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Confident new Cadillac marketing boss ready to take on Tesla, BMW

When there's a former BMW executive heading Cadillac's efforts to boost sales of its only plug-in, it's a pretty safe guess that the marketing emphasis won't be on environmental friendliness and tree-hugging tendencies. The General Motors luxury brand has appointed ex-Bimmer executive Uwe Ellinghaus to be its marketing chief late last year, and the German-born Ellinghaus is now saying that he's targeting potential customers of Tesla Motors, in addition to BMW, for potential growth in sales of the Cadillac ELR extended-range plug-in. Appointed to Cadillac's head of marketing last November, Ellinghaus recently told Advertising Age that GM needs to highlight the Cadillac's looks and performance. He complimented Tesla for putting more emphasis on those attributes in the Model S than on its lack of emissions or lack of refueling costs (but Tesla hasn't shied away from highlighting the EV's savings). Ellinghaus says that trying to gear advertising "for people who are tree-huggers and green-wash an entire brand" won't be successful. You don't say. So far, the ELR hasn't made much of a dent in US car sales. Through May, Cadillac, which spent about $280 million on all of its US marketing last year, sold 293 units, whereas Tesla had been approaching the 11,000-unit figure for the Model S. With that in mind, Cadillac may be working on a sportier version of the ELR, as spy shots of a test vehicle from May revealed larger brakes and wheels. You can read our First Drive impressions of the ELR here.

Cadillac finds a few more horsepower for ATS-V

We've rarely found cause to complain about a car getting more power, and guess what? That's not going to change here. After initially announcing that the new ATS-V would come to market with a Corvette-matching 455 horsepower, Cadillac has come back with an SAE-certified 464 horsepower. That, as Automobile points out, puts the high-performance ATS in spitting distance of the base Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG and its 469 hp. Anyone else feeling bad for owners of the 425-hp BMW M3? While the ATS-V is getting a bit more grunt, somehow, we doubt Cadillac will adjust its previously published performance figures. Expect 60 miles per hour to arrive in 3.9 seconds, with a top speed of 185 mph. As of this writing, a lucky Autoblog staffer is lapping the ATS-V around Circuit of the Americas in Austin as part of the sedan's big launch. So while we can't fill you in on its real-world performance just yet, expect a big update soon. Related Video:

2020 Cadillac XT4 Sport Drivers' Notes | Worth a look, or two

The 2020 Cadillac XT4 is Cadillac’s smallest crossover in its burgeoning lineup of SUVs. Most of the attention is on the new Escalade these days, but the XT4 is where someone with a lighter budget might enter the Cadillac brand. Our tester happens to be the Sport model, giving it a distinctive appearance, separate from the Luxury and Premium Luxury trims. This one has a gloss black mesh grille, black trim throughout the exterior and Sport-specific wheels — the others rely much more heavily on chrome. Cadillac stepped it up in the design studio for the XT4, as one of its best qualities is the exterior design. It compares well to other small crossovers and doesn't look like your typical cookie-cutter crossover on the road. ThereÂ’s only one engine available, and itÂ’s a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that makes 237 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. When the XT4 came out for the 2019 model year, this engine was brand new. Today, Cadillac is passing it around the lineup to vehicles like the CT5 and CT4. A nine-speed automatic transmission is the only transmission option, as well. Our tester has all-wheel drive, but front-wheel drive is standard on lesser XT4s. There isnÂ’t a whole lot changed for the 2020 model year, but Cadillac did add an “Off Road” mode and made a bunch of safety equipment standard. With our test car being a Sport trim with all-wheel drive equipped, the base price is $42,295, a fair bit greater than the $36,690 standard car. After options, our XT4 totaled $48,310. The most expensive extra is a $1,500 Bose Centerpoint audio system, combined with navigation. An $1,100 Driver Assistance package brought adaptive cruise control, enhanced automatic emergency braking and reverse automatic emergency braking. A Cold Weather package added heated seats all around and a heated steering wheel for $850. Finally, the $470 Driver Awareness package brought automatic high beams and lane-keep assist. Senior Editor, Green John Beltz Snyder: This one grew on me the more I drove it. I was unconvinced for the first part of my drive, but then things started to feel more well-though-out as I used them. For instance, the line of buttons across the center stack looks daunting, until you turn the car on and their labels are illuminated. Then everything is easy to find thanks to the lighting, symmetry and the fact that you only have to look down a single line of buttons rather than hunt around a grid pattern.