Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors

vdoh182 · 11-13-2005, 12:13 AM

Consumer's Eye

[img]Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors[/img]

By Anita Lienert / Special to The Detroit News

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When Consumer's Eye heard Cadillac was drawing on its legendary past to spice up its lineup, she envisioned a post-modern version of the Madam X series, part of the Fleetwood V-16 lineup from 1930.

But the automaker is thinking more along the lines of past luxury interiors , says Cadillac spokesman David Caldwell.

The change begins with the brand's high-performance V-series models, the 2006 STS-V and XLR-V, which have new handcrafted "cut-and-sew" interiors by German supplier Draexlmaier, which also provides interior parts for the $300,000-plus Maybach.

Caldwell says the new interiors signal a "21st century version of Cadillac's coach-building heritage." The V-model interiors are put together by workers who cut, wrap and sew leather around components individually.

The best news is that Cadillac plans to incorporate these beautifully finished cabins into the more mundane, and affordable, vehicles such as the SRX sport-utility vehicle and the CTS entry-level sedan.

Caldwell said the 2007 SRX will get a new coc kpit and the same custom-interior treatment as the V-models. "It won't be long before Cadillac models like the CTS get this treatment, too," he said.

This could be interesting, it may be what the SRX needs to pick up it weak sales, maybe they are moving it up in price a little and a smaller BRX will fill in for lower models.

www.detnews.com

Campisi · 11-13-2005, 12:36 AM

Most people will still say the interior is cheap.

**mgescuro** · 11-13-2005, 02:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Campisi

Most people will still say the interior is cheap.

Well... it may have high class materials and appointments...
But if the design is plain and boring... the materials could be solid gold... it will still look cheap.

The 2007 Escalade is a fine example of a beautiful interior. Sure, there are some "questionable elements," but it's far better than anything Cadillac has at the moment, except maybe XLR.

Cadillac needs to find a way to use those high class and fine materials and incorporate them into pleasing, attractive interior designs. Cadillac NEEDS to find an interior design philosophy that fits with its own luxury style.

Saab has its own design philosophy. So does Pontiac. So does Hummer.
But Cadillac is all over the map. BLS looks like one thing. CTS looks like one thing. SRX shouldn't have the CTS interior. STS is generic. XLR looks edgy. DTS is a rebadge. No design philosophy. No focus. That's all Cadillac needs... And high end interior materials

b4z · 11-13-2005, 09:11 AM

SRX shouldn't have CTS's interior especially at it's $39,995 price point.
It should also have power passenger seat standard.

asim · 11-13-2005, 09:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vdoh182

The best news is that Cadillac plans to incorporate these beautifully finished cabins into the more mundane, and affordable, vehicles such as the SRX sport-utility vehicle and the CTS entry-level sedan.

Caldwell said the 2007 SRX will get a new coc kpit and the same custom-interior treatment as the V-models. "It won't be long before Cadillac models like the CTS get this treatment, too," he said.

Yess!

pkd87 · 11-13-2005, 10:28 AM

Im looking forward to seeing the new CTS and the new interior of the SRX. Im sure they will much better than the current ones.

jokuvaan · 11-13-2005, 10:43 AM

Funny that priority is interior look&feel when GM should concentrate inside of the car.

bryce miller · 11-13-2005, 11:03 AM

Yea I definitly think the SRX needs a new interior

parakleets · 11-13-2005, 11:22 AM

All the talk about weak interiors, and cheap materials, in GM cars seems to be based on past experiences. The reality of the matter is GM's interiors are really getting a lot better. Road&Track recently slammed the Solstice for using cheaper interior materials than the Mazda Miata. Having been in Solstice, I can definitely say that the interior is fine. I think that these auto "journalists" expect every car to have the interior quality of a Bentley or Maybach. It is not possible for an $18,000.00 roadster to have a real ostrich leather-lined interior! They also harp about "hard plastics". Personally, I think that the hard plastic is okay on areas of the interior that you don't touch. The hard stuff seems to be more durable than the self-skinning foam, as used on dashboards. The often praised VW/Audi interiors are truly beautifully designed, and offer a world of high end looking materials and textures. VW/Audi interiors should be benchmarked, from a styling standpoint, but long-term durability is another matter. I owned a previous generation Jetta (2001), and the beautiful interior quickly started to degrade. The soft-touch rubber on the door handles began to peel off, the shiftboot vinyl cracked and began to wear through, the steering wheel faded, and the seats lost color and were impossible to clean. No one ever tells the whole story about VW interiors.

goatgary · 11-13-2005, 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by b4z

SRX shouldn't have CTS's interior especially at it's $39,995 price point.
It should also have power passenger seat standard.

Well, my CTS listed for nearly 42K so what kind of interior should I Have?

LI CADILLAC · 11-13-2005, 11:55 AM

It's funny that they are saying that they want to put more luxury in their interiors. Check out autospies.com, they show the new Escalade w/out the nav. system. It looks CHEAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LI CADILLAC · 11-13-2005, 11:56 AM

heres the link: http://www.autospies.com/article/ind...&categoryId=21 Put some chrome trim on that center stack!!!!

LI CADILLAC · 11-13-2005, 12:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by goatgary

Well, my CTS listed for nearly 42K so what kind of interior should I Have?

Mine was almost 44k and I still had to add wood.

uujjj · 11-13-2005, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LI CADILLAC

It's funny that they are saying that they want to put more luxury in their interiors. Check out autospies.com, they show the new Escalade w/out the nav. system. It looks CHEAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

pre-production doesn't count

SSrevolution · 11-13-2005, 12:15 PM

The only Caddy I think doesn't live up to price vs. interior is the DTS. It is an absorbanantly over priced FWD based car. $41k base.

11-13-2005, 12:13 AM	#1 (permalink)
vdoh182 3.8 Liter Supercharged V6 Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 548	Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors Consumer's Eye [img]Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors[/img] By Anita Lienert / Special to The Detroit News Comment on this story Send this story to a friend Get Home Delivery When Consumer's Eye heard Cadillac was drawing on its legendary past to spice up its lineup, she envisioned a post-modern version of the Madam X series, part of the Fleetwood V-16 lineup from 1930. But the automaker is thinking more along the lines of past luxury interiors , says Cadillac spokesman David Caldwell. The change begins with the brand's high-performance V-series models, the 2006 STS-V and XLR-V, which have new handcrafted "cut-and-sew" interiors by German supplier Draexlmaier, which also provides interior parts for the $300,000-plus Maybach. Caldwell says the new interiors signal a "21st century version of Cadillac's coach-building heritage." The V-model interiors are put together by workers who cut, wrap and sew leather around components individually. The best news is that Cadillac plans to incorporate these beautifully finished cabins into the more mundane, and affordable, vehicles such as the SRX sport-utility vehicle and the CTS entry-level sedan. Caldwell said the 2007 SRX will get a new coc kpit and the same custom-interior treatment as the V-models. "It won't be long before Cadillac models like the CTS get this treatment, too," he said. This could be interesting, it may be what the SRX needs to pick up it weak sales, maybe they are moving it up in price a little and a smaller BRX will fill in for lower models. www.detnews.com Last edited by Ming : 11-13-2005 at 09:18 AM.

11-13-2005, 12:36 AM	#2 (permalink)
Campisi 2.0 Liter Supercharged ECOTEC Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Seattle, WA Drives: 1995 Toyota Corolla DX 1.8l Posts: 137	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors Most people will still say the interior is cheap. __________________ 1995 Toyota Corolla DX 1.8l 7-AFE Prospect: 1987 Toyota Corolla GTS 1.6l "Silver Top" 4-AGE 5-speed RRC+ R? P- TH (A;I;X-;In;My+;R;P-;Sl-;Su+) ME- Ix! CR Cc+g+m--t+f+++ Ec+g+f++m--z-d+ D M++++++ Zm SSs(3)r(17)c(1026/298)tv(4)d(7)b(4)ag(2)ch(18)bk(32)

11-13-2005, 09:11 AM	#4 (permalink)
b4z 3.9 Liter V6 Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 969	Re: Cadillac puts more Luxury in interiors SRX shouldn't have CTS's interior especially at it's $39,995 price point. It should also have power passenger seat standard.

11-13-2005, 10:28 AM	#6 (permalink)
pkd87 5.3 Liter Vortec V8 Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Michigan Posts: 1,407	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors Im looking forward to seeing the new CTS and the new interior of the SRX. Im sure they will much better than the current ones. __________________ "In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress."- John Adams

11-13-2005, 10:43 AM	#7 (permalink)
jokuvaan 3.8 Liter Supercharged V6 Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Finland Drives: adidas shoes Posts: 605	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors Funny that priority is interior look&feel when GM should concentrate inside of the car. __________________ Form follows function.

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11-13-2005, 11:03 AM	#8 (permalink)
bryce miller 3.8 Liter Supercharged V6 Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Rochester, NY Posts: 501	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors Yea I definitly think the SRX needs a new interior __________________ Current Ride: 2000 Buick Regal LS 1995 Chevrolet Camaro RS Past Rides: 1992 Saturn SL2 1993 Pontiac Grand Am SE 1996 Chevrolet Lumina LS Future Rides: 2008 Pontiac G8 2009 Chevrolet Camaro

11-13-2005, 11:22 AM	#9 (permalink)
parakleets 3.8 Liter Supercharged V6 Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Northeastern USA Drives: 2007 Wrangler Unlimited X Posts: 521	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors All the talk about weak interiors, and cheap materials, in GM cars seems to be based on past experiences. The reality of the matter is GM's interiors are really getting a lot better. Road&Track recently slammed the Solstice for using cheaper interior materials than the Mazda Miata. Having been in Solstice, I can definitely say that the interior is fine. I think that these auto "journalists" expect every car to have the interior quality of a Bentley or Maybach. It is not possible for an $18,000.00 roadster to have a real ostrich leather-lined interior! They also harp about "hard plastics". Personally, I think that the hard plastic is okay on areas of the interior that you don't touch. The hard stuff seems to be more durable than the self-skinning foam, as used on dashboards. The often praised VW/Audi interiors are truly beautifully designed, and offer a world of high end looking materials and textures. VW/Audi interiors should be benchmarked, from a styling standpoint, but long-term durability is another matter. I owned a previous generation Jetta (2001), and the beautiful interior quickly started to degrade. The soft-touch rubber on the door handles began to peel off, the shiftboot vinyl cracked and began to wear through, the steering wheel faded, and the seats lost color and were impossible to clean. No one ever tells the whole story about VW interiors.

11-13-2005, 11:55 AM	#11 (permalink)
LI CADILLAC 3.8 Liter V6 Join Date: Aug 2005 Drives: 3.6 CADILLAC CTS Posts: 305	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors It's funny that they are saying that they want to put more luxury in their interiors. Check out autospies.com, they show the new Escalade w/out the nav. system. It looks CHEAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

11-13-2005, 11:56 AM	#12 (permalink)
LI CADILLAC 3.8 Liter V6 Join Date: Aug 2005 Drives: 3.6 CADILLAC CTS Posts: 305	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors heres the link: http://www.autospies.com/article/ind...&categoryId=21 Put some chrome trim on that center stack!!!! Last edited by LI CADILLAC : 11-13-2005 at 12:06 PM.

11-13-2005, 12:15 PM	#15 (permalink)
SSrevolution 5.3 Liter LS4 V8 Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Westerville Ohio Drives: 02 Camaro SS 94 Caprice 9C1 Posts: 3,030	Re: Cadillac puts more luxury in interiors The only Caddy I think doesn't live up to price vs. interior is the DTS. It is an absorbanantly over priced FWD based car. $41k base.

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