In the wake of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Cadillac’s Escala concept has brought the company a little closer to the automotive spotlight. However, the concept’s conservative design has raised some questions about the future of the company.
To dissuade any doubts, Cadillac president Johan de Nysschen recently revealed plans for at least seven new additions to the Detroit company’s lineup. However, de Nysschen decided to announce this while responding to an article by The Detroit Bureau.
The article expresses concerns for the GM affiliated company’s future saying that Cadillac is “struggling to boost U.S. sales, despite the addition of several new models.” Furthermore, the article questioned the rapid growth plan put in place by de Nysschen.
Clearly this did not sit well with Cadillac’s president. De Nysschen felt the need to lay out a number of corrections to the article in the comments section. Within this reply are plans for seven new vehicles (or updates to current cars). Here are his exact words:
“We ARE planning a Cadillac flagship which will NOT be a 4 door sedan;
We ARE planning a large crossover beneath Escalade;
We ARE planning a compact crossover beneath XT5;
We ARE planning a comprehensive enhancement to CT6 later during life cycle;
We ARE planning a major refresh for XTS;
We ARE planning a new Lux 3 sedan entry;
We ARE planning a new Lux 2 sedan entry;”
The Detroit Bureau provided some information regarding a cancellation or revision to the flagship program. But, de Nysschen had a few words about that as well saying, “It’s not so much an issue of Cadillac programs which have been ‘cancelled’. The only item which is correct, is the change in planning for a Lux 5 flagship sedan, versus the plan which was previously reported to our dealers.”
Whether or not this was a good move by Cadillac’s president is anyone’s guess. De Nysschen ended with these words: “I trust these unusually transparent insights which I have shared, will allay the fears of thousands of Cadillac fans who will greet your article with justified consternation.”
Now we can wait to see if he actually delivers on these big promises.
Check out this related TFLcar mashup video of the 2017 Cadillac XT5 going against the Mercedes-Benz GLC300: