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2019 Cadillac XT5 Sport package isn't really that sporty

Between the just revealed XT6 three-row crossover and last year's XT4 compact, the stalwart midsize XT5 has been a bit neglected. But Cadillac is giving it a little love at the Chicago show with the introduction of the Sport package. Don't get too excited, though, because this package is just a trim group. Outside, the XT5 with the Sport package gets a black grille, LED lights all around, and the rear lights have clear lenses. These design cues line up with the existing Sport trims on the XT4 and XT6. The new lighting and trim are complemented by 20-inch dark gray wheels and side steps. Inside, buyers get a choice between an all-black or black and gray upholstered interior with diamond-cut aluminum trim and aluminum pedals. And that's all the package adds. The suspension isn't retuned. The 3.6-liter V6 still makes 310 horsepower and 271 pound-feet of torque. But if the looks are enough for you, you'll be able to add the package to either the Luxury or Premium Luxury trim levels, which sit between the base XT5 and top-level Platinum. Related Video:

GM posts $4 billion third-quarter profit thanks to trucks and SUVs

DETROIT — General Motors is posting huge third quarter numbers, pulling in $4 billion in profit over three months after losing money due to the virus outbreak. GM's adjusted earnings were $2.83 per share, easily outpacing Wall Street's per-share projections of $1.43, according to a survey by FactSet. Revenue of $35.5 billion also edged out most expectations. Shares jumped almost 6% before the opening bell Thursday. The company swung back from a $806 million loss in the second quarter, when it was restarting factories shuttered for safety during the early stages of the pandemic. The Detroit automaker joined most global automakers in reporting better-than-expected earnings from July through September as sales across the globe started to rebound from coronavirus lockdowns, especially in China. GM sales in China jumped 12% in the third quarter, with sales of its Buick and Cadillac brands both rising more than 25%. In the U.S., GMÂ’s most profitable market, sales fell 9.9% in the third quarter compared with a year ago, but were a dramatic improvement over the 34% drop in the second quarter. Sales improved sequentially each month, the automaker said, an encouraging trend. GMÂ’s profit was boosted by higher-priced pickup trucks and large SUVs, which have seen strong sales in the U.S. through the pandemic. It was the best quarter on record for GM's Chevrolet Blazer. Sales of the Cadillac XT6 spiked 45% in the U.S. over last year. Large pickups also sold well. GM also said it was pumping $2 billion into its Spring Hill, Tennessee manufacturing plant to push its transition to produce electric vehicles. Last week, crosstown rivals Fiat Chrysler and Ford reported strong third-quarter net income. FCA said it made $1.4 billion for the period, while Ford earned $2.39 billion. Related Video: Earnings/Financials Buick Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC

Junkyard Gem: 1976 Cadillac Eldorado Convertible

Convertibles rode high well in 1960s America, with Detroit selling more than 500,000 ragtops in 1965, but sales collapsed by the early 1970s and tightening federal crash-safety regulations made it seem less worthwhile to even bother producing new ones. Chrysler halted convertible production after 1971, with Ford following suit by 1973. By the 1976 model year, the Cadillac Eldorado was the last new American car you could buy with a convertible top from the factory, and it appeared that none would ever be built again. I've found one of those "last convertible" Eldorados in rough-but-identifiable condition in a Denver junkyard. As it turned out, the convertible never really died in America. Car shoppers could still buy new European-made convertibles after 1976, coachbuilders modified new Detroit cars with factory-grade drop-tops, and then Chrysler began selling K-Car convertibles starting with the 1982 model year. Because the '76 Eldorado appeared to be the absolute end of the convertible line, however, buyers thought they were investing in a sure-fire collector car that would be worth vast sums in the not-very-distant future (this belief led to lawsuits against GM later on, when the Cadillac Division resumed production of the Eldorado convertible for 1984). While a one-of-200-made Bicentennial Edition Eldorado with red-white-and-blue trim really is worth plenty these days, an ordinary 1976 Eldorado in beat-up condition doesn't seem worth restoring. This car appears to have sat outside in Colorado with the top down for decades, filling with snow each winter and enduring high-elevation solar irradiation each summer. A 1960s GTO or Camaro might be worth fixing up after falling into this state of disrepair, but not one of 14,000 "last convertible" Eldorados made in 1976. GM's Unified Powerplant Package front-wheel-drive system, which used battleship-strength chains to transmit power to the drive wheels, proved to be extremely reliable on the street, joining the small-block Chevrolet engine and Hydra-Matic transmission in the pantheon of The General's Greatest Engineering Hits. Even gigantic motorhomes used this system. In 1976, the Eldorado got the last of the 500-cubic-inch (8.2 liter, or litre as GM's marketers spelled it) V8s, rated at a disappointing 190 horsepower and an impressive 360 lb-ft of torque.