Sarissa Resources Inc (SRSR)

[learner1156]

....Technologies like gas direct-injection and high-strength steel ...

And just where will they get the ingredients for "high-strength steel".....

Can you say the N word?

from: http://blogs.motortrend.com/6540631/car-news/what-exactly-is-the-cadillac-xts/index.html

DETROIT - General Motors has some big news planned for Tuesday. A viral marketing campaign involving the number "230" is expected to reveal the official fuel mileage numbers for the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, although there has been some argument over how the Environmental Protection Agency would fairly apply its fuel mileage test to the extended-range electric-powered sedan. And the twittersphere is all atwitter over the Cadillac sedan to be revealed to the media.

Back in late April, I reported that Cadillac was working on "GM 166," an Epsilon-based sedan that would be larger and wider than the Epsilon II ('10 Buick LaCrosse, '09 Opel Insignia) platform. GM's Holden has been working on this so-called super-Epsilon in Australia. I reported that it would slot below the CTS, at least in price and status, and would leave room for a larger-than-CTS RWD sedan.



I was wrong about that last part. The GM 166, or XTS, now looks like the replacement for the DTS (the 2010 DTS is pictured) and STS and will serve as Cadillac's "flagship." Whether the XTS will really be the Cadillac to which CTS owners aspire remains to be seen. With its new wagon version and upcoming coupe, Cadillac is establishing the CTS as its mainstream car, which I guess could be taken as its "bread-and-butter" car, a very modern sort of DeVille. The true flagship (or at least Cadillac's most expensive model) is likely to remain the CTS-v.

While Cadillac counts the CTS as a midsize car, it's pretty close to full-size by modern standards. Beside all the dynamic advantages of RWD in a 273 lb-ft, 3.6-liter gas direct-injection V-6-powered car, the CTS has just the right looks for a modern Cadillac, thanks largely to its dash-to-axle proportions. Just as it's hard for me to put the larger Lincoln MKS in the same class as the CTS, I'll think of a larger Epsilon XTS as something of a step down.

I get the feeling Cadillac thinks of it that way, too. The mentor of Cadillac's new chief, Bryan Nesbitt, is Bob Lutz, a devotee of rear-drive, having pushed for years for a Cadillac S-Class fighter based on the Sixteen concept. While GM's lack of capital leading to its bankruptcy, and now the 2012-16 Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards killed off hopes of a RWD Cadillac DT7, plus a RWD Buick and Chevy Impala, the automaker's design studios are said to be busier than ever on future models. The coming CAFE standards aren't as bad as expected. Technologies like gas direct-injection and high-strength steel will make it easier to meet the new standards without reverting to a fleet of Fiat 500-size cars. Meanwhile, GM needs to keep spending money on the CTS, to refresh and update it, lest it become Cadillac's answer to the Lincoln LS.

Meanwhile, Cadillac's 3 Series-sized Alpha RWD project, while reportedly lacking development money, is still being considered. And if you believe the latest Twitter chatter, a concept version of the vehicle -- called ATS -- has been shown. While GM is stepping back from plans to make Cadillac a global luxury player, Caddy's competitors remain Mercedes, BMW and Lexus. They all do rear-wheel-drive, except for the Mercedes A- and B-Classes, Lexus ES, RX and HS.

GM's chief executive officer, Fritz Henderson, has announced plans for an Initial Public Offering by July 10, 2010. It will be the first step toward shedding government ownership of the world's second-largest automaker. Let's hope that means GM's big-car strategy, especially for Cadillac, gets back on track in time for next year's product and technology preview.