or on short trips around Washington D.C. That's good, considering the current limo only gets 3.7 miles per gallon. Along with multiple screens for video conferencing, The next Beast will also definitely include advanced armoring and weaponry. For security reasons, it's impossible to know the extent of those systems, but any vehicle transporting the most powerful man in the world around has to be tough. The entire process of designing and building the Presidential limo is top secret, as the Secret Service figures the less everyone knows about the Presidential Limo, the better. The new Beast, we can safely assume, is likely the safest vehicle in the world. The Secret Service began taking bids on building a replacement in 2014 because integrating all of the required armor is technically challenging.