Autocar confidential: JLR, Ferrari, Cadillac, Lexus

News

2 mins read

2 August 2016

This week's gossip from the automotive industry has news of Ferrari's demographics, the upcoming Lexus CT, a new Cadillac naming system and JLR SVR's weight saving future.

New Cadillac naming system

Cadillac is embarking on a new naming strategy for its currently confusingly named model range.

All saloons will get a CT prefix in the future, with a number after. The CT6 is the present range-topper, so expect a CT4 or CT5 name for the Cadillac CTS when it is replaced.

The SUVs, meanwhile, will be all called XT-something, the XT5 being the first. Two lower numbers will be used for the two smaller SUVs planned.

The Cadillac Escalade, meanwhile, is an exception and will always keep its name.

Ferrari's buyer demographics

The Ferrari FF and its new GTC4 Lusso successor have an average buyer age 10 years younger than that of the 612 Scaglietti that went before them.

Four out of 10 FF/GTC4 buyers are new to the brand, and FF/GTC4 buyers cover 50% more mileage than the 612 owners before them.

Upcoming Lexus CT

The next Lexus CT, which will be revealed before 2018, will offer “something above” the current car, according to Toyota senior manager Rembert Serrus.

He hinted that the next CT will be the first Lexus product to offer semi-autonomous driving technology.

JLR SVR upgrades

Weight saving will be very important in the development of future Jaguar Land Rover SVR models, according to Special Vehicle Operations director Mark Stanton.

He said each part that SVO adds to a model needs to be lighter than the standard part it replaces and the company will innovate with new materials and feed that back into the main JLR vehicle programme.

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