1956 Cadillac Coupe on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Farley reacts as UAW expands strike against Ford, GM

Members of the United Auto Worker union walk out of the Chicago Ford Assembly Plant as Lance Williams from Lansing, Ill., waves the UAW flag Friday. (AP)   As the United Auto Workers walk off the job at an additional Ford and General Motors plant, Ford CEO Jim Farley addressed investors and members of the media Friday, pleading the case for the company's latest overture to the union and addressing both public and investor concerns regarding the core issues facing American manufacturing.  Farley made a public case for Ford's efforts to resolve the dispute, expressing frustration with the ongoing stalemate and noting both the concessions Ford offered before the strike began and the signing of a contract with Canada's Unifor. Farley also acknowledged UAW President Shawn Fain's success in getting the union's message out, quipping: "Shawn has been on TV more than Jake from State Farm at this point." The first-ever simultaneous strike against the Detroit Three automakers enters its third week with threats of continued expansion, but little in the way of obvious concrete progress.  "If the UAW’s goal is a record contract, they have already achieved this," Farley said. "It is grossly irresponsible to escalate these strikes and hurt thousands of families." Farley also lamented the fact that EVs have become the subject of partisan conflict, with the company's recently announced battery production facilities taking heat from both pundits and investors as Ford was forced to press pause on the venture while negotiations continue. Former President Donald Trump dropped in to Michigan this week to declare EVs the enemy of blue-collar jobs. "They've become a political football, and that's a shame," he said. Friday saw an expansion of the UAW strike to Ford's Chicago assembly plant and GM's Lansing, Delta Township, Michigan, assembly plant, covering about 7,000 workers, Fain said in an announcement, bringing the total number of workers on the picket lines to 25,000. The strike will not include any additional members at Stellantis, where talks have reportedly been more productive. The Ford and GM plants went on strike at noon Eastern today (Friday). Ford builds the Explorer and Lincoln Aviator in Chicago. GM's Delta Township plant builds Chevy Traverse and Buick Enclave. "Despite our willingness to bargain, Ford and GM have refused to make meaningful progress," Fain said in a video address Friday morning.

Remembering Pierre Cardin's automotive legacy

Pierre Cardin has passed away at age 98, and while the designer had a great impact on the world of fashion, he also brought his signature style to the automotive realm, chiefly with the unlikely partner of American Motors. At the dawn of the 1970s, AMC decided to seek out a little glamour for its freshly renewed product lineup by having famous fashion designers work their magic on AMC cars. The first model to get the fashion treatment was the Hornet Sportabout wagon, with a special Gucci edition that became available for 1972. Later that same year, Pierre Cardin's Javelin was introduced. The Cardin Javelin arrived midway through the '72 model year as an interior option package. The designer had submitted as many as 10 proposals to AMC, and the chosen selection was a black interior with a wild multi-hued stripe of silver, white, red and purple that grooved across the seats, touched the door panels and continued onto the headliner. "People should feel like they're sitting in a living room rather than a machine," the designer was quoted in ads introducing his eponymous Javelin. In a press release, AMC said, "Cardin takes an ultra-modern abstract approach to his interior design." The Cardin interior option package was available with specific exterior colors: Snow White, Stardust Silver, Trans Am Red, and Wild Plum. For the '73 model year, Diamond Blue was a new exterior color option. The Pierre Cardin option was only $85 and was offered exclusively on the Javelin SST, although it's reported that the Pierre Cardin option also appeared on a handful of Javelin AMX models. For 1973, you could officially get a Pierre Cardin Javelin AMX. A total of 4,152 were built over the two model years. AMC's next fashion special was the Matador coupe, but the automaker tapped Oleg Cassini for that gig. Pierre Cardin was not finished with the automobile business, though. In 1975, he put his touch on the Sbarro Stash, an obscure supercar based on the SV1, with the result displayed at the Paris auto show. The designer next customized a run of early-'80s Cadillac Eldorados, and this time the treatment extended beyond the interior. A redesigned front end featured hidden headlights behind a full-width horizontal-car grille but unfortunately made the already-considerable front overhang even longer; the rear treatment was similarly modified with the factory vertical taillights replaced with horizontal units.

2020 Cadillac XT6 revealed as Caddy's first big crossover

The 2020 Cadillac XT6 rounds out Cadillac's crossover lineup with a range-topper. It also presents an option for people who wanted a three-row Cadillac but didn't want something as large and truck-like as an Escalade. This is partly achieved through using a naturally aspirated 3.6-liter V6 powering either the front or all four wheels. A nine-speed automatic transmission sends the V6's 310 horsepower and 271 pound-feet of torque to the ground. The XT6 is split between two trim levels that appear to be marketed as different rather than one being better. The first is redundantly called Premium Luxury. A chrome grille and trim, red taillights and unique 20-inch wheels distinguish it as such from the outside, while wood trim covers the inside. The second is Sport, and black trim replaces the chrome, red taillights are swapped for clear, and carbon fiber supplants the wood inside. It has different 20-inch wheels as well as optional 21-inch pieces. The Sport gets mechanical tweaks, too, including continuously adjustable shocks and a standard all-wheel-drive system with yaw control. No matter the trim, all XT6's get an interior that builds upon the XT4 with more physical buttons and a control knob for the infotainment for scrolling through menus and lists. Safety and convenience features abound, including standard automatic emergency braking, blind-spot warning and lane-keep assist. Optional features include night vision, parking assist with braking support, a heads-up display and a camera screen mirror. Adaptive cruise control is also available, but it's not Super Cruise, our Tech of the Year award winner. Cadillac will start taking orders for the Tennessee-built crossover this spring. The final release date hasn't been announced yet, though. That information, along with pricing, should come closer to when the crossover begins production. Related Video: