Exclusive: 2014 Cadillac Escalade – Here’s Your First Official Look and Insider Info
If you take a look at Cadillac’s current portfolio, there’s one model that sticks out like a blueberry in a pan of milk for more reasons than one. Yes, we’re talking about the Escalade, GM’s biggest, most luxurious and with a $ 63,170 starting price, most expensive full-size SUV.
In production since 2007, the third generation Escalade has seen its sales numbers fall, but it remains a profit machine for GM, which is why the Detroit carmaker is keen to launch a replacement that will enhance its strong points and diminish its weaknesses.
We already knew from spy shots, videos and our sources that the development of the new, 4th gen Escalade is approaching its end, and now we can show you a snapshot taken from a brochure that landed on our news desk earlier this week and also share some interesting details about GM’s premium SUV that we learned from one of our contacts.
In terms of the exterior design, we are told that the next Escalade will continue to have a boxy look. Highlights will include the main headlamp fixtures that look a lot the units used on the ELR; tail lights that “run from the roof down, being thinnest closest to the roof”; rear wheels with a wider stance than the front ones, and slightly shorter rear windows that those on the current Escalade.
As for the interior, the new Escalade will get power fold flat seats for the third row as standard, but most importantly, it will be significantly more luxurious with much higher quality materials. “The interior design is real everything. Real wood, metal, leather,” our source told us.
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2014 Toyota Tundra to debut at the 2013 Chicago Auto Show
Now that the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra and the concept version of the next-generation Ford F-150 have all made their debut – Toyota has decided that it will debut its next-generation full-size pickup at the 2013 Chicago Auto Show next month.
The Japanese automaker confirmed today the 2014 Toyota Tundra will debut in Chicago and will go on sale shortly after.
No other details were released.
Ford Atlas Concept: Previewing the Next F-150 and Future Pickup Tech [2013 Detroit Auto Show]
Tacked on to the end of a presentation of its new Transit and Transit Connect commercial vans at the Detroit auto show, Ford added a surprise showing of its Atlas full-size pickup concept. The Atlas is a thinly veiled look at what Ford has in mind for the production-spec 2015 F-150. As Ford is happy to tell anyone who will listen, the F-series pickup has been the bestselling pickup in the U.S. for the past 36 years. That’s important stuff, especially considering GM just unveiled its all-new full-size pickups, the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, which compete over the same set of buyers. According to Ford, the Atlas is an exploration of fuel-efficiency improvements, potential technologies, and capacity advancements.
The look of the Atlas is unmistakable contemporary Built Ford Tough, with bulging wheel arches, a drop-down beltline at the front doors, and some of the biggest snarling grille nostrils ever seen on an F-150.
Behind that outsized grille is the next generation of Ford’s twin-turbo EcoBoost 3.5-liter V-6, with a “truck-enhanced” stop-start system. Other fuel-economy upgrades on the Atlas include active grille shutters that close for improved aerodynamics when cooling requirements are low and active wheel shutters that actually close up the wheel vents at speed. The front air dam lowers at freeway speeds to improve underbody airflow and is raised at lower speeds to clear off-road and around-town obstacles. Altogether, Ford expects a 2-mpg improvement in highway fuel economy thanks to these measures.
Ford Atlas concept teases new F-150
The Ford Atlas concept has stormed onto the scene in Detroit, with the intimidating ute giving us an insight into the Blue Oval’s vision for the next-generation Ford F-150 pick-up.
Stealing the limelight from rival General Motors’ debutant duo – the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and the new GMC Sierra – Ford global product development vice president Raj Nair said the futuristic Atlas concept previewed innovations that would transform the world’s expectations of full-size utes.
“With 36 years as America’s best-selling pick-up, we are absolutely committed to setting the agenda in the truck market,” Nair said.
The Detroit-based manufacturer says the Atlas concept was inspired by decades of feedback from customers who use their Ford F-150s for work and play.
Ford group vice president and chief creative officer J Mays said the concept’s prominent wheel arches, chiselled grille and wide stance, along with its load-hauling versatility and cutting-edge interior were intended to address the demands and desires of next-generation pick-up customers.
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Carscoop’s A-Z Guide to the 2013 Detroit Motor Show [Updated]
![2013 NAIAS Opening Carscoops A Z Guide to the 2013 Detroit Motor Show [Updated]](http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-09OpKuEwmX0/UOtuua5v-YI/AAAAAAAK-UE/He_PafPh9sM/s1600/2013-NAIAS-Opening.jpg "Carscoops A Z Guide to the 2013 Detroit Motor Show [Updated]")
The North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) that takes place in Detroit is the first major event of the year for the automotive industry.
In 2013, the show opens its doors on January 14 for the media and on the 19th for the public, who can visit the Cobo Center until the 27th and view all the new models on display.
Perhaps the most eagerly anticipated premiere is that of the all-new, seventh-generation Corvette. GM, however, has a second ace up its sleeve for the 2013 NAIAS: the world debut of the Cadillac ELR hybrid coupe, aka the production version of the Converj concept that was launched at the same event four years ago.
Germany’s premium carmakers are also coming on strong – something only natural, since the U.S. market is extremely valuable to them.
BMW has chosen Detroit to preview its brand-new 4-Series, the coupe version of the 3-Series saloon that may be billed as a concept, but is effectively ready to enter production.
All Hail the Gen V Small-Block V-8: Specs and Details on the C7 Vette’s Engine
Proof is lacking that divine intervention guided Chevy chief engineer Ed Cole when he toiled with 14 draftsmen to design the original small-block V-8 engine 60 years ago. Nevertheless, what started as a 4.3-liter two-barrel V-8 making 162 gross horsepower has grown and evolved on its way to what may well be immortality. GM has built and sold more than 100 million small-block V-8s—we helped build the 100 millionth example—engines that have thrived through four generations and 58 model years of continuous production (see brief timeline below). In the 2014 model year, the all-new seventh-generation Corvette will showcase the latest—and hopefully greatest—version of the iconic small block, the first of the fifth-generation (Gen V) engine family that will power not only the Corvette but also a few forthcoming large cars (Chevy SS and Caprice PPV), pickups (Chevy Silverado, GMC Sierra), and SUVs (Cadillac Escalade, Chevy Suburban/Tahoe, GMC Yukon/Yukon XL).
What exactly makes a small-block a small-block? The design features that haven’t changed since the 1955 Chevy debuted this engine include eight cylinders arranged in a 90-degree V formation, a single-cam pushrod-and-rocker-arm valvetrain, and bore-to-bore spacing of 4.4 inches. Through the first four generations, GM engineers fiddled with induction, exhaust, ignition, valvetrain, and structural details galore to elevate the original 162 hp to the latest Corvette ZR1’s illustrious 638-hp high-water mark—a huge increase in power even before considering the gross versus net horsepower measurement difference.
Compare and Contrast
Key features that carry over from Gen IV to the new LT1 Gen V Corvette V-8 are the bore, stroke, 6.2-liter displacement, camshaft location, and deck height. As before, the deep-skirt aluminum block has cast-in iron bore surfaces, a forged-steel crankshaft, cast aluminum pistons, and forged powder-metal connecting rods. A common aluminum cylinder head is used on both sides of the engine by simply reversing its orientation. A dry-sump lubrication system—available only on today’s Corvette Z06 and ZR1 models—will be optional on the base C7.
As before, the crankshaft is secured by main bearings retained by four vertical and two horizontal bolts. The cap material changes from powder metal to more rigid nodular iron. An aluminum oil pan also contributes to structural rigidity, as before. A variable displacement oil pump is a new feature aimed at reliable performance during strenuous track-day use as well as minimal parasitic loss in normal driving. The composite-plastic intake manifold is essentially a box containing eight tuned runners. Four-into-one exhaust manifolds are now iron castings instead of stainless-steel sheetmetal fabrications in the interests of higher flow and better heat retention.
2014 Chevy Tahoe / GMC Yukon Spied: Next Generation of GM’s Golden Geese
What It Is: A next-generation Chevrolet Tahoe (or GMC Yukon—it’s nearly impossible to tell the two apart without badging or visible grillework) wrapped in a parka. Despite the blacked-out oval badge on the front end, it definitely is not a Ford, although this prototype was spied running with an Expedition as well as a Toyota Sequoia.
Why It Matters: The body-on-frame SUV is a bit of an oddity these days, but the format will carry forward for GM’s next-gen full-size utilities—good news for those who perform regular heavy lifting. The Tahoe and Yukon have traditionally been huge profit generators for GM, but will need greatly improved fuel efficiency if they’re to continue serving as their respective brands’ golden geese.
Platform: The Tahoe and Yukon—as well as the next-gen Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra—will ride on an evolution of the GMT900 platform, which we’re hearing could be called GMT1000. We understand this platform will go on a huge diet relative to its predecessor; curb weights reduced by as much as 500 pounds are possible. An increased use of high-strength steel in the overall structure will play a big role in the weight loss.
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