With both Audi->ke14 and Mercedes-Benz->ke187 doing quite well in the image department after bringing small, front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive sedans to the United States, it seems that Cadillac->ke18 wants to follow suit and introduce an even smaller sedan than the CTS.->ke1200 Not only that, but the alleged smaller sedan may also be complemented by a compact crossover, just so the Audi Q3,->ke2666 Mercedes-Benz GLA->ke4658 and BMW X1->ke2474 don't feel lonely in their segment. The information above has been confirmed by Johan de Nysschen, who recently spoke with Autoblog about the matter at the [2015 Detroit Auto Show.

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Part of a rather ambitious offensive of new models that is expected to finally turn around the American carmaker, the two aforementioned models would be likely based on GM's Alpha platform, therefore sharing quite a lot of parts with the ATS and CTS. According to Autoblog, which is quoting Nysschen, the compact sedan is scheduled to arrive in 2017, while the compact crossover->ke288 should be launched a year later.

In terms of market segment, the sub-ATS->ke3619 sedan should battle with the likes of Mercedes-Benz CLA->ke3130, Audi A3 sedan->ke1086 and the upcoming BMW 1 Series sedan, all of which use a front-wheel-drive-based architecture.The compact crossover may be either small enough to step on the toes of the Mercedes-Benz GLA, Audi Q3 and BMW X1 or a little bit larger and occupy the segment right above. Either way, these are only two of the cars with no direct predecessor that Cadillac aims to unveil in the upcoming five years.

Autoblog

Click past the jump to read more about Cadillac's future cars.0}

While a sub-ATS, entry-level sedan may be taken as a negative by some, especially in the U.S., but the truth is that Cadillac desperately needs a lineup expansion in order to not only survive but actually stand a chance against the German trio of premium carmakers. Astounding halo cars like the recently-unveiled CTS-V and the upcoming CT6 are all fine and dandy, but Cadillac also needs volume cars, and the only way to make volume is to offer cheaper models in segments that are currently on a roll. With that being said, especially since Cadillac has global expansion plans, a sub-ATS, entry-level sedan with rear-wheel drive should make a killing in most markets, including the U.S., while a compact crossover should improve the already high market share in China even more.

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