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Cadillac XT5 platform to underpin three-row crossover

Cadillac just launched the XT5 crossover to replace the SRX. But that's only the start. Speaking with Automotive News, Caddy president Johan de Nysschen confirmed that a new three-row crossover is also on the way. The seven-seater is based on a stretched version of the flexible platform underpinning the XT5, which we just drove recently. Taking that approach will give the luxury brand a larger crossover to pit against the likes of the Infiniti QX60, Audi Q7, and Volvo XC90 without having to develop one from scratch. It will also give buyers a more car-like alternative to the larger, truck-based Escalade. "It's one of the benefits of having this very flexible architecture. We can expand it, make it longer and wider. That gives us the ability to develop the car very quickly, as opposed to starting from scratch," de Nysschen told AN. "It's not running yet. It is a program request that we initiated with the engineers only last year. They are working at remarkable, record-breaking speed to get us the car." The new model would likely be called the XT7 and offer similar levels of equipment to the existing, smaller XT5. The existing mid-size model packs a 3.6-liter V6 mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission and comes in four trim levels. Related Video:

GM laying off more than 4,000 workers Monday morning

According to reports from Automotive News, The Detroit News, and CNN, General Motors plans to begin laying off more than 4,000 salaried workers starting Monday morning. In a statement to AN, a spokesperson for the automaker said, "We are not confirming timing. Our employees are our priority. We will communicate with them first." We've been expecting layoffs at General Motors since November, 2018. At the time, the Detroit-based automaker announced it would seek to shed 8,100 salaried employees, shut down five assembly plants in North America, and kill off several slow-selling models. One month earlier, GM offered buyout packages to 18,000 workers and said it would seek to cut its global workforce by 25 percent. A spokesperson said at the time the moves were "proactive steps to get ahead of the curve by accelerating our efforts to address overall business performance." The cost-cutting moves are expected to save GM up to $2.5 billion in 2019 and as much as $6 billion by 2020. David Kudla, CEO and chief investment strategist of Mainstay Capital Management, referred to the impending culling as "Black Monday" and told The Detroit News that the layoffs would begin around 7:30 a.m. and continue in waves throughout the coming days and weeks. GM plans to deliver on its fourth-quarter and full-year 2018 earnings report on Wednesday. President Donald Trump plans to deliver the annual State of the Union address a day earlier on Tuesday. We expect to hear plenty more from both sides over the next several days.

GM plans to sell the Chevy Tahoe and Cadillac Escalade in China

General Motors Co plans to sell full-size sport-utility vehicle (SUV) models in China for the first time, and will import a range of models to beef up its product lineup into the world's biggest car market, its China chief told Reuters. The plan would mark a change of tack for GM, which currently produces all of the vehicles it sells in China within the country, which is set to be the only major economy to grow this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic. GM, China's second-biggest foreign automaker, is aiming to offer four models as it looks to improve its brand image and support a sales recovery: Chevrolet's Tahoe and Suburban, Cadillac's Escalade and the GMC Yukon Denali. The Detroit-based company is showcasing those models at the China International Import Expo, or CIIE, an annual import show in Shanghai which started on Wednesday and runs into next week. "Our intention is to get customer reaction and find a way to sell these cars in China," said GM's China chief Julian Blissett. The automaker sees opportunities for such vehicles, partly because Chinese families are expanding, he added. "We are looking into a variety of market sales plans for these vehicles, including online sales, leasing and others," he said, declining to give a detailed timeframe for the plan. GM's Buick and Cadillac mid-size SUVs helped the group's Chinese sales grow 12% in the third quarter this year, the first quarterly growth in the past two years. But it does not have full-size SUV models, which usually have a third row of seats and has room for six or seven people. BATTLEGROUND China, where over 25 million vehicles were sold last year, is a crucial battleground for global automakers including Volkswagen AG, the biggest foreign player by sales volumes, GM and Toyota, as well as local leaders Geely and Great Wall. The country has seen auto sales pick up in recent months following a COVID-19-induced slump, and authorities say they have largely brought the epidemic under control following its emergence in the central city of Wuhan at the end of last year. The expansion plan would also mark GM's first official sales in China of GMC vehicles, a premium brand in the group. Previously GMC vehicles were only sold in the country via unofficial grey importers. The imports will, however, not change GM's basic production strategy in China. It will still mostly sell vehicles made in China - for now, at least. "Depending on however we go we might make other decisions," Blissett said.