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2020 Cadillac XT5 is barely being refreshed

Cadillac has been making a serious effort to expand its crossover offerings with the all-new XT4 and XT6. With them has come slight changes to Cadillac's design language, leaving the existing XT5 looking a little out of the loop. Well, it appears that's about to change ... sort of. One of our spy photographers caught a 2020 Cadillac XT5 out testing, and it has some changes that suggest a refresh. You do have to look closely to tell anything has changed, though. And even then, the only noticeable change is to the grille, which is now dotted with little quadrilateral shapes similar to those on XT4 and CT5. You can see one of the two current designs below. Otherwise, the bumpers and lights haven't been changed at all. View 21 Photos We suspect there will be other small changes in store for the crossover. It could switch from an eight-speed transmission to a nine-speed unit like the one the XT6 will use. This would be likely considering they both use the same V6 engine. We wouldn't rule out adding an optional turbo four-cylinder engine borrowed from the XT4, but that would be a fairly significant and less likely change. The interior could see some updates, and Cadillac could possibly try to shoehorn in its new infotainment system from the new batch of cars. Then again, changes could simply be limited to new materials and some extra features. With such a light update, we expect the updated 2020 XT5 will make its debut sometime this year with sales coming shortly after.

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.

2021 Cadillac Escalade's EPA highway fuel economy is worse than before

EPA fuel economy estimates for the 2021 Cadillac Escalade are out, and the news is mostly not good. The redesigned SUV sees slim to no improvement in the Feds' city ratings, and its highway numbers are considerably worse than before. These are estimates for the standard 6.2-liter V8. Figures for the no-cost-optional 3.0-liter turbodiesel six have not been released yet. Specifically, the rear-wheel-drive 2021 Escalade has estimates of 15 mpg city, 20 mpg highway, and 17 mpg combined. Compared to the outgoing 2020 version, powered by the same 6.2L V8, those numbers represent a 1 mpg improvement in city (the lone piece of good news) but are 3 mpg worse on the highway. With all-wheel drive, the 2021 Escalade can't even get out of the teens, with EPA ratings of 14 mpg city, 19 mpg highway, and 16 mpg combined. That's the same city rating as before and a 2 mpg decline versus the 2020 model's highway rating. For further comparison, cross-town rival Lincoln's Navigator with its 3.5-liter turbo V6 manages 16 mpg city and 22 mpg highway (RWD) and 16/21 with AWD. No one expects an ultra-large, body-on-frame, three-row SUV to achieve Prius-like levels of fuel efficiency, but it's pretty rare these days to see such backsliding with a fresh redesign. Here's hoping the diesel variant will have a happier story to tell. Related Video: