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Forget everything you know about Cadillac V

Cadillac rolled out the CT4-V and CT5-V performance sedans to a rather confused group of journalists last night. What are these cars? Only 355 horsepower in the CTS-V replacement? And just 320 horsepower for the ATS-V successor? Surely, there's something out of place — you can get up to speed with all the details here. Cadillac understood our confusion and explained what was going on rather quickly. The explanation means you have to forget everything you know about what "V" means for a Cadillac, though. Any Cadillac with the singular "V" badge on it previously has denoted the absolute top-tier of performance for that particular model. The CTS-V had the Corvette Z06 engine in it and made 640 horsepower. The ATS-V had a boosted 3.6-liter V6 good for a raucous 464 horsepower. They were equivalent to BMW M, Mercedes-AMG or an Audi RS. We're not talking about the lesser M or AMG models, either. No, the last Cadillac Vs were meant to compete with cars like the C63 or M3, the top-tier of performance in those brands' lineups. This is where you're going to have to start re-learning, because that's no longer the case for a Cadillac with a V badge gracing the rear end. What Cadillac has essentially done is demote what V means, with the intention of offering "something else" above it. With this new strategy, we'd equate a Cadillac V to something like an AMG 43, M340i, or Audi with an S badge on it. Cadillac has even come out with a car similar to this strategy before in the V-Sport. That didn't confuse everybody, though, because the name was different, and the strategy was clear. Now, Cadillac V is just a small stepping stone to these mysterious high performance cars still to come. We asked for any information concerning these future track-ready, fire-breathing monsters, but mum is the word for now. The naming strategy for something above a V is uncharted territory, and it'll also force everyone to learn what the top of the Cadillac lineup is all over again. Cadillac CT5-V View 6 Photos Why confuse folks like this? Cadillac wants to take advantage of the V brand cache in more of its lineup than just two super sedans. Think future vehicles like an XT5-V, XT4-V and others like that. Now that V doesn't mean a Nurburgring-conquering 500+ horsepower luxury muscle car, it makes it far easier for Cadillac to get V badges on everything. Obviously, GM isn't the first to think of this strategy.

Cadillac's Blackwing V8 was the best engine at the worst time

It should be clear that GM knows how to innovate and engineer excellent products when it wants to. Cadillac's 4.2-liter twin-turbo Blackwing V8 is recent proof of that. Yet, as related in an extensive Road & Track piece, the Blackwing became victim to some of The General's bugbears, like the reticence to — for whatever reasons — unleash its excellence everywhere, fund that excellence, and be consistent with that excellence over the long term beyond the Corvette and full-sized pickups and SUVs. The R/T story relates tales told by "several people deeply involved with the Blackwing project" about how an engine 18 years in the making was deprived of its reasons for being in less than three. Starting around 2000, GM spent a dozen years building Cadillac up to the point where the American luxury brand could rationally flip to the chapter called, "Taking the Fight to the Germans, but for Real this Time." The first steps in the plan meant an exclusive platform and an exclusive engine. The platform was called Omega. You know the engine's name. They were going to be the aluminum-blocked fist and velvet glove enabling Cadillac to break on through to the other side of luxury — proper luxury to global standards, that is — with a range of beautiful and dynamic crossovers and sedans. An engineer involved in the project estimates GM poured $16 million into the Blackwing's clean-sheet development. Many more seven-figure sums went into creating the first sedan on the Omega platform, the CT6. The automaker dropped millions again poaching ex-Audi and Infiniti chief Johan de Nysschen, and moving Cadillac's headquarters to New York City in 2014. Further pallets of cash funded the development and debut of the Escala concept at Pebble Beach in 2016. In 2018, GM revealed its dramatically named DOHC twin-turbo V8. Considering what came before, the Blackwing clearly wasn't designed for cars. It was designed for world domination. However, against the backdrop of plummeting sedan sales, the CT6 didn't sell like GM had hoped. The automaker hesitated to marshal another fleet of Brinks trucks to fund entries into a cratering bodystyle. Removing sedans from the world domination equation created more difficult math for the crossovers and the Escala.

GM reworking mandatory OnStar plans for some 2024 models

For the 2023 model year, GM added its OnStar and Connected Services plan as standard equipment to a large number of Buick, GMC, and Chevrolet vehicles. Folding the $1,500 retail price into the MSRPs of models like the GMC Acadia and Buick Encore plumped up prices beyond the usual year-on-year bumps. Looks like there's a reversal in play for 2024, GM Authority reporting that many of the models fitted with OnStar and Connected Services — now called OnStar Premium — will step down to three years of OnStar Remote Access standard.   OnStar Remote Access comes with these features: Remote key fob, vehicle locate, and remote personalization through mobile and in-vehicle apps. Three additional features can be added to the plan: OnStar Guardian, in-vehicle hotspot, and Super Cruise. Owners can also upgrade to OnStar Premium if they choose.  Higher trims like Buick's Avenir and GMC's Denali, plus the GMC Hummer and the Cadillac Escalade will retain OnStar Premium as standard equipment. That suite starts with Remote Access and adds: Automatic crash response, stolen vehicle assistance and recovery, OnStar Guardian, in-vehicle app access, unlimited streaming, three years of Super Cruise on vehicles with the hardware, and six months of SiriusXM radio. The Escalade puts a cherry on top with three years Sirius XM instead of six months. The Remote Access plan normally charges $14.99 per month. We're not sure yet if GM will subtract the cost of OnStar Premium from the MSRP and add the $540 for OnStar Remote Access, or if the trial period comes free of charge. Even if that's what happens, the change could take nearly $1,000 off the MSRP of a car like the GMC Acadia before any 2024 increases. We'll know more as the 2024MY models roll out and prices are announced. Related Video 2022 Buick Enclave Avenir revealed