Cadillac brand & reputation director: "We dont want to be an automotive brand"

[hotrodalex]

They didn't peddle crap from 1980 through the early 2000s?  Caddy drove buyers away.  If they want to win them back from the Germans, they need something that will make people leave their German cars.  Offering the same thing as the competition with a different badge isn't going to cut it, and it's unlikely the Germans will screw up badly enough to drive their customers away.

Hmm. So the only thing the Germans offer is a better brand reputation? Is that not what Cadillac is trying to overcome with their marketing?

Also, my generation has a different perception if Cadillac. We grew up with Escalades being a status symbol. Many people my age have a positive opinion if Cadillacs, especially the fast ones. The brand is probably soiled for the middle aged group, but is on the way up in the minds of the younger crowd.

[MX793]

Hmm. So the only thing the Germans offer is a better brand reputation? Is that not what Cadillac is trying to overcome with their marketing?

Also, my generation has a different perception if Cadillac. We grew up with Escalades being a status symbol. Many people my age have a positive opinion if Cadillacs, especially the fast ones. The brand is probably soiled for the middle aged group, but is on the way up in the minds of the younger crowd.

I grew up in the late 80s through the 90s.  The only thing Caddy made before the CTS that someone under the age of 70 didn't look out of place in (and that wasn't completely mediocre compared to what the Germans were making) was the Escalade.  One vehicle does not really define a brand's image.

[hotrodalex]

It absolutely does. That's the first vehicle that my age group thinks of when you say Cadillac. And it's a vehicle associated with status and wealth. They've got a good thing going for them, just need to keep it up and wait for the older generations to die off.

[Madman]

Also, my generation has a different perception if Cadillac. We grew up with Escalades being a status symbol. Many people my age have a positive opinion if Cadillacs, especially the fast ones. The brand is probably soiled for the middle aged group, but is on the way up in the minds of the younger crowd.

You bring up a good point.  Cadillac's future will hinge on whether or not they can woo a new generation of buyers who see Caddy as an inspirational brand.  Gen Y will be crucial for Cadillac if they are to survive.  However, for me and others my age, it's too late.  My generation sees the Cadillac brand as damaged goods and, no matter how good the cars become, the stigma of the '80s and '90s will still persist.

We've seen this generational shift before.  The WWII generation were reluctant to buy German and Japanese imports because of their experiences during the war.    Their Baby Boomer children, however, had no such qualms about driving a Volkswagen or a Datsun when they came of age.  For Gen-Xers like me, we suffered through the nadir of American car manufacturing and aspired to attain the Yuppie dream of Armani suits in the closet, a Rolex watch on the wrist and a BMW in the driveway.  For me, a Cadillac (and a Lincoln, too) will forever be seen as something my dad would drive.  Those cars were just as uncool as the Robert Hall polyester suits and the zip-up dress boots he continued to wear many years after they went out of fashion.

[Soup DeVille]

She has a point, but she has articulated it rather poorly; which is not a good sign.

Yes, brand means something to a lot of people: but the only way to get a good brand reputation is to produce a good product. (Yes, I know- "But Soup," you're saying "Beats by Dr. Dre..." - Well, OK, I can't explain that one, but as a general rule, it holds true)

Cadillac is now producing good products for the most part, but still suffering from their image leftover from the bad times. That will pass (and hopefully, driven by something other than the Escalade- call me an old fogey if you will, but a rebadged Tahoe with leather seats is Not a Cadillac), but Cadillac will never be able to either out-German the Germans or out-bland the Japanese.

[GoCougs]

Some Googling says she's only 33 - which explains a lot (and is a likely gonna be a problem).

The first gen CTS was good. Had the ATS followed soon after, and a good STS after than, rather wasting bunches of time on weird stuff like the XLR and Escalade variants, Cadillac would be in a very different place today. Such as it is, the new CTS, XTS and ATS look phenomenal in top trim, and go a long way in righting the ship (the SRX and Escalade has too, but I'm not a fan).

[12,000 RPM]

She has a point, but she has articulated it rather poorly; which is not a good sign.

Yes, brand means something to a lot of people: but the only way to get a good brand reputation is to produce a good product. (Yes, I know- "But Soup," you're saying "Beats by Dr. Dre..." - Well, OK, I can't explain that one, but as a general rule, it holds true)

Cadillac is now producing good products for the most part, but still suffering from their image leftover from the bad times. That will pass (and hopefully, driven by something other than the Escalade- call me an old fogey if you will, but a rebadged Tahoe with leather seats is Not a Cadillac), but Cadillac will never be able to either out-German the Germans or out-bland the Japanese.

Yea Beats By Dre is just a way for folks with no money to "wear wealth".... luxury car game is a whole different animal (though maybe not really)

I do agree that Caddy needs to find itself character-wise, and despite ~3-4 decades of crap they do have quite a good bit of history and technology to draw from. That's really the key. In Caddy's prime the cars were state of the art and had build quality above all else. Today with auto manufacturing being so commoditized build quality just has to be to the industry standard. But Caddy can distinguish itself easily with tech, designs, and V8s. But barring the ELR, which is a joke, and the Escalade, which is a relic (and executive fleet special), they aren't bringing any of that in their lineup.

I still contend that if they drew on their plug in hybrid tech more heavily they would make waves. Tesla is huge on the West Coast and particularly in Hollywood. A very influential group of people are promoting EVs heavily. All of GM's MBAs can't seem to notice that or put two and two together. That is disappointing.

[MrH]

Yea Beats By Dre is just a way for folks with no money to "wear wealth".... luxury car game is a whole different animal (though maybe not really)

I do agree that Caddy needs to find itself character-wise, and despite ~3-4 decades of crap they do have quite a good bit of history and technology to draw from. That's really the key. In Caddy's prime the cars were state of the art and had build quality above all else. Today with auto manufacturing being so commoditized build quality just has to be to the industry standard. But Caddy can distinguish itself easily with tech, designs, and V8s. But barring the ELR, which is a joke, and the Escalade, which is a relic (and executive fleet special), they aren't bringing any of that in their lineup.

I still contend that if they drew on their plug in hybrid tech more heavily they would make waves. Tesla is huge on the West Coast and particularly in Hollywood. A very influential group of people are promoting EVs heavily. All of GM's MBAs can't seem to notice that or put two and two together. That is disappointing.

What are you talking about? They made the ELR which has been a huge flop.

[MX793]

What are you talking about? They made the ELR which has been a huge flop.

They need something more versatile and appealing than a slow, expensive, compact coupe.

[FoMoJo]

Some Googling says she's only 33 - which explains a lot (and is a likely gonna be a problem).

The first gen CTS was good. Had the ATS followed soon after, and a good STS after than, rather wasting bunches of time on weird stuff like the XLR and Escalade variants, Cadillac would be in a very different place today. Such as it is, the new CTS, XTS and ATS look phenomenal in top trim, and go a long way in righting the ship (the SRX and Escalade has too, but I'm not a fan).

That's the point.  She can relate to what the "yoots" want.

[FoMoJo]

It absolutely does. That's the first vehicle that my age group thinks of when you say Cadillac. And it's a vehicle associated with status and wealth. They've got a good thing going for them, just need to keep it up and wait for the older generations to die off.

I thought it was a vehicle associated with rappers with bad taste.

[12,000 RPM]

What are you talking about? They made the ELR which has been a huge flop.

Like I said, ELR was a joke. ELR would have been a flop at half the price with no plug in tech. It is just a bad car. Don't use it as an example of how the market would receive an actual serious luxury PHEV.

Im not crazy. People say Caddy needs to "fight with the Germans" right? Well look at what the "Germans" are doing.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2014/12/bmw-unveils-3-series-phev-prototype-plans-future-phevs/

[Soup DeVille]

Yea Beats By Dre is just a way for folks with no money to "wear wealth".... luxury car game is a whole different animal (though maybe not really)

I do agree that Caddy needs to find itself character-wise, and despite ~3-4 decades of crap they do have quite a good bit of history and technology to draw from. That's really the key. In Caddy's prime the cars were state of the art and had build quality above all else. Today with auto manufacturing being so commoditized build quality just has to be to the industry standard. But Caddy can distinguish itself easily with tech, designs, and V8s. But barring the ELR, which is a joke, and the Escalade, which is a relic (and executive fleet special), they aren't bringing any of that in their lineup.

I still contend that if they drew on their plug in hybrid tech more heavily they would make waves. Tesla is huge on the West Coast and particularly in Hollywood. A very influential group of people are promoting EVs heavily. All of GM's MBAs can't seem to notice that or put two and two together. That is disappointing.

Nearly everybody in Detroit seems particularly tone-deaf about EVs.

[Soup DeVille]

I thought it was a vehicle associated with rappers with bad taste.

That depends on your perspective; and that largely follows with age. To a certain extent.

I have met very old people with bad taste as well.

[FlatBlackCaddy]

That's the point.  She can relate to what the "yoots" want.

"The what?"

[FoMoJo]

That depends on your perspective; and that largely follows with age. To a certain extent.

I have met very old people with bad taste as well.

I've met quite a number of them myself at the local auto shows...all those old goats with hiked up Novas and Chevy IIs .

[GoCougs]

Nearly everybody in Detroit seems particularly tone-deaf about EVs.

Because there's no material value in it, or in the least precisely no one is going to be an $100k Model S from Dodge or Chevy .

[Soup DeVille]

Because there's no material value in it, or in the least precisely no one is going to be an $100k Model S from Dodge or Chevy .

Ignoring a growing segment has been their downfall how many times before?

[MX793]

I've met quite a number of them myself at the local auto shows...all those old goats with hiked up Novas and Chevy IIs .

No mention of the seniors who drive modern cars with faux Landau roofs or those horrible felt roof coverings?

[12,000 RPM]

I thought it was a vehicle associated with rappers with bad taste.

Yep, and rappers have moved on

[hotrodalex]

Ugh ^

[veeman]

I like the Escalade, design wise.  Rappers and mostly sports stars make it look ugly with outlandish wheels but they do the same thing to Range Rovers, and most people on this forum think the Range Rover is a fantastic looking vehicle.  If I had to choose right now among SUVs priced between 60 and 80 grand, I'd take the GMC Yukon Denali extended version in silver (which even looks better).

The Audi Q7 and Mercedes G class, particularly the Mercedes, are both in the same price range as the Cadillac and don't look as good.

I would think that rappers and sports stars make up a small percentage of Escalade sales.

[Soup DeVille]

I would think that rappers and sports stars make up a small percentage of Escalade sales.

They make up a very small percentage of sales for anything; but they do a lot to drive brand awareness and perception of that brand.

[Madman]

I like the Escalade, design wise.  Rappers and mostly sports stars make it look ugly with outlandish wheels but they do the same thing to Range Rovers, and most people on this forum think the Range Rover is a fantastic looking vehicle.  If I had to choose right now among SUVs priced between 60 and 80 grand, I'd take the GMC Yukon Denali extended version in silver (which even looks better).

The Audi Q7 and Mercedes G class, particularly the Mercedes, are both in the same price range as the Cadillac and don't look as good.

I would think that rappers and sports stars make up a small percentage of Escalade sales.

Another thing to consider is underneath all the glitz and bling of the Escalade lurks a plebeian pickup truck.

$60K-$80K for something based on a blue-collar work truck?  That's the crack pipe talking!

[FoMoJo]

Another thing to consider is underneath all the glitz and bling of the Escalade lurks a plebeian pickup truck.

$60K-$80K for something based on a blue-collar work truck?  That's the crack pipe talking!

[MrH]

At least the Escalade is a bit different from the Tahoe now.  Different interior and exterior.

The early ones were insulting how much of a blatant ripoff they were.  The Cadillac brand was hurt with the Escalade in my opinion.  It doesn't scream luxury to my age group, but instead someone who's entirely concerned with being seen.

[FoMoJo]

At least the Escalade is a bit different from the Tahoe now.  Different interior and exterior.

The early ones were insulting how much of a blatant ripoff they were.  The Cadillac brand was hurt with the Escalade in my opinion.  It doesn't scream luxury to my age group, but instead someone who's entirely concerned with being seen.

Yet they, often, tint the windows so dark that no one can see them.

[2o6]

At least the Escalade is a bit different from the Tahoe now.  Different interior and exterior.

The early ones were insulting how much of a blatant ripoff they were.  The Cadillac brand was hurt with the Escalade in my opinion.  It doesn't scream luxury to my age group, but instead someone who's entirely concerned with being seen.

Cadillac in general has this problem, and it's far less acceptable when Cadillac does it versus Buick.

[12,000 RPM]

At least the Escalade is a bit different from the Tahoe now.  Different interior and exterior.

The early ones were insulting how much of a blatant ripoff they were.  The Cadillac brand was hurt with the Escalade in my opinion.  It doesn't scream luxury to my age group, but instead someone who's entirely concerned with being seen.

We are the attention generation brah. The Escalade is for us. We made it popular. It doesnt resonate anymore because its concept is old and doesnt generate the kind of attention it used to.

[MrH]

We are the attention generation brah. The Escalade is for us. We made it popular. It doesnt resonate anymore because its concept is old and doesnt generate the kind of attention it used to.

I guess that's true.  I thought it was stupid when it was popular though too.

I'm all about that understated luxury.  The early Escalade was the opposite.  Overstated mediocrity