Yes, I agree that government regulations have a lot to do with it. We have gotten to the point where I think those restrictions (at least on EPA's part) have become unnecessarily restrictive, unrealistic, and making it very difficult for the types of drivetrains and vehicles that the public clearly wants.....which, I'm many cases, are larger N/A engines rather than small turbos. (and, of course, CAFE rules ultimately come from Congress) But, I won't expound on that here, because it would drag the thread off-topic.

 

Government restrictions have everything to do with it. The automakers would not add this tech if they did not have to and the competition did not offer it.

 

Yeah, for the most part these system are getting to be widely available. When I was shopping for our BMW most of the reviews mentioned that it was rougher than most cars (I think it is) and that was about it. We recently Bought an Audi and I haven't even tried it yet but will try to remember to soon.

 

I have a BMW and I'm on the BMW forums, and believe me, there's LOTS of complaining about the Auto Stop/Start. Granted, its by a small group of enthusiasts, but there are some very strong opinions against the system. Especially the pre-2014 3 Series, where the car defaulted to activate the AS/S system every time you turned the car on, vs the current method of remembering whether the system is enabled or disabled.

 

Well, not quite everything. CAFE and emission rules generally set broad overall standards, and leave it up to manufacturers to choose their methods. Most manufacturers, of course, choose methods that are a balance between cost, feasibility, and what they think the public will accept......unless they decide to cheat, like VW did with the diesel emissions. But, basically, that's why we're seeing the small turbos......trying to preserve the power levels the public wants, while boosting fuel mileage in the process. What is suffering, of course, in many cases, is engine smoothness and refinement. And the turbos, off course, present other problems as well, such as heat, complexity, extra service, and the need for special oils.

 

Yes, it has everything to do with it. None of this would be happening if it weren't for these regulations. You wouldn't have auto stop start tech, you wouldn't have small displacement turbos, you wouldn't have 9 speed or CVT transmissions if it weren't for these regulations.

You're correct different manufacturers go about it different ways, but the common denominator is these regulations. That's the core reason why there's anything for these manufacturers to respond to.

 

That's what I was referring to, when I said less than everything. But, yes, the regs are central. My own opinion is that those currently setting the standards are out of touch with much of the car-buying public, but we'll see.

 

They aren't setting them with the car buying public's demand at all. They are trying to achieve a goal, and drag consumers and carmakers along with them towards that goal. Left to its own devices the market wouldn't want much of this.

 

Basically that's what happened back in the 1970s. The public didn't WANT to downsize their vehicles or give up HP/torque...but were forced to by a combination of world events and government actions. Ultimately, new technology and computerization produced better smaller engines and vehicles.....but, until that happened, for 20 or 30 years, it was a real mess.

 

Back on topic............anybody here on CL own or lease an XT5 yet?

 

The lease on my NX ran out recently and after an extensive search of what to do I leased a 2018 XT5 Luxury. So far I'm very happy but it's still early. (after leasing 4 Lexus and 2 Toyota's I'm a little nervous with Cadillac reliability.) I've only had it a few weeks and everything is good. I really wanted to move to a NX hybrid but after watching the inventories of all the dealers on the west coast of Florida there were none available. I only saw a couple on the east coast a 4 hour drive away so I gave up. I wish I knew what was the story, a Lexus production issue? I know my Lexus dealer is not fond of hybrids and never did stock many. So any way I started looking for another hybrid crossover of which there aren't many. I zeroed in a Toyota Rav4 hybrid. Even though the Rav4 interior is dire compared to the NX. The Toyota dealers near me stocked many of them to choose from. I put out feelers on Truecar for a Rav4 and out of curiosity an XT5. The Toyota dealers were slow to respond but the Cadillac dealers were all over me willing to deal. One salesman was trying to sell me a leftover 2017 XT5 at a great price but I received an offer from the dealer closest to me that was too good to pass on. I went and test drove the vehicle and signed a lease on the spot.

In response to the review and comments on the XT5 I offer the following.

--Stop/start, I discovered a easy way to disable it from a Cadillac forum. All you need to do is to shift from D(drive) to the M(manual) mode.
--I find the electronic shifter to be fine.
--mine came without a spare tire, first car I ever owned w/o one.
--my personal gripe with the dash. There is no on/off volume button for the radio. Every car I have owned has had one. It took me forever to figure out how to turn the radio off.

 

 

My priority is on handling characteristics. Can this thing really match Bimmer X5? I doubt it.

 

 

Thanks for the reply.....I see you bumped up an old thread.

And congratulations on your lease.


I don't blame you for not being impressed with the RAV-4....reliable, yes, but the interior, IMO, is cheap and sub-par, except for the strong, durable rear-seat locks. I wasn't impressed with the NX's overall refinement and road-manners, but its interior is a step up from the RAV-4.

I have the same start-stop system and electronic shifter in my new Buick Lacrosse that you have in the XT5 (that shifter is also used in the Chevrolet Bolt EV). Quirky, yes......the shifter takes some getting used to. Took me about three weeks, and I still sometimes get N (neutral) instead of Reverse. But, if you aren't impulsive or in a hurry, generally no problem.

I'll give you a little tip on the shifter....when you are parked and ready to get out, don't bother hitting the P button on the shifter......it will automatically go into Park on its own when you simply turn the engine off. That, of course, is a safety-feature, to keep one from accidentally leaving it in Neutral and walking away, like with the recent Chrysler shifters....it got a well-known actor killed, and sparked an investigation. With the GM shifter, it will also save wear-and-tear on the starter by by-passing the extra start-cycle that sometimes happens when you hit the P button just as it goes into park. Hitting P re-starts the engine for just a second or two (needlessly) before it shuts off for good....that's a quirk in the system that the engineers will probably address in future models.


The engine start-stop system, yes, can be defeated by constant shifting into and out of Manual, but, I found, on my Lacrosse, that it doesn't operate at all during initial engine warmup, at very cold or hot temperatures outside when the climate-controls are in max, or when it senses that the battery is low (or draining too much). It can also be defeated by constant very light feather-footing of the brake so that the car moves ahead extremely slowly when at idle or at a stoplight, at a 98% or a 99% stop instead of a 100% full stop. That is not always possible, of course, if there is a car or other obstacle close in front of you, but if you stop back far enough and give yourself some creep-room, you can save at least some of the wear on the stop/start system. My Lacrosse also has the new 9-speed automatic that was specially-designed for the start/stop system....the XT5 still uses the Aisin-sourced 8-speed automatic. I think the XT5 will get the new 9-speed next year.



Welcome to the world of cost-cutting....I can assure you the XT5 is not alone in that regard.


Again, welcome to the world of CUE. That's just the way they designed the system, and has been (just like yours) a common source of owner-complaints. Cadillac marketers.....are you listening? In my own opinion, twirl-***** for volume and tuning, not buttons, are actually best. Some recent Cadillacs (and Lincolns) also had a quirky finger-slide control for volume and fan speed that I thought was just awful....similiar complaints from customers forced a redesign of those, too.