Rounding out the Wreath & Crest

Cadillac's rebirth has been tremendous.   The rebirth began in mid 2002 with the radically different 2003 CTS.   It was like no Cadillac in history.   The car received mostly good reviews for its drivetrain and handling prowess, but was panned for its chintzy interior materials (and rightly so).   Despite the cheap interior bits, the CTS sold well and other angularly chiseled Cadillacs followed.  Cadillac was well underway in its reinvention process.   Fast forward nine years.  The CTS is now battling mid size luxury cars from the German automakers at the same price as a 3-series or C-Class.  The Escalade is still the high zoot SUV to have.  The newly styled and resized SRX is proving successful among buyers as well.  Cadillac, however, needs to be a full line luxury car line to fully compete with the German automakers they are targeting.

Below I have created my wish list for a complete Cadillac lineup that would compete well against BMW, Mercedes Benz, and Audi.  I am starting small and working up in size.

ATS Series

ATS 2.0T, ATS 3.6, ATS-V

Architecture:  Alpha (RWD, AWD)

Bodystyles:  Sedan, Coupe, Wagon, Convertible

Engine lineup:  DI Turbo 2.0 liter I-4, DI 3.6 liter V-6, Twin Turbo 3.0 liter V-6

Transmissions:  6-speed manual, 8-speed automatic

Competition:  BMW 3-series, Mercedes Benz C-Class, Audi A4

**I believe the production ATS will be close to these specifications.
**Sedan will roll out first, then wagon, coupe, and convertible.

CTS Series

CTS 3.0, CTS 3.6, CTS 5.5, CTS-V

Architecture:  Alpha-L (RWD, AWD)

Bodystyles:  Sedan, Coupe, Wagon, Convertible

Engine lineup:  DI 3.0 liter V-6, DI 3.6 liter V-6, DI 5.5 liter V-8, Supercharged 5.5 liter V-8

Transmissions:  6-speed manual, 8-speed automatic

Competition:  BMW 5-series, Mercedes Benz E-class, Audi S6

**I believe the next generation CTS will be close to these specifications.
**Sedan will roll out first, with wagon, coupe, and then convertible following within 18 months.

XTS Series

XTS 3.6

Architecture:  Epsilon II (AWD)

Bodystyle:  Sedan

Engine lineup:  DI 3.6 liter V-6

Transmission:  8-speed automatic

Competition:  Lincoln MKS

STS Series

STS 3.6, STS 5.5

Architecture:  Omega (rear wheel drive)

Bodystyle:  Sedan

Engine lineup:  DI 3.6 liter V-6, DI 5.5 liter V-8

Transmission:  8-speed automatic

Competition:  BMW 7-series, Mercedes Benz S-class, Audi A8

**STS is just a guess at what the 2015-2017 Omega based flagship Cadillac will be named.

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SRX series

SRX 2.0T, SRX 3.6

Architecture: Delta II (AWD)

Bodystyle:  SUV

Engine lineup:  DI Turbo 2.0 liter I-4, DI 3.6 liter V-6

Transmission:  8-speed automatic

Competition:  Audi Q5, BMW X3, Mercedes Benz GLX-class

**Delta II instead of Theta-Epsilon.  There are too many platforms at GM and consolidating them would be more cost effective for GM.

TRX series

TRX 3.6

Architecture:  Epsilon II (AWD)

Bodystyle:  SUV

Engine lineup: DI 3.6 liter V-6, turbo 3.6 liter V-6

Transmission: 8-speed automatic

Competition:  BMW X5, Mercedes Benz ML-class

**New midlevel luxury SUV to compete with X5 and ML-class
**Based on Epsilon II architecture utilizing all wheel drive drivetrain standard.

Escalade/ESV

Escalade 5.5, ESV 5.5
Architecture:  GMT20XX

Bodystyles:  SUV

Engine lineup:  DI 5.5 liter V-8

Transmission:  8-speed automatic

Competition:  Navigator/Navigator L, Mercedes Benz GL-class