1963 Cadillac Series 60 Fleetwood Base 6.4l on 2040-cars

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Cadillac Super Cruise gets system enhancements, more compatible highways

Cadillac is updating Super Cruise to make it available to use on more highways, and it will offer better performance, too. Previously, Super Cruise worked on about 130,000 miles of highways across the continent. This update expands that to 200,000 miles. That's because GM has mapped that many more miles to be compatible with its lidar mapping system. As for the performance update, Cadillac says there will be enhancements to the driver monitoring system. That's the key feature that separates Super Cruise from all the other systems out there, making it a truly hands-free experience. It's able to quickly tell whether your eyes are on the road, and it reacts accordingly. We asked for details about the improvements, but all Cadillac would tell us is that there are "slight refinements to the driver attention system to even more accurately detect driver attention." Perhaps it's related to reports of sun-related issues plaguing the infrared monitoring camera. We can't tell you for sure. As for the extra miles, Cadillac says some added highways now include limited intersections and traffic control devices. Basically, there may be a stoplight or some cross traffic thrown into the mix now. Since GM has actually gone and mapped these areas, the car will tell you to take back control when approaching a railroad crossing, pedestrian crossing, stoplight or stop sign. Cadillac included a map (above) depicting the original and new Super Cruise compatible highways. You'll notice there are a lot more highways in the midwest and southeast, in addition to almost being able to cross the entirety of Canada now. Things are still a bit sparse in the western part of the country, but there aren't as many highways out there anyway. Owners of 2018 and 2019 Cadillac CT6s can expect to get the upgrade, but it's not as easy as you may think. Folks will have to take their CT6 in to the Cadillac dealer, where the "system enhancement" will take place. However, that enhancement doesn't include the additional miles. Cadillac says that update will be sent out over-the-air throughout the summer and fall. Updates for Super Cruise seem to be coming out with regularity. Last year Cadillac updated the system for easier activation, better lane placement (for passing large vehicles) and added gauge cluster messages for more information. We happen to love using the technology here at Autoblog, and gave it our 2019 Technology of the Year award.

Cadillac CT5 spied with quad exhaust, could signal a hotter version is coming

The 2020 Cadillac CT5 just broke cover at the NY Auto Show this year, but one of our spy shooters caught one decked out in camouflage looking a bit different than the versions we've already seen. Instead of the dual exhaust on both the turbocharged four-cylinder and twin-turbo V6, this one has a quad exhaust outlet. We'll note that the placement of the quad outlets is one and the same with the two larger outlets on the CT5 already revealed. Also, the rest of the car looks relatively ho-hum. It has the wheels from the CT5 Sport trim, and the front end appears to most closely represent the Luxury trim. Some of the coverings appear to be opened up on that front end, possibly in an attempt to increase airflow. The most obvious change of them all is the quad exhaust, though, which brings us back to a conversation we had with a Cadillac representative at the car's initial media launch. As we were standing around gawking at the new CT5 in Sport trim, a brand representative told us all the "Sport" models (four-cylinders and V6s) would be getting quad exhaust, while the "Luxury" trims would get dual exhaust. We pointed at the CT5 Sport right in front of us and noted that it just had a dual exhaust setup. This ended up causing more confusion, as the Cadillac representative was adamant that they had seen the CT5 Sport with quad exhaust. When all was said and done, there wasn't exactly a clear explanation given for what was up with this mysterious CT5 model with quad exhaust, so we left it at that. We can guess, though. Perhaps the Cadillac rep had seen a Sport model with quad exhaust, but it was a future "V-Sport" variant we weren't allowed to know of yet. Cadillac hasn't revealed its future plans for the CT5 fully, but it did hint that at least one performance variant would be on the way. This camo'd up car here does not look anything like a full-on V model, but it could be the beginnings of a slightly more powerful version of the sport sedan. The 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 makes 335 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque. Of course, there's always room for more power in this class, and a V-Sport model would slot in nicely to the new sedan's range. Keep in mind this all remains speculative in nature. However, our curious conversation with Cadillac combined with these spy shots signal that something could be afoot.

Book by Cadillac subscription service returns next year

Cadillac rolled out its subscription service Book by Cadillac at the beginning of 2017. On December 1, 2018, the automaker put the service on hiatus after having made a few revisions and learned a lot of lessons. Just a month later, brand president Steve Carlisle told GM Authority at this year's Detroit Auto Show that Book was definitely returning. A week after that, GM chief financial officer Deborah Wahl said Book 2.0 could be ready as soon as Q2 this year. It's taken a touch longer than expected to sort out the kinks, but Automotive News reports Wahl told an audience at the J.D. Power/NADA AutoConference L.A. that the real return happens in the first quarter of 2020.  When Book went on hiatus last year, the service charged $1,800 per month for insurance, maintenance, unlimited miles, the ability to swap into any Cadillac at will, and concierge-like vehicle delivery to your location with amenities like bottled water, umbrellas, and detailing. Good things came of it for the brand, such as the 70% of subscribers who'd never owned a Cadillac. Yet the drawbacks were too much. At one point, the carmaker said Book's halt was due to technical issues like "snags with the back-end technology used to support the service" that hampered customer service and increased costs. Cadillac managed the Book's fleet, as opposed to the dealers, and consumer choice — or a lack of it — played a role in the hiatus. In Carlisle's comments to GMA, he said that subscribers didn't swap out vehicles nearly as much as expected. Even though everything up to the full-fat V-Series models was in the catalogue, Carlisle said of the customers, "They wanted an XT5." The devotion to that one product changed the economics. "Are [subscribers] going to stay in that service if thatÂ’s what they realize they want?" he asked. "It is inherent in that model that we maintain more than one car per customer. And you got to think through the economic implications of that. Particularly if utilization is a lot lower than we thought because people are switching less than we thought." Wahl didn't offer any specifics on how Book 2.0 will differ from Book 1.0, only saying that there will be more "convenience, flexibility and value for potential subscribers." There will be less focus on swapping cars, and Cadillac will "base it off the dealer network." Since the brand's 900 U.S. dealers have the inventory, anyway, that should help both parties.