Car Throttle

Cadillac has experienced sales success with the SRX crossover, redesigned for the 2010 model year. The first-generation SRX was based on the Sigma rear-wheel drive platform, and while it received rave reviews from critics, failed to sell well. That was mostly attributed to styling. Overall, a more mainstream approach has paid off for Cadillac - SRX is now the second best-seller in its segment, with a 71 percent conquest rate. For 2012, Cadillac is making further changes to streamline the car to better suit the market's tastes. The expensive 2.8-liter turbocharged six-cylinder as well as the previous base 3.0-liter V-6 engine have been dumped. In their place is General Motors' direct-injected 3.6-liter V-6 making 308-horsepower. Cadillac says it has the most standard power in its class. Other, more

I always make it out to Raleigh's Cars & Coffee event the first Saturday of every month. It's always worth it, even though I abhor waking up early, because there's always awesome stuff to see.  A lot of the same cars show up, so I won't show pictures of stuff you've already seen - for those you can check previous Cars & Coffee coverage here, here, and here. For starters, here is one of 337 Porsche 959's ever built, which was Porsche's rolling technical showcase that blew everything else out of the water in the 1980's, and set the standard for supercar performance.  None were ever imported to the US; it's likely this one has been fitted with the Canepa Design engine

After all these years, the BMW 3-Series is still known as the benchmark in the segment. With nearly a hundred thousand units sold in in the United States each year, it is BMW's bread-and-butter model (along with the more profitable 5-Series). No one can touch it right? Or so the thinking goes. That thinking doesn't stop the competition, who each model-cyle aim their sights at dethroning the 3-Series. Cadillac tried and has met success with the CTS. However, the car was positioned in an awkward spot: larger than the 3-Series but at a similar pricetag. That led to a disadvantage in dynamics. The gap has only gotten larger with the second-generation CTS. Clearly, the CTS is a car that should be competing against the 5-Series. This is

Some features that come standard in cars these days we take completely for granted. The type of stuff that if it wasn't there, we'd be very confused.  Power steering, servo-assisted brakes, a rear windscreen defroster, synchromesh in the gearbox, a parking brake - these are all things we take for granted, because cars need them in various ways to be functioning transportation appliances.  And as technology marches on, other stuff is becoming a given - it's pretty hard to find a car, any car, for sale in the US now without power windows, a radio or stereo of some sort, rear infant seat anchors, tire pressure monitors, traction control (still iffy; my 2007 Honda doesn't have it), variable-intermittent windshield wipers - even cool but useless

If you've been following the news about Cadillac's reentry into the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) World Championship, you'll know that the CTS-V race car is slated to participate in its first race in March. Cadillac competed previously with the CTS-V Sedan, winning the Manufacturer’s Championship in 2005 and 2007 (the last year of entry), as well as the Driver’s Championship in 2005. This year's series begins St. Petersburg, Florida from March 25 to 27. Cadillac's race car, a CTS-V coupe, was first shown off at the North American International Auto Show earlier this month. There is a lot that of testing that goes into commissioning a racing program. That testing has begun, with CTS-V race car hitting the track for the first time

Cadillac's CTS V-Series performance lineup has enthralled critics and enthusiasts alike. The standard CTS is a capable performer, but the V-Series designation takes things to a whole new level. The model that has gotten the most attention out of the CTS lineup has no doubt been the stunning CTS-V Coupe. Cadillac's recent advertising has featured the car prominently. Last month, Cadillac announced that it would be using the CTS-V coupe as a part of a reentry into the Sports Car Club of America World Challenge (SCCA). The brand competed in the category previously with the CTS-V Sedan, winning the Manufacturer’s Championship in 2005 and 2007, as well as the Driver’s Championship in 2005. Cadillac's new entry will be a two-vehicle team using the CTS-V exclusively. The car has

While the Cadillac V-Series lineup is smaller than ever, it is also better than ever too. The CTS lineup is no doubt Cadillac's star product, and the V-Series lineup has taken center stage with enthusiasts. It has been spread across the model range, offered in sedan, coupe and wagon iterations. Cadillac has taken to advertising them heavily, as the effect is a positive one for the entire lineup. Two new commercials have debuted as part of Cadillac's new advertising campaign. They feature the voice of Laurence Fishburne and Cadillac's recent "The new Standard of the World" tagline. The first is a 30-second spot for the CTS-V Coupe dubbed "Arrows." The second spot, checking in at two-minutes, is dubbed "Red-Blooded Luxury" and focuses its fire on

Cadillac and competitive racing are perhaps not two words that are normally associated with one another. However, the brand has participated in the Sports Car Club of America World Challenge in the past. And it did so quite successfully in fact, winning the Manufacturer's Championship in 2005 and 2007, along with the Driver's Championship in 2005. The brand's current CTS-V series lineup has been critically lauded for its performance chops. While the V-Series has been phased out on the outgoing STS, for the CTS it is alive and well with a full lineup that includes CTS-V Sedan, Coupe and Wagon variants. The CTS-V billed as the world's fastest production sedan. How's that for a performance Cadillac? With these capable performance vehicles, Cadillac announced a

It's good to see signs of life at Saab after everything they've gone through recently. After all, it wasn't too long ago they were being consigned to the dustbin of history by everyone in the industry, left for dead after 20 years of neglect by parent company GM. They've just released details and images of their next offering, the 9-4x, before it's debut at the Los Angeles auto show. And while it might not be my cup of tea, less just be thankful it's happening at all. The 9-4x is basically the Saab version of the Cadillac SRX, which shares a lot of parts with the newly redesigned Chevy Equinox. In fact, to put it in perspective it's helpful to think of this new Saab

The whole marketing department at General Motors (and indeed the whole company) has gone through a lot of shakeups in a small period of time. Marketing perhaps has been given the biggest leeway for immediate change after Joel Ewanick took over. Ewanick directed GM to drop Publicis after its work with Chevrolet and the "Excellence for All" campaign. Cadillac has also gone through a shakeup as well, switching companies and dumping the short-lived (thankfully) "Mark of Leadership" tagline. In its place? "The New Standard of the World." The advertisement below is the first advertisement to debut under the new campaign, and needless to say it is good - very good. Check it out below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YcVhlE5DMY&feature=player_embedded