Johan de Nysschen, the man who renamed the entire Infiniti lineup for 2014, started his job as Cadillac president on August 18. Don’t expect this new car to be named Fleetwood or de Ville, though. And let’s hope it doesn’t get the QTS moniker
Omega chassis. I hope this has interest for US buyers, not just China.
1. De Nysschen destroyed Infiniti's style and nomenclature, as well as any competitive edge it had in the market, during his short tenure. Doesn't bode well for Caddy. He's also responsible for the most senseless and useless naming strategy known to the automotive world, so who the hell knows that future Cadillacs will be called. (Escalade = QXTS90?)
2. Caddy need a flagship to help it earn prestige, but unless it rocks like Merc's new S-class, this thing will seem just another bloated Fleetwood aimed at nursing home and civic center parking lots. Elmiraj was a greate place to start making something truly sexy and forward-thinking, both as a sedan and a coupe; alas, that won't come to fruition.
3. I expect to see this stuffed with the 3.6L six, the turbo six, and a Corvette-cribbed V8. The base model likely will take off just above CTS's price point.
Perhaps ironically or merely coincidentally, I think of Infiniti's products as irrelevant to the market as Lincoln's.
I will say that using older names may conflict with their new target demographic. The Seville names probably remind most people of "old man" cars as opposed to the new luxury sport styling.
If their target is to be in competition with BMW and Audi, they should keep making awesome cars that are not named after slow rolling couches.
