1994 Cadillac Deville Base Sedan 4-door 4.9l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

U.S. new-vehicle sales in 2018 rise slightly to 17.27 million [UPDATE]

DETROIT — Sales of new vehicles in the U.S. rose slightly in 2018, defying predictions and highlighting a strong economy. Automakers reported an increase of 0.3 percent over a year ago to 17.27 million vehicles. The increase came despite rising interest rates, a volatile stock market, and rising car and truck prices that pushed some buyers out of the new-vehicle market. Industry analysts and automakers said strong economic fundamentals pushed up sales and should keep them near historic highs in 2019. "Economic conditions in the U.S. are favorable and should continue to be supportive of vehicle sales at or around their current run rate," Ford Chief Economist Emily Kolinski Morris said after the company and other automakers announced their sales numbers Thursday. That auto sales remain near the 2016 record of 17.55 million is a testimonial to the strength of the economy, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. The job market, he said, has created new employment, and wage growth has accelerated. "That's fundamental to selling anything," he said. "If there are lots of jobs and people are getting bigger paychecks, they will buy more." The unemployment rate is 3.7 percent, a 49-year low. The economy is thought to have grown close to 3 percent last year, its best performance in more than a decade. Consumers, the main driver of the economy, are spending freely. The Federal Reserve raised its key interest rate four times in 2018 but is only expected to raise it twice this year. Auto sales also were helped by low gasoline prices and rising home values, Zandi said. It all means that people are likely to keep buying new vehicles this year even as they grow more expensive. The Edmunds.com auto-pricing site estimates that the average new vehicle price hit a record $35,957 in December, about 2 percent higher than the previous year. It will be harder for automakers to keep the sales pace above 17 million because they have been enticing buyers for several years now with low-interest financing and other incentives, Zandi said. He predicts more deals in the coming year as job growth slows and credit tightens for higher-risk buyers. Edmunds, which provides content, including automotive tips and reviews, for distribution by The Associated Press, predicts that sales will drop this year to 16.9 million.

2021 Cadillac Escalade Interior Review | Tech-forward fortress

Of all the interiors that are vital to Cadillac’s success, the new 2021 EscaladeÂ’s is arguably the most important. ItÂ’s supposed to be the best GM can muster, and the previous generation was a distant second to the classically elegant Lincoln Navigator. Cadillac didnÂ’t try to copy LincolnÂ’s success with its redesigned full-sizer, instead opting to follow a more generic theme of tech-forward luxury. When we say tech-forward, though, we mean it. The 38 inches of curved OLED screens we covered in our Escalade infotainment review absolutely dominate the dash in a brazen display of opulence. There isnÂ’t much room for anything else to take center stage, but whatÂ’s there is extremely nice. Large swaths of wood trim stretch across the dash and also adorn a substantial part of the center console. ItÂ’s harder to find something that doesnÂ’t feel like soft-touch leather, wood or metal trim than it is to find cost-cutting materials. There are certainly some areas with the usual black plastic for buttons, but every car company that isnÂ’t Rolls-Royce resorts to plastic at some level. The seating position and ergonomics of the Escalade are a big step up from past models. There was a feeling of claustrophobia in previous Escalades with the whole interior being built up around the driver in an unfriendly manner. This Escalade tones that down with lower and flatter surfaces, along with just being bigger in general. That feeling of expansiveness is great for decompressing and relaxing in the available heated, cooled and massaging seats. Riding in the back is almost as lovely. Switching to an independent rear suspension and making the vehicle longer means more passenger and cargo space (10.3 cu-ft more than before with the third row up). The majority of this is realized in the third row (10.4 inches more than before), where even large adults can sit comfortably with a laid-back seating position. Before, if your knees weren't in your face, it's probably because you gave up and hitched a ride with someone else. A BMW X7 or Mercedes-Benz GLS will still outclass it for materials and third-row features, but the Escalade wins on sheer bigness. Getting back there is a breeze with a huge walkway, though putting the seat back into place is borderline annoying, requiring much more physical effort than a powered second row would. As big as the third row is, sitting in the second row is even better thanks to the massive dual screens mounted to the front headrests.

Driven: 2020 BMW X7 M50i, M760i and M340i | Autoblog Podcast #623

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by West Coast Editor James Riswick and Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. They discuss news about the Cadillac V Blackwing, as well as some interesting auction listings that we spied. They also talk about cars from the fleet including the BMW M760i, X7 M50i and M340i. Autoblog Podcast #623 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we're driving 2020 BMW M760i xDrive 2020 BMW X7 M50i 2020 BMW M340i Impala auction listing Cadillac V Blackwing news Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: Nissan Frontier and a mid-engine Mustang | Autoblog Podcast #622