2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon Video

You can count Cars.com reviewer Joe Wiesenfelder as a fan of the 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon, despite the disappointing reliability ratings that the CTS sedan gets. The wagon comes loaded with enough cargo space, features and versatile functions to make it worth a look.

2010 Cadillac SRX Video

With nearly a dozen small luxury crossovers on the market, Cadillac has its work cut out for it with the 2010 Cadillac SRX. Cars.com reviewer Kelsey Mays took a hard look at the SRX and concludes that Cadillac’s small SUV may have a tough time breaking through the crowded segment. Check out his video review to find out why.

2010|Cadillac|SRX

2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe at the 2009 L.A. Auto Show

• Competes with: Audi A5, Mercedes Benz E-Class coupe, BMW 3 Series coupe
• Looks like: The new GM isn’t going to shelve sexy sports cars
• Drivetrain: 304-hp, 3.6-liter V-6 with six-speed manual or automatic transmission, rear or all-wheel drive
• Hits dealerships: Spring 2010

If you were hoping that the CTS coupe would go on sale earlier than next spring, you had good reason. GM showed the concept at the 2008 Detroit auto show and promised a production model would quickly arrive on dealer lots. However, a little thing called government-run bankruptcy got in the way of its development, and the very future of the model was in limbo for a short time.
 
Now that GM is up and running again, it’s showing the 2011 CTS coupe in full-production trim at the 2009 L.A. Auto Show starting next week.
 
The final car looks nearly identical to the concept car and features the same 304-horsepower, direct-injected V-6 from the CTS sedan. The coupe looks a bit stubby in profile, but it’s just 3 inches shorter than the sedan. While the exterior design may be a dramatic take on its sedan sibling, the coupe’s interior is virtually identical to the sedan because the two sport the same gauges and center console. Those are winning attributes to be sure.
 
We’re surprised to see that the coupe will also come with all-wheel drive as an option, which should help sales in the north. The coupe also comes in either a standard Performance Package with 18-inch wheels and all-season tires or a Summer Tire Performance Package, which adds 19-inch wheels and optional summer tires — obviously. We’re not sure why they don’t just call the Performance Package the base model.
 
A CTS-V ultra-performance version of the coupe is sure to be on its way in the future; for now, buyers can order the Recaro seats from the CTS-V sedan as a stand-alone option.
 
What we’re also unsure of is the price but the coupe shouldn’t vary too much from a similarly equipped sedan, which starts at $43,825. More images below.

Fewer Than 200 Have Returned GM's Guaranteed Cars

GM’s 60-Day Satisfaction Guarantee program has proven to be a confidence booster for the company. Today, GM announced that fewer than 200 buyers out of 222,000 who purchased a new GM car have returned them unsatisfied. However, that’s out of 658 who took the guarantee offer over $500 in cash back. That’s a 33% return rate.

These returns don’t cost the buyer the full price of the car, but they are out taxes, fees and two car payments. This means those who returned cars were very unsatisfied and skeptical to begin with. GM says it is being proactive about the returns; they're following up with each customer and conducting high-level interviews with engineering staff to find out what the customers didn’t like. A few of the purchasers returned the cars for other models or trim levels, but many just didn’t like the cars or trucks.

2009 Cash-Back Deals You Can Still Find

As the 2010 models push out nearly all of the old 2009s on dealer lots, a lot of buyers become annoyed by valid, advertised cash-back offers on 2009 cars that basically aren’t available anymore.

We tracked down some interesting offers on 2009s that are:
a.)    Cars we wouldn’t mind buying
b.)    Have a significant cash-back offer
c.)    Readily available, according to Cars.com’s new-car inventory

Check out our list below. And if you want to search our inventory scroll to the end of the post for handy links for each model.

GM Extends 60-Day Guarantee

While it appears very few new GM buyers are opting for its new 60-Day Satisfaction Guarantee, GM is extending the program through the end of 2009 and slightly beyond, ending Jan. 4. Buyers can opt for the guarantee which allows them to return a new vehicle after 30 days but before 60 — with restrictions — if the buyer isn’t happy with it. Recent reports have the take rate of the program at 10% of new car sales; the other 90% are opting instead for a $500 cash back rebate. Only a handful of the 10% have actually returned a car.
 
We’ve already wondered if this counts as a “success” but since the program doesn’t seem to cost GM much, the publicity and marketing value is likely making up for any loss. That’s why GM will continue touting its “May the Best Car Win” slogan in print, online and TV advertising through December. 

Consumer Reports' Top 10 Automakers

Today, Consumer Reports released the results of its annual car reliability survey, which includes more than 1.4 million vehicles. This is one of the most important publications of the year for consumers interested in a car’s reliability. There were few surprises in terms of which makes are most and least reliable, with Scion maintaining the top spot. Porsche, Saab, Suzuki and Pontiac saw the biggest gains while Lincoln and Mini took the biggest hits. Check out Consumer Reports full report if you’re a subscriber. We list the top 10 most and least reliable automakers below.

$15,000 Off a Mercedes SL and Other Deals

Incentives haven’t been big news since the Cash for Clunkers program wiped out a large chunk of dealers’ inventory nationwide. That doesn’t mean all automakers have stopped offering incentives — even large ones — this month. Before the Halloween sugar rush fades, you’ll be able to find some huge cash-back deals, especially at Mercedes-Benz.

• 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class: $15,000
• 2009 Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class: $10,000
• 2010 Cadillac STS: $7,400
• 2010 Land Rover Range Rover: $6,000
• 2010 Mazda RX-8: $5,000
• 2010 Nissan Titan: $5,000
• 2009 Nissan Titan: $5,000

You can find more deals on our incentives page. All incentives above end Nov. 2.

2009|Mercedes-Benz|SL-Class

2009|Mercedes-Benz|CLS-Class

2010|Cadillac|STS

2010|Mazda|RX-8

2009|Nissan|Titan

2010|Nissan|Titan

Few Taking GM Up On Buyback Offer

GM’s latest marketing blitz has been centered around the improving quality of its new models. Its 60-Day Satisfaction Guarantee promotion allows buyers to return their cars within 60 days if they’re not happy with it; if they return their car, they’re only out for the two months of payments and all taxes and fees. No matter the brand, it’s easy to have regrets about a new purchase, so it seemed like a good idea to bring in buyers wary of the GM brand after its rocky few years.

GM is saying the program is a success. Launched on Sept. 13, we are just three or so days into the timeframe when buyers can return vehicles under the program; they must own it for at least a month.

GM says less than 10 buyers have returned cars under the program. According to vocal GM executive Bob Lutz, one of them decided on another GM car — swapping a manual Corvette for an automatic.

Most new GM buyers — 90% — are opting out of the return program entirely in lieu of $500 cash back. That leaves 10% of customers who are the intended target of the promotion. Is that a success? We don’t have concrete numbers on how many cars were sold under the program since it started mid-month, but in September GM sold 156,673 vehicles. That’s a good guideline to go with to reference the past 30 days; 10% of September’s sales is 15,667, and 10 people out of that number is 0.06%. Is that a good or bad number?

It’s hard to say. Many in the industry would consider 10% an impressive figure for new — or conquest — customers, especially for a company like GM and its baggage. Others may just call the whole thing an elaborate marketing and PR exercise. You can weigh in below. 

Luxury Car Sales Rebound in September

Do you ever watch the business news and wonder who’s making money in the stock market when most people you know are cutting back? Inexplicably, luxury automakers saw sales bounce back in September.

While sales of Toyota were down 19% in September, Lexus saw sales go up 7%; that’s mostly because of the new RX crossover, which had an uptick of 70%.

Ford sales were down 6%, but sales at its Swedish Volvo brand were up 16%, thanks largely to the new XC60 crossover.

With relatively no new models in its lineup, BMW sales were up 3%.

Even at GM where sales were down 45%, Cadillac sales were down just 8% because of swift sales of the redesigned SRX crossover.