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GM recalls Cadillac ATS and Chevy Impala for separate issues

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration added two recalls from General Motors in the government organization's daily update of safety campaigns. Both were for failing to meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards but for completely separate reasons. The larger recall covers 58,698 units of the 2013-2015 Cadillac ATS, but it doesn't really carry huge safety concerns. In vehicles produced between April 25, 2012, and February 9, 2015, the controls for the tilt and slide of the moonroof are not recessed enough, as required by federal law. According to NHTSA, it's possible that someone could inadvertently activate the auto-close for the roof panel, which the agency claims increases "the risk of personal injury." Dealers will install a new trim plate that will add the necessary clearance. The other campaign covers 1,177 examples of the 2014 Chevrolet Impala from between November 15, 2012, and May 27, 2014. However, this is actually a repeat of a previous recall on the Chevy and the Cadillac XTS from 2014. The affected Impalas here "were remedied incorrectly" under the earlier campaign, according to NHTSA. On these sedans, it's possible the electronic parking brake might not fully disengage and still remain in some contact with the rotor, which is in violation of federal rules. The fault can cause excessive heat from the brakes that could potentially lead to a fire, according to NHTSA. To fix the problem, dealers will reprogram the electronic parking brake control module. Show full PR text RECALL Subject : Inadvertent Press of Roof Panel Switch/FMVSS 118 Report Receipt Date: FEB 24, 2015 NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V106000 Component(s): VISIBILITY Potential Number of Units Affected: 58,698 All Products Associated with this Recall Vehicle Make Model Model Year(s) CADILLAC ATS 2013-2015 Details Manufacturer: General Motors LLC SUMMARY: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Cadillac ATS vehicles manufactured April 25, 2012, to February 9, 2015. In the affected vehicles, the power-operated roof panels auto-close when the non-recessed "Slide" or "Tilt" switches are pressed. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) No.

Cadillac ATS was almost front-wheel drive

"We were going to do a front-wheel drive Cadillac compact off of Delta because it was going to be less expensive," Doug Parks, General Motors' vice president of global product programs, told the Automotive News during the Detroit Auto Show in January of this year. That sentence, referring to early ATS discussions more than five years ago - a period when the automaker, and the industry, was struggling - reveals that Cadillac's highly acclaimed rear-wheel drive compact sedan almost never happened.
Parks revealed that that automaker actually built a 2.0-liter test mule, on GM's Delta platform (shared with the Chevrolet Cruze and Buick Verano) and tested it in Europe. While the prototype was "pretty darn good," according to Parks, the team realized that in order to compete against Mercedes-Benz and BMW it would have to invest in a new rear-wheel drive platform.
The resulting all-new Alpha platform would eventually underpin the Cadillac ATS, and many would argue that its balanced rear-wheel drive chassis is its single most important attribute. Thankfully, the Alpha's goodness won't stop with the ATS. The upcoming 2014 Cadillac CTS and the future Camaro will also share its architecture, meaning the Cimarron will remain a distant memory.

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.