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2020 Cadillac XT6 revealed as Caddy's first big crossover

The 2020 Cadillac XT6 rounds out Cadillac's crossover lineup with a range-topper. It also presents an option for people who wanted a three-row Cadillac but didn't want something as large and truck-like as an Escalade. This is partly achieved through using a naturally aspirated 3.6-liter V6 powering either the front or all four wheels. A nine-speed automatic transmission sends the V6's 310 horsepower and 271 pound-feet of torque to the ground. The XT6 is split between two trim levels that appear to be marketed as different rather than one being better. The first is redundantly called Premium Luxury. A chrome grille and trim, red taillights and unique 20-inch wheels distinguish it as such from the outside, while wood trim covers the inside. The second is Sport, and black trim replaces the chrome, red taillights are swapped for clear, and carbon fiber supplants the wood inside. It has different 20-inch wheels as well as optional 21-inch pieces. The Sport gets mechanical tweaks, too, including continuously adjustable shocks and a standard all-wheel-drive system with yaw control. No matter the trim, all XT6's get an interior that builds upon the XT4 with more physical buttons and a control knob for the infotainment for scrolling through menus and lists. Safety and convenience features abound, including standard automatic emergency braking, blind-spot warning and lane-keep assist. Optional features include night vision, parking assist with braking support, a heads-up display and a camera screen mirror. Adaptive cruise control is also available, but it's not Super Cruise, our Tech of the Year award winner. Cadillac will start taking orders for the Tennessee-built crossover this spring. The final release date hasn't been announced yet, though. That information, along with pricing, should come closer to when the crossover begins production. Related Video:

GM will likely build PHEV batteries in China soon

It's a big week for batteries. Friday, Tesla will hold a big event at its Gigafactory in Reno, NV. But even in Michigan, there are things happening on the electrified automotive front. This was proven when GM invited journalists to its Brownstown Battery Assembly Plant today, highlighting the six different battery packs it makes for nine vehicles around the world (plus a tenth, coming to Asia, that has not yet been announced). During our tour, we learned a few interesting tidbits that we thought readers would like to hear: The Cadillac CT6 plug-in hybrid launches in China this fall before coming to the US next year. GM builds the battery packs in Michigan and ships them to China for final assembly in the PHEV. For now, this is all fine for GM to qualify for China's incentives for building green cars in the country. But, as Bill Wallace, GM's director of global battery systems, told AutoblogGreen, this could change thanks to the country's 'Made in China 2025' plan. The situation is "evolving," he said, and it's a safe assumption that GM will need to build packs in China some day. For the CT6 PHEVs that will be sold in the US, the batteries will make a round trip, since GM will only build the plug-in version in China. As for the range of the CT6 PHEV, that hasn't been announced, but since China offers incentives for vehicles that get at least 50 kilometers (31 miles), that's a likely target (the US range (UPDATE: GM did announce an expected range for the CT6 PHEV in the US at the LA Auto Show last fall, saying it would "travel approximately 30 miles on a full electric charge"). The battery pack in the CT6 is also a clunky box-type thing, totally unlike the near-elegant T-shape used in the Volt. This despite the fact that the guts of the two packs are similar. Both have 192 li-ion cells and weigh almost the same, but GM tuned the CT6 pack for acceleration instead of range, the way it did with the Volt's pack. Still, the main reason the packs are different is because the CT6 is a rear-wheel drive vehicle, and the tunnel that the Volt's pack uses is occupied by the driveshaft. Despite the highly touted second-gen Chevy Volt going on sale last year, GM still has the capacity to build battery packs for the old, first-gen model. This is because the company is legally required to be able to provide replacement packs for warrantied vehicles (for up to 10 years), and the second-gen packs don't fit into the first-gen vehicles.

GM, UAW poaching Nissan workers in Tennessee

General Motors and the United Auto Workers are going on a recruitment drive at the Spring Hill factory in Tennessee, and they're hoping to poach some skilled workers from Nissan's nearby plant in Smyrna, TN. The General and the union even bought a billboard advertising for industrial electricians near the Japanese automaker's facility, according to the Daily News Journal. The reason for the billboard was simple. "GM was short of electricians," said Tim Stannard, the president of the UAW local at Spring Hill, to the Daily News Journal. The factory currently builds the Chevrolet Equinox but has a contract to assemble the next generation of Ecotec engines and the Cadillac XT5, which replaces the SRX. Thanks to the $185-million deal, employment there is expected to double by May 2016, according to Stannard, with roughly 1,800 additional union jobs. Beyond just several billboards, GM has job postings online for the Spring Hill plant looking for workers with specific skills. There has already been some interest in the positions among Nissan employees, Stannard indicated. According to a recent study by the Center for Automotive Research, the average GM worker currently makes $58 an hour, including benefits. Comparatively, Nissan pays an average of $42 an hour with benefits. The General's number could change in the coming weeks because its contract with the UAW is about to expire, and higher wages are among the major negotiating points.