China-only SLS getting updated

[nadepalma]

Spied: 2011 Cadillac SLS
10/28/2009

While Cadillac’s STS will be discontinued in the U.S. in a little over a year, the version General Motors sells in China, the SLS, appears ready to soldier on for a few more model years. Cadillac will replace the STS — along with the DTS — with the all-new XTS in the United States in just a few years.

This face-lifted Chinese market SLS test cars were just shot undergoing testing in the U.S. These prototypes show the SLS will get a revised front end with a new grill, new headlights and a new lower grille opening. We also see lots of new LEDs in the headlight cluster itself and in the fog lights.

Powertrain changes remain unknown, but we aren’t expecting anything major as the SLS will largely be a carryover item for a single market.

MORE AT LeftLaneNew.scom

[mbukukanyau]

It looks much wider than the current STS.

[nadepalma]

Shame that GM can take the STS's platform, stretch it to make it a "truer" 7-Series/A8/S-Class competitor, and launch it in China but not in the US.

Yes, I know CAFE and more stringent regulations mean that GM isn't going to be able to offer such a RWD vehicle in the US market anytime soon, but honestly, how many were they going to sell anyway? Maybe 40,000 units? I would think that they'd sell enough Aveos, Sparks, and Cruzes in the year ahead to offset those possible sales, but whatever.

Regardless, the very fact that they are updating the car for the Chinese market really goes to show you were GM's attention may be focused in the years ahead, as China's product portfolio may get more attention than GM North America.

Damn shame. Would love to have seen it sold here as a more "proper" 7-Series/A8/S-Class competitor than the current 'in between' STS.

Originally Posted by mbukukanyau

It looks much wider than the current STS.

I thought so too when I saw the picture. Not sure if GM China widened as well as stretched the Sigma platform for the SLS, but it's certainly possible.

[mbukukanyau]

Originally Posted by nadepalma

Shame that GM can take the STS's platform, stretch it to make it a "truer" 7-Series/A8/S-Class competitor, and launch it in China but not in the US.

Yes, I know CAFE and more stringent regulations mean that GM isn't going to be able to offer such a RWD vehicle in the US market anytime soon, but honestly, how many were they going to sell anyway? Maybe 40,000 units? I would think that they'd sell enough Aveos, Sparks, and Cruzes in the year ahead to offset those possible sales, but whatever.

Regardless, the very fact that they are updating the car for the Chinese market really goes to show you were GM's attention may be focused in the years ahead, as China's product portfolio may get more attention than GM North America.

Damn shame. Would love to have seen it sold here as a more "proper" 7-Series/A8/S-Class competitor than the current 'in between' STS.

I thought so too when I saw the picture. Not sure if GM China widened as well as stretched the Sigma platform for the SLS, but it's certainly possible.

On the other hand, there could be something more underneath this mule, than an upgrade to the SLS.

[V8GMT360 Guy]

So where are these going to be built? Still here at LGR?

[iluvcamaros]

*feels disgusted and envious at the same time*

[Elvisuperman]

Originally Posted by iluvcamaros

*feels disgusted and envious at the same time*

I feel the same...

[GMFAN85]

Judging from the pictures, I'm not jealous of China getting the freshened SLS. There's only so much you can do to keep a 4 year old car looking up to date (will be 5-6 years when this comes to market). Adding new headlights and a grille doesn't really hide the fact that the STS became dated quickly after it came to market here.
Another example of this: The DTS.

[megeebee]

Where are these built? In Lansing? Are they actually built in Asia somewhere? I can't imagine the volume would justify setting up production away from LGR.

If GM is spending the money to design, build, and attach a new front facia to this car then there must be something of a market in China. But it's still just a few bits on the front end. No sheetmetal is changing so this is a fairly inexpensive excercise. If this were sold in the US we'd all be crying at how little GM was investing in it. But, since it's not sold here, we're crying about the fact that it's not sold here.

If it were, it would be a flop. If no one bought the STS as it is, why would anyone pay thousands more for 3 or 4 added inches of the same car? And why would those extra few inches suddenly make it a 7 or S competiitor?


And how many of these actually sell? Where are the sales figures for China/Asia? I've always been curious. I see pronouncments of great sales increases and other good news from that region, but never model specific lists. (What are Cadillac sales in total there and how does it compare with the European names?)

[BlackGTP]

I was never excited by the current STS. It looks very bland compared to the last generation CTS and even more so to the current CTS.

[megeebee]

Originally Posted by iluvcamaros

*feels disgusted and envious at the same time*

Why?

You can buy this car tomorrow if want to. The only difference is a slightly smaller back seat.

.

[megeebee]

Originally Posted by BlackGTP

I was never excited by the current STS. It looks very bland compared to the last generation CTS ....

This has been my contention since I first saw the STS. It's too rounded and "de-excited" from the original CTS. Sales of the STS started off mediocre and fell from there. Through the same period, CTS sales grew and grew. The lesson: People liked the CTS and its more expressive design. And given the choice, they went for the CTS as I did at the time. The photo I've used for my signature is one the most flattering ever done of the STS. Sadly, 18" wheels and dramatic lighting were not standard equipment.

(And yes, I now have a 2005 STS myself and I've grown to just love it. I won't go into the reasons now, but it was the best Cadillac I could afford when the lease on my 2005 CTS expired. )

[377Z]

Originally Posted by megeebee

Why?

You can buy this car tomorrow if want to. The only difference is a slightly smaller back seat.

.

...And the interior design, quality, & content is far lower here, but who cares about that in their luxury car, right?

[megeebee]

Originally Posted by 377Z

...And the interior design, quality, & content is far lower here, but who cares about that in their luxury car, right?

I would say that the design is a matter of opinion. And yes, I've seen the photos of the Chinese car. It's very good, yes. But have you ever actually seen and sat in a Chinese SLS? How do you know the materials are any better? I have a 2005 STS and I can't complain about the materials used. It's not the most exciting interior, I grant you that. The IP seems almost phoned in. But upon closer inspection and day to day living with it, I like it.

Also the interior of the first CTS was certainly not a high-point in the history or GM, but it didn't stop that car (along with the Escalade) from literally saving Cadillac at the time.

[PAULSTS1]

Originally Posted by GMFAN85

Judging from the pictures, I'm not jealous of China getting the freshened SLS. There's only so much you can do to keep a 4 year old car looking up to date (will be 5-6 years when this comes to market). Adding new headlights and a grille doesn't really hide the fact that the STS became dated quickly after it came to market here.
Another example of this: The DTS.

As a previous owner of a 2006 STS V8, I must disagree with you on those points. Technically the car was bulletproof and a great performer. Where Cadillac (actually GM) fell down is on esthetic details, surfaces, cabin proportions, and exterior appearance. The car never subjected me to any mechanical issues; it just did not have Cadillac Style and flash!

Moreover, the costliest mistake was the positioning of the CTS so close to STS. The Executive that signed off on the production “green light” for the STS and later the CTS has the blame for this error, Bob Lutz! The STS could have been corrected if the interior received the hand stitched treatment, and the backlighting of the Chinese SLS. The exterior required resculpting with some enlarging cues, similar to what is being done with the SLS; it does look larger and more impressive. The STS should have been a challenger for the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes Benz CLS (my current) with an upgrade to DI of the NorthStar system perhaps 380 HP may have been possible (speculation only). GM deserved to go Bankrupt; it failed itself and its clientele!

In closing, about the DTS it is an example of a popular car sold way after it should have been replaced with a newer designed model the DT7.