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GM says EVs are the future — but trucks are going to take it there

In the PowerPoint deck for the General Motors Capital Markets Day presentation, one of the more disturbing things comes early on, during GM President Mark Reuss' initial remarks, in an area where he is discussing the company's overall strength in trucks. The point being made is that GM has a truck for all and sundry. And there it is, a phrase on a slide that should send chills up the spines of those who still pine for the old Bob Seger "Like a Rock" Silverado ads: "Little bit country. Little bit rock 'n' roll." That's right. Donny and Marie. Somehow the Denis Leary snark in the F-150 ads is all the more appealing. The Capital Markets Day presentation was chock full of observations about electrification and automation (Reuss and CEO Mary Barra both noted that the corporation's vision is one of "Zero Crashes. Zero Emissions. Zero Congestion." Dan Ammann talked about the progress being made at Cruise Automation; Reuss rolled out the plan for an array of electrified vehicles, with a luxury EV and a compact SUV being the "Centroid Entries" for the modular bases of many others). But it is worth noting that there is no getting away from the power of pickups in the U.S. market, as that was the central topic in Chief Financial Officer Dhivya Suryadevara's comments, with "Truck Franchise" being flanked by "Key Financial Priorities" and "Financial Outlook." Clearly, to gloss the old phrase, the truck segment is where the money is. Suryadevra enumerated how the truck segment is significantly different than other types of light vehicles. Among her points: GM, Ford and FCA have more than 90% of market share. The truck parc has been growing and aging over the past 10 years. Customers are fiercely loyal to the segment—as in 70% of truck buyers are truck buyers. A good number of the vehicles are for commercial use (40 percent). Trucks are "less prone to. . .mobility disruption." Trucks offer high margins. Translaton: The segment is one that they're solidly positioned in. There are lots of old trucks on the road that will need to be replaced by new ones. Perhaps buyers may switch from a Sierra to a Canyon, but it will be a truck. If your livelihood depends on that type of vehicle, even if gas prices go up or the economy begins to go south, you're going to stick with it. Most of the country isn't San Francisco, so trucks will continue to be essential. And, well, they're profitable in the extreme.

Mystery Cadillac coupe concept revealed in patent drawings

We have been reminded once again that when Cadillac designs a coupe, it's usually spectacular. The reminder comes in the form of a patent drawing filing that was previously reported on by Jalopnik. In the filing are shots of the two-door from just about every angle, and there's not a bad one in the bunch. Unfortunately, there isn't really any other information about the car in the patent, so the car remains a mystery in that regard. Still, there's a fair amount to be gleaned from the images. It certainly looks sportier than most recent Cadillac concepts. It has a fastback roof and a short deck lid. The rear bumper has a diffuser design fitted to it. The rear fenders are very wide. It has large auxiliary grilles on each side of the center one, and the way the taillights are designed seem to hint at extractor vents. The overall proportions even look a bit like those of the Camaro, but possibly a little larger. The car also looks like it's probably a concept. The side mirror stalks are far too skinny to actually be production units. The big diffuser and center exhaust, plus those rear extractor vent designs seem a little much for a production model, too. The headlights are also a little on the small side. Being a concept (probably), we're a little worried. We really want to see this thing come to market, but Cadillac has a bad track record of showing beautiful concepts that never make it to production, even when they aren't particularly over-the-top. The Elmiraj and Ciel are two that come to mind. The former was a coupe, too, and was elegant and grounded. We never got a production version of either. We did see some styling inspiration from the Elmiraj on the ATS and CTS, but they never quite captured the concept's beauty. Then again, when Cadillac has managed to bring a recent concept to production, the results haven't great. The Converj concept became the ELR, and while the styling came through fine, it was hampered by an uninspiring powertrain and an excruciating price tag. But hey, Cadillac could always prove us wrong. And we would like them to. Related Video: Featured Gallery Cadillac Coupe Patent Drawings News Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark OfficeImage Credit: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Cadillac Coupe Concept Cars Luxury

2017 Cadillac CT6 Plug-in Hybrid is the most efficient and torquey CT6 of all

Cadillac is returning to the hybrid game after discontinuing the ill-fated ELR, this time with an existing car and a new drivetrain. The company has taken its CT6 flagship and given it a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder, a pair of motors, and a big battery pack. The result of this combination is a CT6 that manages a rating of 65 MPGe, can go 30 miles on a full electric charge or 400 miles combined with the engine. The powertrain produces 335 horsepower and 432 lb-ft of torque. That's the same amount of power as the 3.6-liter V6 CT6, and more torque than that engine or the twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6. Cadillac claims the CT6 plug-in is capable of hitting 60 miles per hour in 5.2 seconds and reaching a top speed of 150 mph. The green and grunty CT6 plug-in will be available this coming spring, and it will have a premium price of $76,090. Cadillac says that its equipment list is comparable to the CT6 Premium Luxury trim level, which starts at $64,590 with the 3.6-liter V6, and $68,590 with the twin-turbo V6. However, in addition to the hybrid powertrain, Cadillac throws in a number of features that are options on the conventional gasoline models. To get the hybrid's rear seat infotainment system and enhanced night vision, a buyer would have to add $5,800 in option packages. That still leaves the twin-turbo model $1,700 shy of the hybrid, but that's not a terrible trade for the option of fuel-free driving for at least some of the time. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2017 Cadillac CT6 Plug-in Hybrid View 15 Photos Image Credit: Cadillac Green LA Auto Show Cadillac Hybrid Luxury Sedan cadillac ct6 2016 LA Auto Show