“I don’t want people to buy our cars simply because they’re made in America. I want them to buy them because they’re the best.” -Bob Boniface, Director of Exterior Design Based on…
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Behind the scenes of Cadillac’s Olympic campaign
Debuting during the 2012 Olympics, the “Cadillac ATS vs. the World” campaign was one of the standout ad spots of the international broadcast. The ATS is Cadillac’s entry-level luxury sedan, meant to compete in a market dominated by European manufacturers like Audi and BMW. The messaging of the campaign…
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The luxury auto maker sets a new standard for in-car technology
We took CUE, (which stands for Cadillac User Experience) for a spin today and were impressed by the in-car tech system’s ease of use and innovations. In short, it works just like your smartphone or tablet. This is underwhelming until you realize that you can now interact with your car much the same way that you already do with your other devices, and it’s about time.
Three years in the making, the Linux-based system, featured on an 8″ LCD display, brings several firsts to the in-car user experience. It’s the first to bring haptics to a car display and controls, allowing for tactile feedback when scrolling, selecting and swiping (familiar to many Android phone users); the first to use proximity sensors to change the display based on active or passive use, displaying only what you need and want when you need and want it; the first to deploy multi-touch gesturing. It also powers a 12.3″ LCD instrument cluster with four different display options based on your driving and data preferences. Its Nuance-powered voice control allows for more natural language when communicating with the system. Like the 
One of the first things you notice is that there are many fewer controls in the main stack, as secondary functions appear on screen when needed. The controls also feature haptics, pulsing when pushed, and allow finger swiping to turn the volume up or down, for example. A swipe of the lower lip releases the control cluster, which raises upward to reveal a roomy hidden storage compartment, which also has USB inputs. CUE allows you to customize the display, including a top dock for your favorite apps, which are easily dragged into place.
It can handle everything from 3D GPS navigation to Pandora music streaming and OnStar. Best of all, your preferences are synced to your smartphone, so different driver’s profiles are easily accommodated (CUE can support two Bluetooth connections simultaneously, too, and a total of 10 device profiles).
CUE will be featured in the 2013 Cadillac XTS (available Spring 2012) and ATS sedans as well as the SRX crossover.
Our exclusive look at how a 300 year old tree became a key element in Cadillac’s ultra-luxurious concept car
The Ciel is Cadillac’s latest attempt to reinvigorate the company’s heritage of American luxury—reflected both in its attention to detail and its desire to explore the journey of traveling by automobile. One of the concept car’s most striking elements is the solid olive wood used inside the passenger cabin. When talking to the car’s design team we learned about the extensive process they went through to integrate the wood into the design. Project Manager Alessandro Zezza from Cadillac’s Advanced Design Group shared the story of its creation—a long journey that began early in the design phase around two years ago. Make sure you check out the amazing images in our slideshow below.
Based on the complexity of the car’s initial drawings the team realized that veneered wood was not going to be an option, so Christine Ebner, who heads up color and trim in the studio, set out to find a hardwood solution. In addition to the usual concerns about finding wood that complimented the car’s design, the designers realized that they needed to mill the components from sequential planks, and that they needed 11 two-inch planks—four of which had to be glued together to create the interior’s larger pieces. That’s a very big, old tree and issues of sustainability were a big concern in the studio.
Christine, located what seemed like a prime candidate—a very rare, 300-year-old olive tree that had fallen in a storm in its native Naples, Italy—at Hearne Hardwoods in Oxford, PA, a wood yard outside of Philadelphia. Rick Hearne worked with Christine to find the perfect tree, and fortunately this one had already been dried in a kiln and been sequenced. Fortunately, the designers loved the Italian olive wood’s rich grain and markings, and the team set to work.
The journey began on a beautiful planer from the 1940s, which took on the 30″ wide trunk with ease. The planks were sanded, photographed, and aligned on a gantry mill (a large platform designed for cutting planks) with their outer skin still on. Registration holes were drilled, and XYZ coordinates taken. The planks were then replicated in Alias’s Autostudio using texture and planar maps, which enabled Alessando to analyze the grain and develop a very intricate map of from where each piece would be cut. An incredibly complex 3D puzzle, each piece needed to be cut around the tree’s knots and splits while also ensuring that the grain direction and tree ring orientation matched. There was only one trunk to work with, and every piece had to be accounted for.
Darryl Grijalva, the studio’s shop manager, then created the tool paths for each plank and part. Dowel pins were used to ensure that the boards lined up properly and stayed in place when they were glued. Once the blocks were ready they were sent over to 3D Mass Design and Engineering in Glendale, CA. Rocky Gonzalez, who oversaw the fabrication there, had to work around concerns of chipping and warping, but the wood cut beautifully.
From there they were sent over to Metalcrafters in Fountain Valley, CA for test fitting and then to Tom Houlden, who ensured that the wood was finished to spec with its final staining (medium warm) and finishing (clear satin). After their lengthy journey—from Italy to Philadelphia and from studio to studio around Los Angeles, the 21 completed pieces were brought back to Metalcrafters for their final fit, and then back to the GM studio for final assembly.
It seems appropriate that the journey of the wood, through the vision of the design team and the many skilled artisans who crafted the interior, isn’t that different from the kind of relaxed, refined and elegant journey the Ciel was designed to take.
Photos provided by the GM Design Studio; photos of the finished car by Josh Rubin. For more images see gallery below.
A luxuriously spacious concept car perfect for necking and long leisurely drives
Championing the glory of leisurely driving, Cadillac‘s stunning new open-air handcrafted concept car speaks to luxurious motoring while focusing on simplicity. There’s no question that this car says that Cadillac can (after many years) once again define American luxury; it looks clearly toward the future though respectful of the brand’s heritage.
Inspired by the California coast (the car was designed by GM’s LA-based Advanced Design studio) the Ciel—”sky” in French— is designed to comfortably seat four adults, featuring elegant lines and an elongated proportion that is surprisingly just a foot longer than the American manufacturer’s angular CTS Coupe. The Ciel sports a 3.6 liter V6 engine too, but it’s complimented by a hybrid system that uses lithium-ion batteries.
We had the chance to speak with members of the car’s design team during its debut at Pebble Beach: Clay Dean, the Executive Director GM Advanced Global Design and Cadillac Brand Director, Niki Smart, Exterior Design Manager, and Frank Saucedo, Director of the Advanced Global Design studio. The team spoke about wanting “to put some swagger back in Cadillac.” The same team worked on last year’s more angular and considerably smaller Urban Luxury Concept car, though the Ciel is more an exercise in restraint and simplicity and the traveler’s journey. It’s about going there as much as it is about arriving there. Smart adds “There are so many things graphically around the car, but when the science gets so good that it’s invisible, that’s truly art.”Dean elaborates, “I think it shows a nice bandwidth in what we’re thinking about at Cadillac right now and the versatility of the team.”
Selecting the color was a long and heated debate, finally resolved by taking pictures of how it changes in different light. Named Cabernet, the car’s color reflects various pigments of red, yellow and gold hues depending on how the light strikes it, like holding a glass of red wine up to the sun. The interior boasts an equally beautiful surface, with the inside of the suicide doors, the panel, console and front seatbacks made of solid wood from a singular fallen olive oil tree, recycled from a west coast olive oil producer. The designers took interest in making the interior as simple and clean as possible. The cabernet and sand leather interior features a laser-perforated design and wraps the entire interior space.
The team spoke at length about staying true to the original vision throughout the design process. Whenever they got stuck or felt they were veering too far from it they pulled out the original sketches, which we were fortunate to track down exclusively for our readers.
Dean says, “How many things can I take away that I don’t need to be bothered by?” To that end, zippers keep the contents of the storage areas contained, and the rear LCD screens are cleverly hidden by a sliding leather panel. The climate system is piped through a channel that surrounds the car instead of traditional vents. The dashboard is simplified and features technology that more seamlessly integrates with your phone and your data.
The studio worked with local vendors, including Metalcrafters for the body work.
Invoking dreams of romantic cross-country excursions or drives up the coast, the Ciel comes equipped to fulfill these sentiments: The low console, which spans the length of the vehicle’s interior, is kitted out with a humidor and cigars, a compartment stowing a cashmere blanket, drawers stocked with suntan lotion and sunglasses, and armrests with ambient lighting for nighttime drives. “Luxury is not something that you need. It’s something that you want,” explains Dean.
Physically manifesting the feeling of what it formerly meant to own—and drive—a Cadillac at the pinnacle of its reign, the Ciel, if manufactured, has the potential to be a future classic. Perhaps it will be known as the car that reestablished Cadillac’s reputation as a benchmark of living the American dream.
See more details of the Cadillac Ciel in the CH gallery below. To learn more about the car’s specs and to see videos of it in action, check out the dedicated website from GM.
Six designs from the 2011 NY Auto Show we’d love to see in production
Concept cars serve two purposes: To create an allure and desire for a brand and to explore style and technology innovations that influence a maker’s range of cars in a more accessible time frame. Most of these cars had their debut at other recent shows, but all are alluring and insightful in how they will influence upcoming models.
Saab’s PhoeniX combines a sleek sports body with a highly engineered, efficient propulsion system. The all-wheel drive hybrid sports a 200hp, 1.6-litre turbo engine to power the front wheels while the rear is powered by an electrically driven axle. Its sexy lines are an insight into design director Jason Castriota’s vision for the brand we’re all hoping makes its way into upcoming cars. It’s camera-driven rear view mirrors and super-slick butterfly doors provide an accessible yet futuristic feel.
It’s always exciting when a company reinvents a classic. Volkswagen revisits its iconic microbus model with their Bulli concept, a six-seater driven by an electric motor with a 186-mile range. Further enabling drivers to leverage their devices instead of being tied to a car’s tech, the infotainment system is driven by an iPad. VW says this flexible beauty is headed for production in 2014.
Striking lines and a sleek design come together in this nontraditional concept of the age-old touring sedan. The Lexus LF-Gh is probably the boldest hybrid of recent times. Designed for the low emission standards of the future and the style, performance and efficiency demands of today.
Scion‘s FRS-8 is based on a platform that Toyota used for its recently introduced FT-86 II concept and that will power the rear-wheel drive Subaru Boxer when it goes into production in 2012. Scion’s take is our favorite, and one we’d love to see go into production.
Designed specifically for city dwellers, Cadillac’s Urban concept seats four and is driven by a 1.0-liter three cylinder engine. The compact package and use of electric assist technology gets this vehicle an estimated 56mpg in the city, and despite its small size it comfortably surrounds you in Cadillac luxury.
One of the few cars unveiled at the show, the A-class concept maintains its Mercedes-Benz DNA and infuses it with a welcome youthful twist. In addition to its sporty and sleek design the car features a new turbocharged 4 cylinder engine, a dual clutch transmission, advanced collision protection and braking systems.
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