In an article by US News, with gas prices climbing past the $4.00 dollar per gallon mark nation wide, SUV trade in values and sales have fallen over 14 percent in March alone, compared to the same time one year ago. The SUV used car sales have been so bad, that some dealers have been forced to sell them overseas, facing expensive transportation costs and little profit. Al Johnson of AutoNation's Maroone Nissan in Pembroke, Florida said "the dealership had been exporting about one car a month" in recent years, but this year they average roughly 10".
GM intends to meet the tough, new national CAFE standards of 35 mpg for cars and trucks combined by 2020, a dramatic increase of 40 percent. NHTSA’s proposed rule lays out the first set of standards toward this target. GM will work with NHTSA throughout its rulemaking process on the yearly targets and the sensible mechanisms needed to meet this challenge. GM has an established track record of innovation and a commitment to improving the fuel economy in its cars and trucks.
General Motors announced today that its U.S. marketing and field operations will be more strongly aligned into four retail channels: Chevrolet; Premium (Cadillac, Hummer, Saab); Buick-Pontiac-GMC; and Saturn. Each channel will be focused on continuing to deliver world-class products for their customer and build value for GM and their respective dealers.
Autoweek has come across information that General Motors is considering on raising vehicle prices to compensate for rising costs. "We’ll be aggressive in our pricing. At end of December we increased prices in the U.S. by 1.5 percent on average for our vehicles to offset some of the increase in commodity prices" stated Chief Financial Officer, Ray Young. Whether or not the decision to raise prices is wise or not, the topic is controversial, especially with a weak U.S. market.
Television channel HBO's hit mafia drama series, "The Sopranos", will be selling seven of their vehicles at the Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Event in West Palm Beach, Florida next week March 26th through the 30th. Up for grabs will be Tony Soprano's Cadillac Escalade, Paulie Walnuts champagne Cadillac CTS, Vito Spatafore’s black Cadillac DeVille, and four other cars from the climactic "Bada Bing" shootout. One year ago, Carmela Soprano's Porsche Cayenne sold for $90,000 at auction, which benefited the Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation. This year, all proceeds from the Sopranos seven car auction will go to the Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles. As found on The New York Times.
MBRPinc has just announced a huge expansion of their Sport Truck Line - the fastest growing line of performance exhaust systems for gasoline-powered Ford, Dodge, Chevy/GMC, Toyota and Nissan light trucks. Originally launched in 2005 in T304 stainless steel (Pro Series), the complete product line is now also available in T409 stainless (XP Series) and aluminized steel to provide options for every budget.
With the economy currently unstable, prices of metals have been rising, and thieves are beginning to target your vehicles exhaust, going for the catalytic converters which hold three expensive metals.
Whether you were screaming for the New York Giants to win the Super Bowl or not, we all saw this years round up of funny, and sometimes controversial, Super Bowl commercials. Check out our poll and vote for your favorite automotive Super Bowl commercial this year. Just in case you missed our blog last week, click here to see our preview of this years Super Bowl Commercials. Click full story to vote!
As the count down begins till Super Bowl XLII this Sunday between the New England Patriots and New York Giants, the best part of watching the big game are the commercials, (and free beer of course). We've composed a list of the automotive commercials you will see during the Sunday showdown. Whoever's idea it was to incorporate Richard Simmons into a Super Bowl commercial, please, please, please, do not torture us again!
While walking around SEMA 2007 last November, I came across a revolutionary product that eliminates any rattle caused from your trailer hitch moving while towing, as seen in our SEMA video part 2. The product is called Quiet Hitch, and it works with any 2 inch hitch receiver. Constructed of ASTM A-500 and ASTM A36 steels, the Quiet Hitch supports a class 4 rating of 10,000 pounds and is available in 2, 4 or 6 inch drops. Read on for more details.
Etching windows is one modification that truely sets your vehicle apart from the rest. Brian Donahue explains in the following article, how to etch your own windows in a minimal amount of time and without breaking the bank. We would like to warn you that etching your windows will reduce your field of vision, and is not recommended for daily driven vehicles. Check out the install inside. – SCRWDRVR
There was a different kind of star on the red carpet for the 49th Annual Grammy Awards this past Sunday in Los Angeles, CA. For the third year in a row, Cadillac provided transportation for the nominees, performers and presenters. The "Grammy Edition Cadillac Escalade" was this year's "official vehicle" of the Grammy awards. We've got a few dozen photos of the stars posing with the Escalade, including Cedric The Entertainer, Clive Davis, Carrie Underwood, Paula Abdul, Fergie, Reba McIntyre, Natalie Cole, Ludacris, Jamie Foxx, and LeeAnn Rimes. Check 'em out!
Just because Cadillac EXT owners appear to live in the lap of luxury, doesn't mean they use their trucks as trucks! What better way than a BedRug to protect the finish of their bed and whatever it is they are hauling at the same time? Right down to the Cadillac emblem sewn into the bulkhead, it can't get much better!
– MichaelS
"General Motors may trim third-quarter truck production to offset increasing levels of inventory, particularly with the 2007 full-sized SUVs. GM pumped its redesigned full-sized SUVs into the market earlier this year to ignite corporate revenue. As a result, GM insiders say the company is weighing its third-quarter production of those trucks, which include the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade," AutoWeek reports.
"The Cadillac Escalade, the bold and shiny luxury sport utility vehicle popular with Hollywood’s A-List, rappers and star athletes, apparently also attracts an ill-intentioned constituency: car thieves. Escalades had the highest rate of insurance theft claims for the fourth straight year, according to a study released Wednesday..." according to MSNBC.
Newsweek reports, "With all the histrionics about rising gas prices coming out of Washington these days, SUVs must be an endangered species in our nation's capital, right? Well, not exactly. At Capitol Cadillac, just inside the Beltway, SUVs are flying off the lot."
Inside Line recently took the 2007 Cadillac Escalade for a test drive. "We're driving a 2007 Cadillac Escalade, which means we've enjoyed a week's worth of middle-aged office guys asking us about Nelly, Snoop and other hip-hop artists they'd never listen to with the windows down. Yet they wouldn't even crack a smile when we invited them to suit up in Fubu and take a ride down the Sunset Strip."
GroundForce has introduced their all new lowering kits for the 2007 Tahoe and Yukon (P/N 9977) and the Cadilac Escalade (P/N 9979). Make your new SUV stand out from the crowd with one of their complete kits.
"Look out, Cadillac. Mercedes-Benz wants your Escalade buyers. The luxury-appointed 2007 Mercedes GL-Class hitting showrooms in May is the first full-size sport utility vehicle in America from a European brand. The debut of the $55,000-plus SUV with Class IV towing capacity also marks the first time Mercedes will go head-to-head against Cadillac's best-known modern-day vehicle," The Detroit News reports.
GM's all-new 2007 full-size sport utilities, the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade are arriving in dealerships now, each one with a fresh look and distinctive interior and exterior designs. To personalize the look of these vehicles, GM also offers a wide array of accessories available at all Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac dealerships.
"The 2007 Cadillac Escalade SUV bowed Wednesday with a nod to the Hollywood crowd that helped make a name for the vehicle. At an event on Hollywood's chic Rodeo Drive, General Motors Corp. showed off the redesigned sport utility in hopes of keeping support from the A-list even as interest fades in large SUVs," The Detroit News reported today.
SLP's latest performance pack hits a home run for GM Brand Truck and SUVs with a kit designed to hit in the 350hp range, a 19% increase over stock, with bolt on components. The kit specifically targets people who want a one stop shop for bolt on performance on their Cadillac Escalade, GM Yukon, Denali and Sierra and the Chevy Tahoes and Silverado.
The Cadillac Escalade EXT, a $53,000 chrome-trimmed luxury pickup with leather bucket seats, a seven-speaker stereo system with satellite radio and a global tracking system, is the vehicle most targeted by thieves, a study by the insurance industry found.
It's the second consecutive year that an Escalade topped the list, which was released Tuesday by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The traditional sport-utility version of the Escalade topped last year's list and is third this year.
Paxton Automotive recently announced the introduction of their high output supercharging system with an air/water charge cooler for the 2003 6.0-liter Cadillac Escalade and Escalade EXT. The addition of their new Novi 1200 supercharger with charge cooler will increase the power in these trucks (yeah, their still trucks even if they are fancy) by 120 horsepower at 7 to 8 psig at the flywheel.
All the components needed to bolt the system onto a stock vehicle are included in the kit, such as mounting plates, fuel system upgrades (including a high-flow fuel pump, replacement injectors and fuel management unit), supercharger oil feed and drain lines, hand-held programmer, molded air inlet ducting featuring a Paxton logo, necessary nuts and bolts, tool for modifying the oil pan and compressor bypass valve.
The system will be available in a polished finish for a retail price around $5,500 and we suggest that if you already spent that much on a truck, you might as well throw in another 5K for some power.
Just because Cadillac EXT owners appear to live in the lap of luxury, doesn't mean they use their trucks as trucks! What better way than a BedRug to protect the finish of their bed and whatever it is they are hauling at the same time? Right down to the Cadillac emblem sewn into the bulkhead, it can't get much better!
"General Motors may trim third-quarter truck production to offset increasing levels of inventory, particularly with the 2007 full-sized SUVs. GM pumped its redesigned full-sized SUVs into the market earlier this year to ignite corporate revenue. As a result, GM insiders say the company is weighing its third-quarter production of those trucks, which include the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade," AutoWeek reports.
"The Cadillac Escalade, the bold and shiny luxury sport utility vehicle popular with Hollywood’s A-List, rappers and star athletes, apparently also attracts an ill-intentioned constituency: car thieves. Escalades had the highest rate of insurance theft claims for the fourth straight year, according to a study released Wednesday..." according to MSNBC.
Newsweek reports, "With all the histrionics about rising gas prices coming out of Washington these days, SUVs must be an endangered species in our nation's capital, right? Well, not exactly. At Capitol Cadillac, just inside the Beltway, SUVs are flying off the lot."
Inside Line recently took the 2007 Cadillac Escalade for a test drive. "We're driving a 2007 Cadillac Escalade, which means we've enjoyed a week's worth of middle-aged office guys asking us about Nelly, Snoop and other hip-hop artists they'd never listen to with the windows down. Yet they wouldn't even crack a smile when we invited them to suit up in Fubu and take a ride down the Sunset Strip."
GroundForce has introduced their all new lowering kits for the 2007 Tahoe and Yukon (P/N 9977) and the Cadilac Escalade (P/N 9979). Make your new SUV stand out from the crowd with one of their complete kits.
"Look out, Cadillac. Mercedes-Benz wants your Escalade buyers. The luxury-appointed 2007 Mercedes GL-Class hitting showrooms in May is the first full-size sport utility vehicle in America from a European brand. The debut of the $55,000-plus SUV with Class IV towing capacity also marks the first time Mercedes will go head-to-head against Cadillac's best-known modern-day vehicle," The Detroit News reports.
"The 2007 Cadillac Escalade SUV bowed Wednesday with a nod to the Hollywood crowd that helped make a name for the vehicle. At an event on Hollywood's chic Rodeo Drive, General Motors Corp. showed off the redesigned sport utility in hopes of keeping support from the A-list even as interest fades in large SUVs," The Detroit News reported today.
SLP's latest performance pack hits a home run for GM Brand Truck and SUVs with a kit designed to hit in the 350hp range, a 19% increase over stock, with bolt on components. The kit specifically targets people who want a one stop shop for bolt on performance on their Cadillac Escalade, GM Yukon, Denali and Sierra and the Chevy Tahoes and Silverado.
Paxton Automotive recently announced the introduction of their high output supercharging system with an air/water charge cooler for the 2003 6.0-liter Cadillac Escalade and Escalade EXT. The addition of their new Novi 1200 supercharger with charge cooler will increase the power in these trucks (yeah, their still trucks even if they are fancy) by 120 horsepower at 7 to 8 psig at the flywheel.
