Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Cadillac STS Sporthatch. Umm, What?

This STS Sporthatch  is probably no more relevant than my Coupe DeVille below, but I'd like to think in a few years, Americans will be more open to the idea of a luxury hatchback. They're just so practical. They can carry larger objects in the luggage area than a sedan, yet they have the same profile as a car, meaning you're not carrying around a crossover's heavy and taller body when you don't need to be. 

C H O P — Falling somewhere between the length of a CTS and an STS sedan, this Sporthatch would fill a niche similar to a crossover, but with more sedan-like panache. Powertrains could be direct-injected and turbocharged I4s and perhaps a new-from-scratch inline 5 turbo-diesel for maximum power and torque. I'm not sure a hybrid drivetrain would be appropriate when carrying space is the priority due to the bulky battery packs necessary, but perhaps in another ten years lithium ion batteries will be much smaller and lighter allowing their use in any vehicle. 

10 comments:

  1. Hey Casey,

    Glad to see that someone had the guts to take a Cadillac out of the sedan mold (suv included) and come up with an ingenious design: Caddy hatch.

    If they want to attract a broader audience, even those that live overseas, they need to do a little more experimentation.

    I loved that they experimented with the older SRX and they should have continued that with the newer version which looks kind of cheap and not even American made. Anyway, I would look to see that brand make awesome looking cars that you can picture De Niro or even Titus Welliver (smoke monster) behind the wheel do 90.

    ReplyDelete
  2. you know I think I like the original ZRX too. There's a new one and an old one in town, and the older one looks classier to me.

    and i always think about hatchback luxury cars. As big as my Infiniti is, it's impossible to get much into it, like my art on wood etc. The trunk is shallow, and the rear seat has limited space with the door openings the way they are. The rear seat doesn't have a pass-through or fold down either. The gas tank is right behind the rear seat like Mercedes does.

    ReplyDelete
  3. i meant SRX of course, lol. i think i've been online too long, lol, i'm logging off now!

    ReplyDelete
  4. IF I COMMENTED ON THIS ONE IT WOULD SOUND LIKE I KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT CARS. SILLY ME. SO I'LL LEAVE IT TO THE EXPERTS. I JUST LIKE TO PRETEND TO BE. NOW, ASK ME FOR A CAKE RECIPE. EXPERT HERE. J/K AGAIN.

    GRANNY

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Casey,

    There's no question that the original SRX is hands-down a better product and design than this new one -- on the new one the body looks to big for the chassis and the design is chaotic. I don't know why the original one wasn't a success.

    And with regard to you next chop -- the Coupe de Ville -- it looks SO SO SO much better than the CTS coupe. I'm glad Cadillac is making a two-door again, but I just don't get the CTS coupe. It looks dramatic, but ugly (or should that be BUTT ugly?).

    And skipping futher down your chopes for today, I love your story about your Celica! It pays to keep your eyes open for better looking strangers and good deals on demonstrators!

    Paul, New York City

    ReplyDelete
  6. i love to cook too, TG! I like to make up recipes. I've been thinking of doing a post about food, taking photos as I make something and explaining techniques. Now I just might do it one of these days. I'm not a baker though. There is a HUGE difference in baking and cooking I think. Baking is MUCH more difficult and scientific to me. You just can't add a pinch of this or a pinch of that or the cake/cookies don't come out right! my late mother, and she would have totally agreed about this, wasn't a great cook, lol. she just did so many other things well she didn't care about cooking dinners that much. BUT she was the best baker! I haven't had a decent pie crust since she died. Hers were flaky beyond belief. Her cakes were fluffy too Every time I bake whatever I"m trying for come out like hockey pucks. I used to make dinners for us and she made the desserts.

    ReplyDelete
  7. HOCKEY PUCKS ARE THE BEST. YOU CAN LINE YOUR FLOWER GARDEN WITH THEM. LOL. YUM, YUM

    GRANNY

    ReplyDelete
  8. Baking is really Chemistry 101 - everything going in has to be measured precisely, and it has to be baked at the correct temp for the right amount of time. Cooking allows much more freedom.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I agree with paul about the CTS coupe - it's very thick in the quarter panels/c-pillar. Your design is more in the Cadillac spirit.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Paul: I'm very scattered today! I posted your comment and then couldn't find it again to comment back, lol. You're right about the new SRX. I couldn't put my finger on it, but it DOES look too big for the platform, as if there's a body under that exterior too. I actually love the CTS coupe, although it might change when I see one in person. It's just so outrageously dramatic and unlike anything out there.

    Phantom: you're right about the chemistry thing. My mother was an RN for most of her life, and was very scientific and very mathetmatical. Now that you mention the temperature, she had an extra thermometer in the oven so she knew exactly what the temp was. I never put 2+2 together like that, but it must have been for her baking. I've never needed one for 'regular' cooking. I wasn't very interested back then in learning her secrets. I was more than happy to just eat her baked goods. I guess I thought it was all in the recipes, and not the technique. One of those things I wish I could go back and rectify! But when I have a baked disaster, I always look up to the sky/ceiling and tell her I really miss her baking!

    ReplyDelete