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GM will expand Super Cruise to entire U.S. lineup after 2020

General Motors plans to bring its Super Cruise semi- autonomous highway driving technology to its entire U.S. lineup after it rolls it out to all Cadillac vehicles in 2020. Mark Reuss, GM's executive vice president for global product development, made the announcement at the Intelligent Transportation Society of America conference in Detroit. Automotive News reports he also announced plans to offer vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication in a high-volume Cadillac crossover by 2023 — technology that will also eventually spread across the luxury brand's portfolio. Super Cruise is GM's semi-autonomous, lane-centering driving system that uses lidar mapping, GPS, cameras and sensors. The system offers hands-free driving on the highway, with an infrared camera and lights that track the driver's head position to make sure the driver is paying attention, ready to take over when needed, and not nodding off. If it senses the driver is unresponsive, it can bring the vehicle to a stop on the shoulder and activate OnStar. Super Cruise is already an option on the 2018 CT6 and standard on the Platinum trim model. You can read our First Drive review of the technology here. Meanwhile, Cadillac launched vehicle-to-vehicle technology in the 2017 CTS sedan, allowing equipped Cadillacs to share information regarding speed, direction and location at distances of up to 980 feet to help avoid collisions. By going one step further with V2X, Cadillac can tip off drivers to hazardous road conditions, the status of traffic lights, work zones and threats of crashes. It's the first major announcement from the luxury brand since the departure of former CEO Johan de Nysschen and his replacement by Steve Carlisle in April. Related Video: Image Credit: Cadillac Cadillac GM Technology Emerging Technologies Autonomous Vehicles cadillac ct6 vehicle to vehicle communications Super Cruise

Cadillac to bolster CT sedans with XT crossovers

Cadillac is moving swiftly to change up its naming scheme. Barely over a week ago we received our first indication that it was considering a different name its the upcoming flagship sedan previously known as LTS. Then Cadillac not only revealed the model would be called CT6, but announced that it would set the stage with a massive overhaul of its model nomenclature. And now we have another piece of the puzzle.
According to Forbes, Cadillac will not only rename its sedans with the letters CT, but will realign its utility vehicles under the banner of XT - both to be followed by a number indicating its place in the lineup. The one exception will be the Escalade, whose nameplate has such a strong following that it would be foolish for Cadillac to cast it aside. That leaves only the SRX (pictured above), but makes room for a new crop of crossovers said to be in the works.
It's a similar approach which Cadillac's new boss Johan de Nysschen took in revising the naming scheme at Infiniti. While it's bound to ruffle some feathers and scratch some heads in the beginning - especially since the company's current flagship sedan is called XTS - it's equally sure to make sense of it all in the long run. All we need to know now is what Nysschen and his marketing chief Uwe Ellinghaus plan to call the coupes.

Cadillac is building an LMDh car, will compete in WEC and Le Mans

Cadillac returned to sports car racing back in 2017 with its DPi race car, and it has had a successful run with it. It won four Rolex 24 Hour races at Daytona from 2017 to 2020, and took home two championships. So it's not totally surprising that it will continue running in the IMSA series with a new LMDh-class car. But that also means that Cadillac can, and will, race in the World Endurance Championship series, which includes the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This is because LMDh is a class that will be legal in both IMSA and WEC racing, as will the LMH hypercar class. So Cadillac will be taking on hypercars from Toyota, Peugeot and Glickenhaus. Audi and Porsche have announced plans to run LMDh racecars as well, so it will be a crowded field. There have even been rumors of a Dodge-badged version of the Peugeot 9x8 LMH car as well as a Lamborghini LMDh entry. Per LMDh rules, the car will feature a spec chassis and hybrid unit, but the engine and bodywork will be unique to the Cadillac. Unlike LMH, there are no requirements to build road-going versions, so we sadly won't see a wild mid-engine Cadillac hybrid supercar on the streets (unless Cadillac just decides to build one; don't hold your breath). But we'll still be excited to see another American manufacturer compete for an overall win at Le Mans. Cadillac will team up with Dallara, Chip Ganassi Racing and Action Express Racing for vehicle development and competition. The car will make its racing debut at the 2023 Rolex 24 at Daytona in January of that year. All we have to go on for the car's looks is the rendering at the top, which suggests a seriously angular shape. It will also be called the LMDh-V.R, similar to the current DPi-V.R racecar. Related Video: