1977 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz Coupe 2-door 7.0l on 2040-cars

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GM considering new powertrain options for large SUVs

Aside from the new General Motors offerings, there's not a whole lot of action going on in the fullsize SUV segment. That doesn't seem to be stopping GM from pushing the envelope in the market as Automotive News is reporting that the automaker is looking to introduce some new powertrain options into the Chevy Tahoe (and Suburban), GMC Yukon (and Yukon XL) and the Cadillac Escalade - all have been redesigned for the 2015 model year.
Now, we already know that GM and Ford are collaborating on nine- and ten-speed transmissions for a broad range of applications (including the big SUVs), but this new report says that GM is also considering other options as a way to one-up the competition and, of course, to optimize fuel economy. AN quotes Jeff Luke, executive chief engineer for GM trucks, as saying that "interesting powertrain technologies" are coming including a return of a hybrid SUV and possibly even a diesel engine. Although it sounds like the latter could come down to how customers respond to the 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee EcoDiesel.

Mystery shoppers love Infiniti, hate Tesla

Infiniti, followed by Lexus tied with Mercedes-Benz took the top two spots for best sales experience according to mystery shoppers from the latest Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index, while EV manufacturer Tesla recorded the lowest overall score. Not surprisingly, premium brands dominated the top ranks. Including the three already mentioned, luxury brands occupied seven of the top ten spots and included Audi, BMW, Porsche, and the only American brand to crack the upper echelon, Cadillac. Toyota, Volkswagen, and Nissan rounded out the first ten positions. The news for domestic automakers isn't good. Aside from Caddy, the only other star-spangled automaker to score above the industry average is Chrysler. The rest of FCA, most of GM, and all of Ford fell below the line. But Pied Piper's mystery shoppers handed Tesla the biggest walloping – the company is ten full points below the next lowest brand, Volvo, and its score of 86 is 17 below the average of 103. It's baffling, considering the company's touted direct-sales model. "Tesla leaves me scratching my head," Fred O'Hagan, Pied Piper's president and CEO, told Wards Auto. "They own all of their stores, so you would think each one would be doing the same thing. But they're not. Tesla is consistent in its inconsistencies." O'Hagan added that there's a "huge variation" in Tesla's store-to-store effectiveness, and that in some cases, shoppers found showroom workers that acted more like "museum curators," Wards Auto reports. It might be popular to call Tesla the Apple of the car world, but based on Pied Piper's work, the brand has a long way to go to emulate the uniform shopping experience of an Apple Store. The news might be bad for Tesla, but even for the brands that scored below average, there's cause for celebration. Only Tesla and Mini lost points in this year's rankings, and only Mercedes and Lincoln held steady. Every other brand, including Infiniti, which topped the index for the first time, gained at least one point. The biggest improvements belong to Porsche, Land Rover, and Mitsubishi, which all jumped five points. Pied Piper's annual Prospect Satisfaction Index uses mystery shoppers – over 6,100 this year – from across the country to assess dealers and generate rankings from over 50 individual factors. News Source: Pied Piper via WardsAuto Green Audi BMW Cadillac Chrysler Infiniti Lexus Mercedes-Benz Nissan Tesla Toyota Car Buying Car Dealers study

Cadillac previews CT6 interior and its 34 Bose speakers

We get an early monochrome look at the upcoming Cadillac CT6 interior thanks to its stereo system. Bose will debut its Panaray Sound System in the flagship sedan and have 34 speakers located throughout the cabin that will have the occupants bathing in sound. A close look at the interior mock-up shows little visible difference between the CT6 and the praised CTS; the only thing we could find was that the headrests are slightly different and the seat switches have been moved to the doors, a la Mercedes-Benz. As for that Panaray, Bose says it incorporates elements from the company's home and professional audio products, and was designed "exclusively" for this car. We don't know if that means it was tuned for the CT6 or that it will only ever be available on the CT6. Nor do we have any detailed specs on it at the moment, but there's a press release below with a few more tidbits and a high-res graphic above with details on each speaker. Bose Introduces First-of-its-Kind Panaray® Sound System for First-Ever Cadillac CT6 Advanced automotive sound system integrates elements from home products DETROIT, 2015-03-26 – Thirty-five years ago, Bose and Cadillac defined premium automotive audio, forever changing how people listen to music in a vehicle. Now Bose is introducing its most advanced and highest-performing automotive sound system – the Bose® Panaray® system, designed exclusively for the Cadillac CT6 sedan. The 2016 CT6 is a first in its segment, combining the prestige and technology of a range-topping vehicle with the dynamics and efficiency of a smaller one. The Panaray system marks the global debut of Bose Automotive's new line of "Advanced Technology Series" sound systems, integrating technologies and design elements from Bose home entertainment and professional audio products to deliver unprecedented performance in a car. "We asked Bose to create something truly special for this new vehicle: an unbounded sound system, providing an audio experience unmatched in any other luxury automobile," said Travis Hester, Cadillac CT6 executive chief engineer. "Cadillac CT6 customers will be elated by what they hear and feel when they switch on the Bose Panaray system." The Bose® Panaray® system reproduces music with more clarity, precision and deep bass than any system preceding it.