CARMEL VALLEY, CA: The public's current perspective of Cadillac is undoubtedly not positive, inasmuch as it involves GM's prestige car division losing the sales lead in the U.S. luxury car segment to Lincoln for the first time in decades and decades.
And even that was made worse by the fact that some Cadillac marketing people had first misrepresented the number of cars they'd actually sold, forcing the division to apologize along with admitting defeat.
In the minds of the vast majority, the proudest GM division of them all had probably reached a nadir, matched only by the dark days when fuel-starved North America was offered the compact Cimarron by Cadillac but for the most part wisely declined.
Well, perception and reality rarely share the same coordinates in the auto business any more than they do in any other aspect of life, and nowhere is that more true right now than it is with Cadillac.
That was made perfectly clear here by the reveal to the media of a stunning new sedan that Cadillac will bring onto the entry-level luxury car market as a 2002 model.
Pledges of secrecy prevent me or anyone else from describing the replacement unit for the current Catera., but I can and will tell you that it's the hottest-looking production car I've seen in years and years, and it features an interior that is a huge departure from anything currently available.