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New Cadillac XTS & Chevy Spark Fail To Make Grade At CR

9K views 69 replies 49 participants last post by  phileaglesfan 
#1 ·
November 20, 2012

DETROIT -- Some of the latest new car models from Detroit automakers received mixed reviews from Consumer Reports and have failed to win a recommendation from the popular U.S. shopping guide.

Consumer Reports also failed to recommend the all-new Cadillac XTS and the Lincoln MKS sedans. The XTS scored much higher overall than the MKS in the matchup, but both cars underwhelmed the magazine’s testers in a segment dominated by German, Japanese, and Korean models.

The XTS is a replacement for the DTS and STS sedans in Cadillac’s lineup.

Consumer Reports said the Cadillac XTS was “wonderfully luxurious, with a very spacious and well-appointed cabin.”

But Cadillac’s new flagship is hampered by its CUE infotainment system, which testers found to be “convoluted and frustrating.”

The magazine also tested the Chevrolet Spark and said the four-door subcompact produces excellent fuel economy of 34 mpg overall and 42 on the highway.

It has a surprisingly useable rear seat, a comprehensive assortment of features, and is affordably priced at $15,420, Consumer Reports said.

But sluggish acceleration, stiff and jittery ride and very noisy cabin dropped the Spark’s overall score to 34, the magazine said.

It is one of the lowest scoring cars tested by the magazine in recent years and is too low to recommend.

Article continues here.

Cadillac XTS Article from Consumer Reports

Chevrolet Spart Article from Consumer Reports
 
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#45 ·
I wouldn't grill CR over complaining about CUE in the XTS, most reviews have complained about it. Its really ashamed GM didn't learn from Ford's mistake but copied it. As far as a non-crappy infotainment system, Chrysler's newest Uconnect 8.4" systems are usually praised. Appears to be responsive and they atleast have secondary physical buttons so you don't have to fumble with the touch screen or touch sensitive buttons to accomplish basic functions.

As for the Spark what else did they expect? Small **** boxes like that are going to be loud, it's not a full-size Buick, it's a golf cart with doors.
 
#60 ·
As for the Spark what else did they expect? Small **** boxes like that are going to be loud, it's not a full-size Buick, it's a golf cart with doors.
I drove a Spark a few weeks ago, and I liked it (better than a Sonic) I drove. Although it had a small engine and an automatic, it was a cheery little car, basic and unpretentious. The Sonic shifted too frequently, seemingly all the time.
The Spark is a car I would consider if I lived and worked close to work in a city with crowded streets and parking issues.
 
#49 ·
Yeah CR is garbage and biased. Got it.

However, we have to admit the XTS is simply a middling product from GM. The CEO admitted it. It's poor placement was assured when it was on the drawing board with a borrowed powertrain and a FWD platform based on the LaCrosse platform. That's not how you make the "standard of the world". It's better than the DTS, but what isn't?

The CR review of the Spark is surprising. The Spark is getting good reviews and CR stands alone with giving it such a poor mark.
 
#50 ·
What a shocker, a small, short wheelbase car isn't the most comfortable riding vehicle...color me surprised. The things they complain about boggle my mind.

The Cue system is very slow and overly complex for the 60+ market that will be buying most of them, but it is otherwise an awesome car.

Once again, CR shows us that it matters not how good a car is, only that it has the right badge on the hood.
 
#51 ·
Everything CR said about the XTS is something I noted myself when doing an extensive test drive of a Premium AWD XTS. How can they be biased when the car isn't smooth like the old STS and DTS, the visibility is poor (something I've been saying about GM's latest cars for years), and the CUE system isn't ready for primetime yet? I don't use CR as a source myself when looking and purchasing vehicles, but they didn't show any bias against this car. It actually scored quite well all things considered. The issue I have with the title here is GMI's fault. It makes it seem like CR didn't recommend the car because it scored too low. They didn't recommend the car because it's reliability hasn't been proven yet. To be honest, I think the biggest thing that will hold this car back in the rankings will be CUE. It also needs a more powerful engine, as I found myself looking for more power when doing an test drive.

The car doesn't have the finesse of the German cars. Period. The one advantage the XTS has over them is a gorgeous, well built interior that IMO is only hampered by CUE's slowness.
 
#52 ·
After reading a few articles that complained about the CUE system, I was fearing the worst when I test drove an XTS a couple months back. I'm far from being a technophile, very far, but I thought the system worked very well and, maybe more importantly, was extremely easy to learn. (To be fair, not every review complained about the CUE system... A few seemed to like it)

The biggest problem I had was that I had to use my right hand to "scroll" through the options... I'm a lefty... However, the system, for the most part, is a "set it and forget it" set up. Combined with the voice command and steering wheel controls, I would rarely have to touch anything on the CUE screen, which as I said before, was very easy to navigate... And that was my very short experience in learning the system. If I had a day to work with it, just as I take a day to learn every "new" car I purchase, I would think the CUE system would be ridiculously easy to use...

Perhaps some reviewers are expecting the "ipad-like" CUE system to be "ipad-exact." It's similar, yes, but it is most definitely its own system.
 
#54 ·
I think the spark failed is because CR looked @ a "if I had X dollars to spend" mind set and ignored the sparks plusses for a bigger "better value" car (more for less) then the fact it IS the most fuel efficient and easiest to park URBAN environment car on the market
it would be like CR testing a Prius against a mustang and saying the mustang is a better value because it accelerates better
 
#56 ·
Today in the News, "JuMPy reports" rated Consumer Reports with a Not Recommended rating. After reading CR for years, its is my opinion that CR has no common sense and has bias reporting, says one leading critic at "JuMPY reports". Their complete lack of fairness and completely subjective reporting leads me to question the reality of CR ratings says another employee at JuMPy.

After years of being the go to publication for consumers, it has slipped in how much it influences buyers. Recent models that have been rated not recommended have sold very well, and others that have been recommened have lagged in sales, leading many in the industry to question the validity of CR.
 
#62 ·
I've just read CR complains about the XTS. It's the same thing they have with MyFord Touch : they are too dumb to make it work propelly.

About the Spark :
First, it's not intended to be a main car. Like any city car, it's purpose is to be cheap, easy to park, nimble and fun. Not to go on the highway and on the mountains. If I got tired of commuting by bicycle or by bus, a Spark would be on my shopping list, since my commute is short, we have a another car and parking space is difficult to find.

Second, CR choose to buy a automatic version. We all know that manual Spark got better fuel economy and performance. And it's cheaper. If I buy a Spark, it will be manual, and I'll save more than $1 200 CAN.
 
#64 ·
1487,

You are correct that the reason the XTS is not recommended is because CR has yet to receive a reliability rating. That is true because the car is new. The practice of CR recommending a car based on previous models high marks in reliability ended a few years ago. So Toyota and Honda no longer get that benefit.

The CR article is somewhat misleading in saying that the XTS finished near the bottom thus it does not match other cars in it's class. In the grand scheme of things a difference in a score of 5 to 6 points is not as big as CR would lead you to believe. The XTS's score of 79 places it as a very good car.

The Traverse and Acadia for example scored an 80 and the Enclave a 77. If you go through the data, the main reason was that the Enclave retrieved 1 mpg less on fuel economy than the Traverse and Acadia (CR weighs fuel economy heavily). There were a few other minor differences in the empirical data that was better for Acadia and Traverse that helped give it a higher score. There is a reason why CR does not publish how they weigh certain categories. They have arbitrarily decided what weight they should give in each category. For a buyer the priorities may be a good deal different than CRs.

In CR's defense, they do weigh the various categories (acceleration, fuel economy, ride, braking, etc) differently depending what category the car falls in (luxury, sports car, compact). Obviously, CR's methodology in determining reliability is dubious. The problems that have been mentioned in the past, frame bias, sample bias, leaving to open a question of what is a serious problem, etc are nothing new and CR is not going to change the way they do things. If they came out and said that the differences in problem rates between most cars were small, then that would take away one of their big selling points to buy their magazine: The Reliability of the Cars. At the end of the day, if CR does not sell magazines or subscriptions they will not be able to pay the bills and go out of business.

If you go back to the 1980's CR had several years that they were in the red. More than few people have raised a flag on CR concerning the timing of their infamous Suzuki Samurai test and that the sensationalist headlines that the Suzuki was proned to rollovers led to a great deal of copies leaving the magazine racks. At the end of the day, they have to pay the bills and despite their above it all attitude, they have been involved in some questionable practices.
 
#68 ·
That would be because GM is subsidizing the lease to a higher degree than Audi, to get butts in seats.

As someone who is looking to lease a vehicle within the next month, I have seen all of the lease incentives. The lesser down on the Caddy would not make up for the driving dynamics difference with the A6. Plus, we never buy base. We have also looked at the new MKZ, but the timing won't work. It is looking like we will end up with the Explorer Sport. It boiled down to that or an Audi A6 or A5 (gorgeous car, but small inside).
 
#69 ·
Audi doesn't subvent the lease the way GM does so yes an Audi will never compete . Audi likes to advertise the buy with an 84 month term.
I looked at both the edge sport and the explorer sport. I almost like the edge more due to the lighter weight and better mileage. Rear seat room was better in the edge.
The explorer is a 90s Volvo chassis so I kind of wrote it off.
The sport wasn't out when I test drove the explorer.
 
#70 ·
I considered the XTS but I was looking for AWD which would cost about $55k fully loaded. I bought a 300C AWD Luxury Series for $42k. XTS looked nice but I heard it is isn't that great in corners because it is FWD based. Almost $60k is pretty steep for an American sedan that will probably be worth $30k 2-3 years later.
 
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