1999 Cadillac Deville 4 Door V8 on 2040-cars

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Cadillac Super Cruise gets system enhancements, more compatible highways

Cadillac is updating Super Cruise to make it available to use on more highways, and it will offer better performance, too. Previously, Super Cruise worked on about 130,000 miles of highways across the continent. This update expands that to 200,000 miles. That's because GM has mapped that many more miles to be compatible with its lidar mapping system. As for the performance update, Cadillac says there will be enhancements to the driver monitoring system. That's the key feature that separates Super Cruise from all the other systems out there, making it a truly hands-free experience. It's able to quickly tell whether your eyes are on the road, and it reacts accordingly. We asked for details about the improvements, but all Cadillac would tell us is that there are "slight refinements to the driver attention system to even more accurately detect driver attention." Perhaps it's related to reports of sun-related issues plaguing the infrared monitoring camera. We can't tell you for sure. As for the extra miles, Cadillac says some added highways now include limited intersections and traffic control devices. Basically, there may be a stoplight or some cross traffic thrown into the mix now. Since GM has actually gone and mapped these areas, the car will tell you to take back control when approaching a railroad crossing, pedestrian crossing, stoplight or stop sign. Cadillac included a map (above) depicting the original and new Super Cruise compatible highways. You'll notice there are a lot more highways in the midwest and southeast, in addition to almost being able to cross the entirety of Canada now. Things are still a bit sparse in the western part of the country, but there aren't as many highways out there anyway. Owners of 2018 and 2019 Cadillac CT6s can expect to get the upgrade, but it's not as easy as you may think. Folks will have to take their CT6 in to the Cadillac dealer, where the "system enhancement" will take place. However, that enhancement doesn't include the additional miles. Cadillac says that update will be sent out over-the-air throughout the summer and fall. Updates for Super Cruise seem to be coming out with regularity. Last year Cadillac updated the system for easier activation, better lane placement (for passing large vehicles) and added gauge cluster messages for more information. We happen to love using the technology here at Autoblog, and gave it our 2019 Technology of the Year award.

Tesla leads and Infiniti bleeds in Consumer Reports' satisfaction survey

According to Consumer Reports, Tesla owners are more likely to rave about their vehicles than any other brand. And we're not surprised — Tesla has performed very well in past customer satisfaction surveys, despite the fact that the electric cars themselves tend to have more problems than most other automobiles. Second place went to Lincoln, which interestingly had a higher cumulative score than Tesla in individual category measurements like comfort and storage space. Ram, a truck-only brand, rounded out the top three. The consumer-focused magazine bases its owner satisfaction score on responses to a very simple question: Would you buy this exact car again? The higher percentage of owners who answer "definitely yes" to that question, the higher the satisfaction score. Further breakdowns are scored for other parts of the ownership experience, which is why brands that rank poorly in Consumer Reports' own reliability charts — like Tesla and Lincoln, for example — can still earn top marks for satisfaction. The lowest-ranked brands for satisfaction are Cadillac, Nissan and Infiniti. Interestingly, Cadillac performed better than average in Driving and Comfort and middle-of-the-road in the In-Car Electronics and Cabin Storage, but like most other brands, scored poorly in Value. In fact, only Subaru, Mazda and Volkswagen scored better than average in Value. Nissan and especially Infiniti earned comparatively low marks across the board to go along with the bottom-of-the-barrel satisfaction score. Here's the full list of automakers from Consumer Reports' satisfaction survey, ranked in order from best to worst: Tesla Lincoln Ram Chrysler Subaru Hyundai Porsche Dodge Mazda Toyota Kia Mini BMW Ford Audi Honda Volvo Volkswagen Lexus Jeep GMC Chevrolet Mercedes-Benz Buick Cadillac Nissan Infiniti It's worth diving into the individual category scores in addition to the official finishing order for a full look at the results. For instance, despite the fact that automakers like Lincoln and Ford use similar infotainment systems, their In-Car Electronics scores don't quite match up. Also, some automakers have full lineups with multiple cars, trucks and SUVs while others offer just a couple of nameplates. Head on over to Consumer Reports for all the details. Looking for a reliable car, truck or SUV? Check out the top 10 vehicles that owners keep the longest.

Confident new Cadillac marketing boss ready to take on Tesla, BMW

When there's a former BMW executive heading Cadillac's efforts to boost sales of its only plug-in, it's a pretty safe guess that the marketing emphasis won't be on environmental friendliness and tree-hugging tendencies. The General Motors luxury brand has appointed ex-Bimmer executive Uwe Ellinghaus to be its marketing chief late last year, and the German-born Ellinghaus is now saying that he's targeting potential customers of Tesla Motors, in addition to BMW, for potential growth in sales of the Cadillac ELR extended-range plug-in. Appointed to Cadillac's head of marketing last November, Ellinghaus recently told Advertising Age that GM needs to highlight the Cadillac's looks and performance. He complimented Tesla for putting more emphasis on those attributes in the Model S than on its lack of emissions or lack of refueling costs (but Tesla hasn't shied away from highlighting the EV's savings). Ellinghaus says that trying to gear advertising "for people who are tree-huggers and green-wash an entire brand" won't be successful. You don't say. So far, the ELR hasn't made much of a dent in US car sales. Through May, Cadillac, which spent about $280 million on all of its US marketing last year, sold 293 units, whereas Tesla had been approaching the 11,000-unit figure for the Model S. With that in mind, Cadillac may be working on a sportier version of the ELR, as spy shots of a test vehicle from May revealed larger brakes and wheels. You can read our First Drive impressions of the ELR here.