{"id":79696,"date":"2014-07-30T07:08:28","date_gmt":"2014-07-30T11:08:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/?p=79696"},"modified":"2014-07-29T21:17:53","modified_gmt":"2014-07-30T01:17:53","slug":"cadillac-counting-on-new-product-to-reverse-slump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/2014\/07\/cadillac-counting-on-new-product-to-reverse-slump\/","title":{"rendered":"Cadillac Counting on New Product to Reverse Slump"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
The new Cadillac crest - minus the wreath - debuts on the 2015 ATS Coupe.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cNew product is the lifeblood of any brand,\u201d said Jim Vurpillat, the marketing director for Cadillac, as he took a break during a media drive of the luxury maker\u2019s new ATS Coupe.\u00a0 He and the rest of Cadillac\u2019s management team certainly have to hope so after the unexpected slide the General Motors division has taken so far this year.<\/p>\n

The ATS Coupe, a new line of performance models, a flagship sedan, a compact crossover and other new products are moving their way through the Caddy pipeline. But the brand could see the pace of that rollout accelerate in the near future under the guidance of a new global brand boss who will officially join the Caddy team later this week.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Your Inside Source!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Johan de Nysschen, most recently the CEO of Nissan\u2019s Infiniti division and before that head of Audi of America, was brought in as part of a plan to give Cadillac more independence from GM. And company insiders suggest that the South African-born executive negotiated a deal that will also give Caddy more of the product it needs to compete against aggressive German rivals Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, as well as Infiniti, Lexus, Lincoln and luxury upstart Hyundai.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you look at the brands Cadillac is competing with, they have a tremendous range of model offerings as they\u2019ve sliced the cheese ever thinner in a finite market,\u201d said Joe Phillippi, senior automotive analyst with AutoTrends Consulting.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The 2015 Cadillac ATS Coupe.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Indeed, Steve Cannon, the CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA, recently noted his parent company\u2019s plans call for the roll-out of at least 20 new models by the end of the decade, \u201cabout one every quarter.\u201d<\/p>\n

(For more on de Nysschen’s move to Cadillac, <\/em>Click Here<\/span><\/a>.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Even today, Cadillac has fallen way behind, measured by both sales and market count, despite the addition of several key products over the last two years. That includes both the big XTS, the ELR plug-in hybrid and the maker\u2019s first compact model in decades, the well-reviewed ATS sedan. Despite generally solid reviews \u2013 many comparing the ATS favorably to the benchmark BMW 3-Series — Cadillac has been in a slump this year. Sales rose a meager 0.1% last month, well behind the pace of the overall market recovery. And for the calendar year through June demand dipped 1.9% compared to the first half of 2013.<\/p>\n

Why is a matter of debate. It certainly hasn\u2019t helped to have the competition flooding the market with offerings as diverse as the all-new Audi A3, completely redesigned BMW 3-Series and new Mercedes S-Class. Analysts also fault Cadillac for getting too aggressive on pricing its new offerings, the ATS coming a bit too close to its German rivals without having the necessary brand prestige.<\/p>\n

(GM issues stop-sale on used Cadillac models. <\/em>Click Here<\/span><\/a> for the story.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Caddy planners are being a bit more cautious with the 2-door version of their compact model, the ATS Coupe starting at $38,990, compared to $41,425 for the new BMW 428i. Whether that\u2019s enough of a gap will become apparent in the months ahead. But the U.S. maker is optimistic. At its peak, the 2-door version of the Cadillac CTS accounted for a quarter of the sales of that bigger model. Marketing chief Vurpillat is hoping the ATS Coupe will generate similar results.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The newly redesigned Cadillac Escalade has regained its crown as best-selling full-size luxury SUV.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The new 2-door will reach showrooms months after the debut of an all-new version of the massive Cadillac Escalade, which is delivering the solid results the GM brand needs. It has nudged past the big Mercedes GL to become the sales leader in the highly profitable full-size luxury SUV segment, demand running about 3,300 a month.<\/p>\n

(Sales in a slump, Cadillac loses another senior exec. <\/em>Click Here<\/span><\/a> for more.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

But the real volume line could prove to be the compact crossover Cadillac is readying. Small CUVs make up one of the fastest-growing luxury niches, and it\u2019s a gap Caddy has to fill as it competes with offerings as far flux as the BMW X3, the new Lexus NX and the Lincoln MKC.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow we\u2019re ready to tick off some of the boxes,\u201d said Cadillac communications director David Caldwell, hinting at the products yet to come.<\/p>\n

While Cadillac won\u2019t go into specifics, various officials have confirmed the brand will roll out:<\/p>\n