I’m going to single out Cadillac in today’s Morning Dump because I like the brand and, generally, think it does a good job. The GM luxury unit makes Blackwings, and any organization that creates Blackwings can be forgiven many sins. What was Cadillac’s sin? Optimism.
A lot of my own framing over the EV head fake has been that companies saw a mix of government regulations and Tesla-like profit margins and mistakenly thought it couldn’t be that hard to go full EV. Another way to look at it is that maybe some people at these car companies believed it would be a healthier and better world if everyone just drove EVs, and thought society could move in lockstep to transition.
I’ll take the softer view of Cadillac, which is now contending with the fact that it canceled a bunch of ICE platforms and now has Escalade-sized holes in its lineup. The same is happening at Volvo, and Volvo’s solution is a light refresh of an old car. The initial China Shock benefited Germany; the second one might doom it. Germany’s problem? Hubris.
Was it overconfidence that led the Sec. of Transportation to take a swipe at Ford? Maybe. The company was surprised and the White House seems to be walking it back as fast the critiques as fast as it can.
Cadillac Is Backtracking On its All-EV Strategy And It’s Going To Suck For A Bit
GM, in general, has been the traditional American OEM that’s gone hardest into EVs and probably has the most to show for it. At the same time, the company believed its own hype about electrification, and in doing so canceled a bunch of vehicles due to the faulty assumption that it wouldn’t need both a gas and an electric vehicle in the most popular categories.
This is how the brand finds itself with no non-EV subcompact luxury crossover after canceling the XT4, no non-EV three-row luxury SUV after getting rid of the XT6, and no entry-level luxury sedan of any kind after it stops making the CT4. Instead, there’s the EV Lyriq, Optiq, and Vistiq to try and plug those holes. Cadillac, at least, was able to find a way to keep making the XT5 and CT5, so there’s that, but that’s not enough.
As Automotive News points out in this article on the company’s lineup, it’s not happy fun times if you’re a Cadillac dealer or a customer who doesn’t want an EV:
Dealers are in an “awkward interim period without the right vehicle for a significant portion of luxury buyers,” said Paul Waatti, director of industry analysis at AutoPacific.
“Those aren’t insignificant holes, either,” he said. “Compact, midsize and three-row crossovers are at the heart of the luxury market.”
The compact XT4 and three-row XT6 used to generate a combined 40,000 sales annually in the U.S. But until dealers get direct replacements, and with the EV market a fraction of what GM had expected by now, customers shopping those types of vehicles are likely to look at other brands, Waatti said.
You can just hear the folks at Genesis rubbing their hands together as they try to snake Cadillac customers.
Sales have been down this year and, with the drop in EV sales in Q3, those numbers are probably going to get worse. I like the new Cadillac EVs I’ve driven, so it’s not like there aren’t customers for those vehicles, but it sure would be nice to have a hybrid.
Volvo Will Keep Making The XC40 As It Waits For The EX50
Volvo finds itself in the same position as Cadillac, having gotten over its skis in pursuit of an EV-only lineup back when that seemed like the cool thing to do. The Swedish brand has dropped a bunch of great vehicles, including sedans and wagons, and either didn’t replace them or gave us EVs instead.
The XC40 was a vehicle probably on the way out, though the market had other ideas. The EX40 (formerly the XC40 Recharge) EV will be discontinued in the United States, whereas the XC40 will live on with the light refresh you can see in the photo above. If you’re thinking this sounds a lot like what Volvo did with the XC60, you’re correct.
Technically, the XC40 is a mild hybrid, but what’s important to consumers and dealers is that it’s something that costs under $45,000 that can be sold to people who used to own S60s and other vehicles, and don’t want to stretch their budgets to buy an XC60 or XC90.
There Was ‘A Great Deal Of Arrogance’ In Germany
It’s basically conventional wisdom at this point that Germany was a double winner in the initial China Shock, as it was able to sell the machines and processes to China that the country’s manufacturers used to flood America with cheap products and then sell cars to China’s growing middle class.
Economist Brad Setser is calling what’s currently happening to German industry, and especially the car industry, China Shock 2.0. He did an interview with Manager Magazin that has a lot of juicy quotes, including this:
SPIEGEL: Beijing issued its “Made in China 2025” strategy more than ten years ago. How is it that the West – especially Germany – failed to recognize what was coming?
Setser: There was a great deal of arrogance, especially in German industry. Market leaders often tend to be like that. We may be seeing something similar in the US right now, which, due to its strong position in semiconductors and AI technology, is prone to a certain complacency. Added to this was the now largely vanished notion that China’s approach was too heavily state-controlled. It was thought that it couldn’t succeed outside of a distorted Chinese domestic market.
Fun times.
What Was Duffy Thinking?
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy went on a tirade against Ford yesterday for its ties to China, which is a thing basically every automaker has at this point. Why did Duffy do it? According to reporting from the Detroit Free Press, no one but Duffy seems to know:
“We were very surprised and this is not in keeping with the very positive rapport we have with the White House and the rest of the administration around the White House,” Steve Croley, Ford’s chief policy officer and general counsel told the Detroit Free Press on Sept. 9.
Ford has reason to be confused considering the mixed messages Ford is receiving from the Trump administration.
Before Tuesday, the administration had sung Ford’s praises. In fact, in December 2025, Farley stood next to Duffy in the Oval Office as President Donald Trump proposed drastically scaling back mile-per-gallon standards for new cars and light-duty trucks put in place by former President Joe Biden and rewriting how those standards are developed.
Curiously, the official press office X/Twitter account just posted that “Ford is a GREAT American company” that’s done a “tremendous job.”
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
My daughter is learning to play “Beat It” by Michael Jackson on the bass, which means I’ve heard that iconic riff roughly 9,000 times. You can hear it, too.
The Big Question
What car canceled in the last ten years or so would you most like back? I know what I want.
Top photo: Cadillac
The world could still use the Ford Panther platform. Maybe now with an I4 Ecoboost.
2.5L 4 cyl hybrid used in the Escape… or maybe the 3.3L V6 hybrid used in the Explorer as a base engine option.
And for performance, a variant of the 5L V8 used in the Mustang or F150.
VW Golf, Mk7. Before the styling started to get futzy and the interior became a chinzy video game. Real controls, real door handles etc. Please. The right size, practical, but fun, well laid out and good visibility. You know how to do it, or did you fire the people that got it right the first time?
The eGolf was a bit limited a the time for my needs, but take the same package and add a modern EV drive train with a bit more range and ID (pun intended) sign up as long as the other shitty ergonomics and styling frippery weren’t involved.
Scion xb first thing that comes to mind and number 1, really all of scion. Then ford and GM close to full size cars like the falcon and the Caprice / ss. Also last gen ford fusion / mondeo was quite decent.
GM being GM isn’t surprising the only thing surprising is they actually figured out how to build some ok EVs it took them a while and still many complaints. Current bolt might be even better then ok so of course they are only making it a short time. They should have gone the Hyundai route of something for everyone with ICE / hybrid in one model and then EV on an another. Or even shades of hybrid to ev if they could figure out packaging and keep costs down for a version.
There are rumors of Chinese investment for auto plants in the US during the upcoming Xi talks. I just wonder if Duffy acted on his own or is it part of a setup. If he acted on his own and it’s against the admin I would expect a “he did a great job but he is moving on” speech soon.
The problem here is that automakers replaced their gas-powered vehicles in a particular segment with EV’s that cost WAY more. I don’t think the sales would be a problem if the EV replacement had cost the same as the previous gas car.
10 years? Do I have to adhere to that? Honda Element, Toyota Mr2, VW Westfalia, And yes Im going to say it: VW New Beetle, Volvo Station Wagon, Mitsu EVO, Suzuki as a brand,
Mazda 5 van with the 6 speed manual
TBQ?
I guess I will go with a Focus ZX3 (ZX33)
with a stick, otherwise face in the bass!
TBQ: Rambler 770 Cross Country wagon with the indestructible straight six, AC, 3-speed column shift and overdrive, and limited slip rear.
Wait, what year is it?
Knowing now what I wish I knew then, I’d get it undercoated.
TBQ: As the owner of a 2012 Chevy Volt, I was quite disappointed when GM cancelled the car altogether. Past that I really wish Cadillac had kept their OG Blackwing 4.2L “Hot V” twin-turbo engine around longer than the run of 1200 or so CT6s. I also miss the CT4, the XLR, and really the entire holy-trinity lineup under the CTS badge that was there for a hot minute – sedan, coupe, and WAGON, along with the V-variants of all of those.
2017 Golf Alltrack SE 6-spd is the one I want back. Not quite all the bells and whistles, but enough, and still 6MT.
Got impatient and opted for a 2016 GTI SE with the Perf Pack. It was tasty
It’s too bad Johan was fired more than a product cycle ago because I really want to blame him for Cadillac’s current position, although to be fair, cancelling gas vehicles without replacements is more a Tavares thing, and AFAIK he was never in charge of Cadillac.
Hot take: I’m extremely ready for this Michael Jacksonaissance to be over. I was never that fond of his music anyway, and between the attempt to rehabilitate his deservedly tarnished image and the fact that every third song on the radio is one of his, I’m tired of it already.
“ cancelling gas vehicles without replacements is more a Tavares thing,”
It was also a Mergio Sarchionne thing.
I would give a testicle to be able to buy another brand-new MK7 GTI Sport with a stick. I’d even be willing to pay MSRP for it.
Had one. Great car. Paid under MSRP coming out of Dieselgate TDI turn-in.
It is missed on occasion, but it just didn’t transport enough humans, and their stuff, as our family got bigger.
I was impatient and didn’t want to wait for the Golf Alltrack wagon, and probably should have.
Ditto – got the deal of the century on it in 2017 ($6K+ off sticker), then like a complete moron let Carvana pay me more than I paid for it new four years later. And have regretted it every day since.
I wonder if MSRP today for a literally Brand New 0-mile Mk7 GTI Sport would perhaps be UNDER the current market value…
LOL! I wouldn’t be surprised. Though to be fair, VW has actually done a pretty good job of holding the line on GTI MSRPs. The base MK8 with DSG is very comparable equipment-wise to a ’17 Sport with DSG (but a good bit more power) and only $3K more expensive. But I don’t want a stupid DSG, and you aren’t getting a $6K+ discount on a MK8 like I did my MK7.
But for sure, truly clean, well-equipped MK7s and MK7.5s haven’t depreciated much. The last really nice one I saw for sale was basically what Carvana paid me for mine 5 years ago, and with twice the miles on it.
In fact, Carvana has a 52K mile stickshift 2018 SE for $24K right now (original owner probably paid under $30K for it new). Technically a higher trim than a Sport, but Sports go for more money than SEs as a rule. They are the perfect enthusiast’s configuration, and were a one-year trim.
The Chevy Volt should have been launched as a Cadillac. When the Cadillac version finally came out as the ELR, it was proven again that you can’t badge engineer a Chevy upmarket, just like the Cimmaron or the Catera.
A shame since a launching the ELR as a Caddy would have been a much better marketing fit, appealing to luxury buyers who are as much concerned with image as technology. I liked the ELR, GM should modernize it and bring it back.
GM has simply never figured out that if you make a platform that is actually good enough for a luxury brand, you can then sell a cheaper version of it to the masses. VW gets this, which is why the Golf platform is good enough to sell as an Audi.
Rake #473,097 that GM has voluntarily stepped on…
They are just so damned good at it!
Practice makes perfect!
TBQ:Chevy Cruze Hatchback!
Especially if they could fit the Chevy Volt power train in it
It’s been more than 10 years since they stopped making them, but I’d love a modernized Dodge Magnum to make an appearance. Loved those when they came out but I was only a poor recent college grad at the time.
Ended up with a Dodge Caliber – that one is NOT on my “I wish they’d bring these back” list.
I once had a Caliber as a rental and figure the only reason anyone bought one new was either intense brand loyalty or they got an absolute smoking deal on a new car. I’ve owned some pretty beat up older vehicles but at least those had the excuse of long hard lives before I got them to explain why they rattled so much.
I owned 3 Dodge calibers in a row (2 got totaled); all used, but I think the price comparisons are still valid. They were fine cars. Not good. But fine.
Why?
Because they were, by FAR, the least expensive option for their size. I cross-shopped with slightly smaller Honda Fit; a Ford Fiesta hatchback was similar price, but much smaller than even the Honda Fit; a similar Pontiac Vibe or Toyota Matrix; or moving up in size to a Toyota RAV-4 or a Honda CR-V.
… But all options similar to a Caliber were substantially more expensive!!
So, it’s not about “getting a smoking deal” it’s the fact that all Calibers were cheap and functional compared to any similar vehicle.
/Also not on my list of “wish they’d bring these back.”
Mine was actually a gift from my parents after I graduated from college – a two-year low mileage lease on the basest model available (it had crank windows). They got it for the same reasons you mentioned above – it filled a segment that nobody else was really playing in. They also got a smoking lease deal, of course. It really was a fine car for a young man first making his way in the world. And I turned it into the dealership with only 4 miles to spare, so I wrung every last drop out of that thing while I had it.
If I was going to downsize to 1 car, it would likely be a Crown Signia.
The XT6 is the lowest effort automotive product I have ever experienced. If you think that’s a luxury car, let me introduce you to the Chevy Cruze which is identical on the inside. The Cadillac EVs on the other hand are very nice. I would have never thought twice about an XT5/XT4 but I am considering getting an Optiq. I suppose there is still a market for people who buy cars based on memories from 60 years ago and not for what the car actually is.
I just wish Ford still made cars. Any cars!
Cars I want back
Kia Soul
Bronco Everglades
Ford Flex
Audi R8
11 years back would add
Xterra
Mazda5
What I’m listening Too.
Ironically, I was just listening to a cool story about Beat It.
Quincy Jones wanted a guitar solo for the song and asked Eddie Van Halen. Van Halen’s policy was that no band members did anything outside of the band, but Eddie was alone and figured why not? 20 minutes or so out of his time to record a solo.
Eddie did the solo for free, no acclaim, no royalties, no nothing. However, as he messed with the solo, he decided to do a key change in the middle of the solo. They recorded the solo, adjusted the track for the key change. MJ was a famous perfectionist and didn’t like people changing stuff that he had approved. However, as he heard the solo and the key change, he instantly approved.
Anyone from the era that heard the song absolutely knew that that guitar riff was not from MJ’s regular crew. Anyone that knew Van Halen knew exactly who was the guitarist. However, Eddie’s name isn’t on the record, Eddie didn’t get any money from it or anything. He just did it for fun.
I’m trying to buy a Cadillac Optiq, but even in California it is impossible to find one in an actual color (I don’t want gray scale) and in the higher trim level. I have no desire for a gas Cadillac.
I still can’t believe Michael Jackson wrote a parody song of Weird Al’ Eat It.
Prob a California thing but man, I feel like I see EV Cadillacs everywhere these days. I assumed they were selling like crazy. Maybe the leases are dirt cheap?
(checks lease deals)
Welp, it’s not the lease deals.
I live outside of Cleveland and there are a fair number of them in my (fairly affluent) town as well. Even pulled up next to a Celestiq once at a stoplight over the summer – that thing is huge. Like a Rolls Royce but somehow 15% bigger.
I SAW ONE HERE, TOO! YES, I’M SHOUTING! They look insane, right?
There’s something about them that just looks slightly off. Like an uncanny valley representation of what a computer thinks a car should look like. The one I saw around here is a beautiful teal color, so that certainly does it some favors.
If you hit up the places people go to share lease deals, you’ll see that there have been some astounding lease deals on Cadillac EVs. But lease deals vary greatly with geography, and of course for folks who live in states with EV rebate programs have another advantage.
I mean I still see the EV Caddy’s around the PNW as well, but the drivers still seem to skew towards the retiree population. They want an upscaled Chevy SUV and they find it there.
Why does Cadillac need the XT6? That just cannibalized the Escalade, and was a piece of shit Traverse in not-so-fancy clothes.
If GM wants to make more money, they should just kill GMC and allocate Chevys to their Buick dealers.
The XT6 started at $50K, the Escalade starts at double that.
Presumably Cadillac thinks there are some buyers in that massive slice of the market?
Plus, the difference in the interior is laughable (as is expected when the price gap is that big) let alone any other number of differences when you compare a BoF Escalade to a unibody, FWD based XT6. My boss got a loaner XT6 when his wife’s Escalade was picked up for scheduled service; it really hit home how much of an SUV gap Cadillac had until the XT6 came around (and I’d argue still exists, if you want ICE engines). GM could easily slot another SUV or two in between the Escalade and XT6 if they had the right platform/product; the gap is still that large.
I’m sorry that just doesn’t make any business sense, though.
Should Cadillac have a legit mid-sized SUV (obviously the XT5 is a joke)? Yes, they certainly should. Should it have 3 rows? I don’t think it should. The Lyriq is a good car, but I don’t think their strategy was good from the standpoint of keeping their dealers happy because their target market obviously wasn’t ready for adoption (and the Lyriq’s looks are polarizing to say the least).
Anyway, right now Cadillac is overcharging for the Escalade to differentiate between the Tahoe/Suburban/Yukon/Yukon Denali. And their buyers are definitely cross-shopping those, but again, GM is cannibalizing their own brands, probably to appease Buick dealers who want a luxury full sized truck and can’t get allocated Cadillacs. People shouldn’t be cross-shopping these. They should cross-shop an Escalade against an X7 or a Mercedes GLS 450. Is there a world where the XT6 was ever remotely comparable to those cars??? No.
To me, yeah you could bring back a mid-sized ICE SUV based on the Traverse platform, but it has to be a legit luxury vehicle with an optional V8. The X5 starts at $72k. That’s about where it should be.
Cadillac should not be going after that market. Cadillac is a luxury brand. Does BMW sell $50k 3 row SUVs? Mercedes? Cadillac shouldn’t either.
Well they don’t anymore, so success?
I mean, they had to fail their way into that decision, so maybe?
What do you think the Mercedes GLB is?
Nobody is cross-shopping an XT6 and a new Escalade. You can’t even cross-shop one with a Tahoe.
They’re not cross shopping them because the XT6 was so bad. If it was good, people would have cross-shopped them. But they made it bad so people wouldn’t.
Check this out: a Traverse’s interior dimensions aren’t much smaller than the Tahoe’s. The volume numbers look different, but the Tahoe is about 7 inches taller and probably about 5 inches wider. In terms of interior length, they aren’t all that different (and they were less different with the previous gen Tahoe). To differentiate the XT6 from the Escalade, GM cut like a foot off the XT6, so it was much tighter than the Escalade. They also downgraded the interior.
So if you had a unibody XT6 that was the size of the Traverse and had the interior luxury of an Escalade, you’d absolutely cross-shop those. The problem is that by compromising the XT6 to differentiate it from the Escalade, they made sure that you not only wouldn’t cross-shop it against the Escalade, but that you wouldn’t cross shop it against any luxury mid-sized SUV. You wouldn’t cross-shop it against the 3 row midsized German vehicles or the 2 row midsized German vehicles. You wouldn’t cross-shop it against more reliable Japanese luxury vehicles, either.
You would only buy it if you were an airport limo driver.
So, if they come out with a new 3-row XT6 they have the same conundrum which led to them making a failed vehicle.
Your Traverse and Tahoe comparison actually also leads into my point.
I know many owners of both the Traverse and the Tahoe. Those aren’t cross shopped, completely different buyer, particularly due to price.
XT6 vs Escalade is the same story.
I’m not saying the XT6 is a good vehicle. But no matter how good it is, it is built for a completely different customer than the Escalade.
I’m getting big, “It’s one banana, Michael. What could it cost, $10?” vibes from this comment.
XT6’s are what whores do for money!
But seriously, I know what I’m talking about. They can’t make an actually good mid-sized 3 row vehicle that won’t take away sales from the Escalade. They can make a 3 row vehicle that won’t do that, but nobody will buy it because it will stink.
The Mazdaspeed3. My phone keyboard even automatically suggests “Mazdaspeed” when I start to type “Mazda.”
Edit: upon further reflection, a Focus RS would also be extremely welcome. I might even be able to afford one if I can go 2 years in a row without getting laid off.
They’re still waiting for that bribe.
Ford getting grief from this group of people, however, is a sign that Ford’s on the right track.