The Escalade Hybrid isn’t Caddy’s only new vehicle intro down at the Miami Beach Convention Center this week. In addition to the enhanced-mileage gigunda-wagon, the General is also rolling out the Platinum edition in both regular and ESV bodystyles. It’s powered by the standard-issue 403 horsepower 6.2L V8 and gets the deluxe treatment both inside and out. For an as-yet-undisclosed premium over the regular ‘Slade, the Platinum is equipped with exclusive 22-inch wheels, magnetic ride control, LED headlamps, and a new grille that borrows its style from the CTS. The big whip’s passenger cabin gets the cut & sew full-leather once-over on the IP, center console and door panels. Oh, and the cupholders are heated and cooled, too. The seats in the Platinum’s first two rows are upgraded to aniline leather with contrast-color French stitching on the seams, and the headrests in the front two get fitted with LCD screens for the back seat passengers. That’s in addition to the rearward-visibility-hampering flip-down screen in the ceiling, mind you. (Hey, the back-benchers need to have a screen they can see from their non-aniline leather 3rd row chairs.) If you thought that the Escalade had reached bling saturation on the factory level, it is now clear that you were mistaken. If you clock the appropriate number of G’s, you can order one up next Spring.

[Source: AutoBlog]

General Motors is serious about satellite radio, and the amount of nameplates that offer standard XM is growing all the time. Previously, GM made XM standard on all Cadillacs, and now the subscription radio service will also be available for all new Buick, HUMMER, and Saab models as well. The move enlarges XM’s customer base while also giving new-car drivers a chance to test the technology for three months free of charge. Of course, after the gratis period runs out, those drivers are free to become former XM customers, but by then, the hope would be that they’re so in love with the service that they simply renew and keep it going. There are now 50 GM products with standard XM, and six million XM-equipped vehicles have been built by the General since 2001.

[Source: GM]

Well, based on the fact that BadBoyVettes has what appears to be a shot of it in its transporter, we have to wonder if that might indeed be the case. Standard-issue Z06es don’t wear hood camo, nor do they rock the serious power dome clearly hiding beneath it in the photo above. Let’s go into 100% speculation mode here for a moment:

BBV follows the C6.Rs from race to race.

The C6.Rs are in Monterey for the ALMS season-ender at Laguna Seca.
The photo above is likely the ZR1, and hence was also probably taken at Monterey.
The Velocity Yellow finish on the depicted car matches the C6.Rs base color.
We’re going to go out on a limb and guess that GM’s going to have the disguised ZR1 at the race.

Seriously, why not? Nissan generated mountains of buzz by trotting the masked GT-R out at places like Goodwood ahead of its reveal. Doing so with the ZR1 at an event where Corvette Racing is one of the major draws is a good way to get Corvette fans energized. Sure, we could be 100% wrong, but why else would there be a prettied-up, camouflaged car in a color that ties into the race team (and that hasn’t been snapped by spy photogs yet, as far as we know) at Monterey?

Well, probably at Monterey. BadBoyVettes is such a tease. We’ll have to see what happens over the weekend.

[Source: AutoBlog]

The introduction of the 2008 Saturn Vue is the latest element of the Saturn’s ongoing product overhaul. In the wake of the Sky, Aura, and Outlook, we had high expectations for the all-new Vue. Gone are the outgoing model’s clunky styling, cheesy faux grille, plastacular body panels and ho-hum street presence. In its place, we’re given a smart-looking, well-packaged Opel Antara clone that’s positioned as an obvious step up from its predecessor. Sure, the old Vue had some things going for it — after its last facelift it had a decent-looking interior, and despite its outward visual shortcomings, it offered plenty of useful cargo room — but it just wasn’t very exciting in the grand scheme of things. Its departure is decidedly unlamented, and we eagerly accepted the keys when GM entrusted us with a spanking-new Vue Red Line for a week. Read on to see how well the newest Saturn lives up to the hype.

On Wednesday, we told you that the Corvette Racing C6.Rs would be sporting a new Bad Boy Vettes livery for the ALMS finale at Laguna Seca next weekend. Yesterday, BBV shot us a few pics of the #4 car in progress, and no surprise — we like what we see. The final product will be unveiled at a big shindig on Wednesday, and when the cars ultimately take to the track, they’ll look as every bit as menacing as they sound. Skulls on race cars are like, totally underrated. The little Michelin man on the front fender just wet himself out of fear.

[Source: AutoBlog]

The second generation of General Motors’ original hybrid SUV has arrived, and it’s still the cheapest hybrid SUV on the market, but just barely. The $24,795 price slides under the Ford Escape Hybrid by only $280. The new mild hybrid Vue Green Line being introduced this fall is the first of a trio of hybrid variants that will appear over the next two years. This time next year, a Two-Mode hybrid version will appear, followed by a plug-in version the following year.

For now though, the belt-alternator-starter (BAS) system has been optimized to yield a couple more miles per gallon. The Vue has earned a rating of 25/32 mpg city/highway under the new 2008 EPA test procedures, which is quite a feat considering most hybrids saw their fuel economy drop with the EPA’s new testing procedures. Combined with a 19 gallon gas tank the Vue can cruise for 585 miles on the highway, which should be enough to outlast most bladders. For those with a more limited purchase budget, a non-hybrid 2.4L four cylinder Vue is also available now for $21,395.

Update: GM verified that the Vue hybrid is in production and they will still arriving in dealerships over the next few weeks. By Mid-November they should be widely available at all Saturn dealers.
[Source: Saturn]

In his latest missive on the Fastlane Blog, GM car czar Bob Lutz checks in after a trip to Australia during which he sampled several new Pontiac G8s (he called the Ponchos “fabulous”), the Buick Park Avenue destined for China, and the Daewoo Veritas, another Holden sedan export. Oh, he also drove other development stuff that’s in the hopper, including the Camaro development prototype. Lutz said that the car, despite being covered in a spy-photog-unfriendly black-and-white camo pattern, looked “as awesome as the concept” and that its power, sound and braking ability were completely in line with his lofty expectations. (That sound you hear is Brenda Priddy boarding a Qantas 747 to Oz.)

He describes the interior as being “remarkable” as well. We recently saw a GM video put together by the design group, in which a simulation of the Camaro startup process is shown from inside the car’s passenger cabin. (It was not an actual car, but a super-high-quality computer simulation). If the interior shown in that video is indeed what’s in store for the production Camaro, Lutz’s use of “remarkable” is not at all out of line, and we’ll all be yammering about it endlessly come January. According to Lutz’s post, the Camaro is intended to be “the finest car in its class, ever.” He’s not doing or saying anything to temper our expectations, and based on what we’ve seen and heard on our own so far, there’s no reason for him to do so.

[Source: GM Fastlane Blog]