2006 Cadillac Cts on 2040-cars

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Saturn Vue ignition switch leads to new group of GM recalls totaling 312k

General Motors has another spate of recalls to announce. This time they cover 312,280 vehicles worldwide, including 269,041 of in the US, in a total of six campaigns. In 2014, the automaker has recalled 29,079,765 vehicles worldwide, with 25,754,356 of those in the US.
The largest among them covers 215,243 units of the Saturn Vue from 2002-2004 model years worldwide, 202,115 in the US. It's possible for the for the key to be removed even when the ignition isn't in the OFF position. The company knows of two crashes and one injury caused by this problem. Dealers are checking the parts and replacing the ignition cylinder and key set, if necessary.
Next is 72,826 models worldwide (48,059 vehicles in the US) of the 2013 Cadillac ATS four-door sedan, 2013 Buick Encore and 2013 Chevy Trax in Canada. It's possible that the for lap belt pretensioner to retract but not to lock, which could increase occupant movement during a crash. Both front, outboard lap belt pretensioners are being replaced, and a stop-sale is in effect on unsold models until the problem is repaired. There are no known crashes or injuries, though.

Cadillac considering more radical ATS-V

Cadillac is stepping up its performance game with the launch of the new ATS-V and CTS-V, but it's not about to rest on the laurels it removed from its own badge. While it's tipped to launch additional V models in the future, the latest word is Caddy could also come out with an even more extreme version of the ATS-V in the near future. According to Car and Driver, the prospect is on the table: "We might have something down the road that is a little bit more aggressive," chief engineer Dave Leone said, while another source pegged its potential arrival for 2017. It's too early to say what would constitute the more extreme model. The magazine points toward the Mercedes-AMG Black Series as an example. Jaguar took a similarly extreme approach with the XKR-S GT, as BMW has with the M3 GTS. As it is, the ATS-V is offered in both coupe and sedan variants with a 3.6-liter twin-turbo V6 producing 464 horsepower channeled to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual. Cadillac reportedly considered employing a dual-clutch transmission and all-wheel drive, but went the old-school route to avoid excess weight and (no doubt) cost.

Junkyard Gem: 1987 Cadillac Cimarron

The General's Cadillac Division hit its all-time sales record during the 1973 model year, with 304,839 cars sold. Then the OPEC oil embargo in the fall of that year caused oil prices to triple, while simultaneously accelerating several negative trends in the American economy. In the aftermath, sales of imported luxury cars surged, the President resigned, the communists conquered South Vietnam, and Cadillac introduced a compact car based on the proletariat Chevrolet Nova. Sales of those Sevilles — which cost better than triple the price of their Nova siblings — proved strong, and so it seemed to make sense to create a Cadillac-ized version of the Nova's replacement: the front-wheel-drive Chevrolet Cavalier, which debuted for the 1982 model year. Thus was the Cadillac Cimarron born, and that's what we've got for today's Junkyard Gem. The Cimarron stayed in production for the 1982 through 1988 model years, but sales were strongest for the first few years and so the 1982-83 cars make up the bulk of my Cimarron junkyard finds. This very clean '87 in a Denver-area yard is a rare late-production car. Although the Cimarron was by far the swankiest GM J-Body ever made, its Cavalier ancestry was unmistakable. While the Nova-based Seville caused some grumbling over the cheapening of the Cadillac brand, the Cimarron inspired widespread anger and loathing among those who love cars. Even with a leather interior and nice audio system, the Cimarron still caused pain to its owners who saw cheapo Cavaliers (and Pontiac J2000s and Olds Firenzas) looking nearly identical at a glance yet costing far less. In 1987, the list price on a new Cimarron started at $15,032 (about $35,550 in 2021 dollars). The cheapest Cavalier listed at $7,255 that year, though the loaded Cavalier RS sedan with V6 engine started at $9,159. For 1982 through 1986, the base powertrain in the Cimarron consisted of a 1.8-liter or 2.0-liter four-cylinder — yes, the same double-digit-horsepower engines that went into Cavaliers — paired with a four- or five-speed manual transmission. The 2.8-liter V6, rated at 125 horses, was an option in those cars and became standard equipment in the 1987 and 1988 Cimarrons.