Cadillac STS 2005-2011

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Cadillac STS-V #2

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Cadillac STS-V #3

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Cadillac STS-V #4

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Cadillac STS-V #5

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Cadillac STS-V #6

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Cadillac STS-V #7

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Cadillac STS-V #8

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Cadillac STS-V #9

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a couple more.....

[Matt]

TECHNOLOGIES CONVERGE IN GM's CADILLAC STS SAE 100
The most technologically integrated vehicle ever debuts at 2005 SAE World Congress

DETROIT - General Motors revealed the most technologically integrated vehicle ever at today's opening of the 2005 SAE World Congress. The Cadillac STS SAE 100, which pays homage to SAE's 100th anniversary, will serve as a working laboratory that will aid engineers in developing future production vehicles.

"We have challenged our engineers to take the best of today's vehicle technologies and integrate them with promising future technologies to demonstrate how they will function together in a real-world driving environment," said Jim Queen, GM vice president, Global Engineering and general chairperson of the 2005 SAE World Congress. GM is the host company for this year's World Congress.

GM worked with 38 suppliers to integrate 50 different technologies into the STS SAE 100, ranging across safety, chassis, powertrain, electrical and comfort and convenience categories. Nineteen have never been in production, 22 are in production somewhere other than the 2005 STS and nine are currently on the production 2005 STS.

The vehicle, commissioned by Queen and executed by the GM Performance Division Vehicle Development Center, is much more than a "dream team" of technologies: Engineers will use it to document how the various technologies interface with each other and how they can be applied to future production vehicles.

"Vehicle integration is behind game-changing safety features like electronic stability control, which we are rolling out across our entire fleet," said Queen.

"Our goal with this vehicle was not simply to see how many different technologies can be incorporated into one vehicle. We want to learn how a variety of relevant current and future technologies can be made to function harmoniously while enhancing the total driving experience."

STS SAE 100 technologies include (see accompanying sheet for full list of technologies and their suppliers):

3-D navigation system: This prototype system uses actual pictures taken by satellites to provide the driver with a "bird's-eye-view" of the vehicle's surroundings. The images are so detailed that even trees and lampposts are visible. This detail helps the driver to relate the images on the navigation screen to his surroundings.

Oil condition sensor: An industry first in new vehicle features, this oil probe can determine and detect the actual level and remaining engine oil life. It can reduce the need for costly engine repairs due to poor oil maintenance as well as prevent unnecessary oil changes.

Inside rear-view mirror with embedded organic LED screen: This new device offers clear images from the rear seat (via a rear seat camera) or back-up camera, depending on what gear the vehicle is in. In addition to improving visibility behind the vehicle, it can reduce the distraction associated with tending to rear seat passengers.

Electronic limited slip differential: Unlike passive LSD, this technology enhances vehicle traction without brake/engine intervention, as well as provides additional vehicle stability from the differential yaw dampening effect. It also is easier to integrate with electronic stability control systems.

Two-piece carbon fiber wheel with magnesium spokes: This two-piece wheel is designed to be the lightest yet strongest wheel in production, which reduces unsprung weight. Reducing unsprung weight improves acceleration, braking efficiency, handling and fuel consumption.

Lane departure warning: Using a real-time vision system, it detects road markings and notifies the driver with a visual signal and a vibration (haptic alert) in the seat when a vehicle traveling at more than 35 mph crosses over the markings unintentionally. This technology could be especially promising in curbing drowsy-driving crashes.

Side blind zone alert: Radar sensors warn a driver about to change lanes if another vehicle is in the driver's blind spot. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, these crashes damage 830,000 vehicles annually.

Capless fuel system: Removing a gas cap can be difficult for arthritic, disabled or elderly people. With this system, the user simply pushes an interior button and an electronically activated ball spins open to allow access to the fuel pipe, and closes when the nozzle is removed. In addition, a capless system means there's no cap to lose and no risk of a loose cap triggering a dashboard warning light.

Adaptive cruise control: Rear impacts account for nearly 29 percent of police-reported crashes, and most are due to driver inattention. Adaptive cruise control, already available on some Cadillacs, uses sensors to detect objects in the vehicle's path and slow it accordingly.

Reconfigurable color head-up display: This HUD projects digital readouts of key data (speedometer, navigation system turn prompts, tapshift, audio settings and adaptive cruise control status and alerts) onto the windshield in an easy-to-read and intuitive way.

Rear seat entertainment system: Who says only the people in the front seat can have fun? This entertainment system consists of two, 6.5-inch headrest-mounted LCD screens, wireless infrared headphones and two Microsoft Xboxes with DVD packages. Players can even "feel" the action with a haptic controller.

Rear vision camera: This system provides a wide angle view of the area behind the vehicle for detecting obstacles while backing up. The field of view is projected onto the navigation screen in the instrument panel.

The STS SAE 100 is powered by a supercharged LS2 engine yielding 505 horsepower at 5600 rpm and 520 lb.-ft. of torque at 3600 rpm. It is mated to GM HydraMatic's newly developed, longitudinal 6L90E six-speed transmission, capable of supporting more powerful engines like the supercharged LS2. The transmission features Driver Shift Control, which gives the driver the ability to shift gears sequentially with a tap up/ tap down mechanism.

The STS SAE 100 was tested at GM's proving grounds in Milford, Mich. and Mesa, Ariz.

[Matt]

SAFETY IS STANDARD IN GM'S CADILLAC STS SAE 100
Crash-avoidance technologies represent the next wave in curbing deaths, injuries

DETROIT - Vehicles that sense impending crashes, intervene in time to avoid many of them and also provide advanced occupant protection in a crash can reduce traffic-related deaths and injuries.

The Cadillac STS SAE 100, introduced today at the SAE World Congress, integrates several current and future crash-avoidance and crashworthiness technologies that illustrate GM's comprehensive approach to vehicle safety.

The most technologically integrated vehicle ever, the STS SAE 100 demonstrates 50 technologies from 38 different suppliers, 10 of which focus on safety.

"This industry has done an excellent job of using technology to help protect people during a crash," said Jim Queen, GM vice president, Global Engineering and general chairperson of this year's SAE World Congress. "Effective crash prevention has always been a challenge because most crashes involve some driver error.

"Customers are now realizing the safety benefits of integrating chassis technologies like antilock brakes, traction control and adaptive cruise control," said Queen. "The benefits we have seen led GM to make StabiliTrak electronic stability control standard across our lineup in the U.S. and Canada by the end of the decade."

Developing technologies to prevent crashes requires an understanding of what causes them. For the STS SAE 100, GM and supplier safety engineers used an important 1997 study by GM and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI).

Called "44 Crashes," the study benchmarked a very large sample of crashes, categorized them into distinct crash scenarios, as well as how frequently they occurred, the rate of injuries and the functional, or income-earning, years of life lost associated with each. It also reaffirmed previous studies that show driver inattention or error causes the majority of motor vehicle crashes.

For example, crashes that result in vehicles leaving the road account for 42 percent of functional years lost, the very crashes that electronic stability control is designed to help prevent. Vehicles running into other vehicles accounted for another 48 percent of functional years lost.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is currently developing an updated version of the study, which should provide researchers with even deeper insight into what causes crashes.

In addition to the important life-saving features already on the STS, such as safety crush zones, advanced front and side air bags, and advanced safety belt systems, the STS SAE 100 includes multiple collision-avoidance technologies:

Lane departure warning: At speeds above 35 mph, using a real-time vision system, it detects road markings and notifies the driver with a visual signal and a vibration (haptic alert) in the seat when the vehicle crosses over the markings unintentionally. This technology could be especially promising in curbing drowsy-driving crashes.

Side blind zone alert: Radar sensors warn a driver about to change lanes if another vehicle is in the driver's blind spot. According to NHTSA, these crashes damage 830,000 vehicles annually.

Adaptive cruise control: Rear impacts account for nearly 29 percent of police-reported crashes, and most are due to driver inattention. Adaptive cruise control, already available on some Cadillac models, uses sensors to detect objects in the vehicle's path, warn the driver, and automatically slow the vehicle as well.

In addition to collision avoidance and occupant protection technologies, the Cadillac STS SAE 100 is also equipped with OnStar to ensure urgent notification and deployment of emergency response teams should they be required. Together, the crash avoidance, crashworthiness and post-collision technologies are representative of comprehensive safety in GM cars and trucks.

[Matt]

STS Technology Integration Vehicle
Subsystem Vehicle Content
Technology Supplier Partner / Source

Powertrain

~ 505 horsepower / 520 ft.-lb. torque supercharged LS2 - GM Powertrain with Eaton
~ Next-generation electronic throttle control - GM Powertrain
^ Hi-output generator - Denso
~ 6-speed 6L90E automatic transmission - GM Hydra-Matic
~ Oil condition sensor - GM
* Driver shift control - GM

Chassis

^ Electronic limited slip differential - GKN
^ Multi-link front suspension - McLaren
^ Variable gear ratio steering - Toyoda
^ Ceramic brake rotors - calipers: 6-piston front / 4-piston rear - Brembo
^ Adjustable pedals - GM Internal
* MR damping - Delphi
* Remote start and keyless entry - Siemens
* Adaptive cruise control - Continental Temic
^ Active exhaust valve system - GM Internal, C6 Z06
^ Two piece carbon fiber (rim) and magnesium (spoke) wheels - wheels: Dymag

Tires: Pirelli

Electrical

* Reconfigurable color HUD - Intier
* Sound system. 5.1 DVD surround audio - Bose
~ Next-generation OnStar 6.1 - OnStar
~ LCD instrument cluster - Promate
~ Three dimensional navigation - Bosch
~ Rear-seat DVD (X Box) - Microsoft
~ Performance tracking - GM Internal
~ High output EL extruded wire - Robert Miller Electronics

Exterior

^ Heated washer fluid - Microheat
^ Infinite check link - Stabilus
* Rain sense wipers - TRW
^ Power decklid - Hoerbiger
^ Obstacle detection sensing - Metzeler
^ Capless refueling - ITW
^ Ultrasonic front / rear park assist - Bosch
^ Carbon fiber low mass hood - Prefix

Interior

^ Variable Temp (Heat and Cool) Front Seat - Amerigon
* Heated Steering Wheel - Delphi
^ Beverage Heating and Cooling - Tellurex
~ Second Row Supplemental Storage - Stewart Reed Design
^ Platinum Interior - Drexelmaier

Structure / Glass / Lighting

~ Advanced LED headlight / fog light optics - Visteon
* Theft deterrent side glass - Saint Gobain Sekurit-USA
~ Carbon fiber low mass wheelhouse - Prefix

HVAC Systems

~ Supplemental rapid passenger compartment heating - Ventech

Crashworthiness / Safety

^ Side blind zone alert - Valeo
^ Lane departure warning system - Mobileye
^ Rear vision - Panasonic
^ Roll over roof rail air bags - GM
~ Seat mounted thorax / pelvis air bags, front/rear - GM
~ Dual depth front passenger air bag - GM
~ Crash alert seat (driver) massage seat (passenger) - InSeat
~ Rear seatbelt engagement warning for driver - Takata
~ Second row cameras with OLED screen - Daewoo

* Already available on 2005 STS
^ "In production or aftermarket, but not a feature on 2005 STS"
~ Not available on current production vehicles

[RacingManiac]

Carbon fibre rims with magnesium spokes....that's nuts...

[Matt]

DEVELOPMENT STATUS OF TECHNOLOGIES

There are 50 technologies featured in the Cadillac STS SAE 100 vehicle. All technologies not already in the production 2005 STS are considered in Phase 1 integration development, or the subsystem is functional but not optimized or validated as part of the overall vehicle system.

Other specs

Paint color: Kevlar Gray Metallic provided by BASF
Interior: Platinum edition: ebony and light gray

Vehicle content

Supercharged LS2 engine

Source: GM with Eaton

LS2 vs. LS7: The LS2 was developed as powerful yet refined engine. This makes it a perfect base architecture for this vehicle. The LS7 is a performance engine with an aggressive torque curve, making it less suited for the refined Cadillac character. To enhance the package, and truly place this vehicle in the performance arena, the supercharged LS2 maintains its base refinement with aggressive power.

The engine being used in the STS SAE 100 consists of a supercharged LS2 yielding 505 hp @ 5600 rpm and 520 lb.-ft. of torque @ 3600 rpm at 7 lb. of boost. General Motors has developed the integration of the Eaton M122 inner cooled supercharger to the LS2.

Engine type: OHV V-8; aluminum block and heads; 6-bolt main bearings, forged steel crank; powder metal connection rods; displacement 364 cubic inches / 6.0 liter; bore 4.00 in / 101.6 mm; stroke 3.62 in / 92 mm; compression ratio 9:1. Fuel delivery is provided by returnless, sequential port fuel injection.

Next-generation electronic throttle control (ETC)

Source: GM
Throttle actuator control (TAC) module hardware and software moved to engine control module (ECM) internally. In doing this, the stand-alone TAC is eliminated.

High-output generator

Source: GM
GM stocks this Denso unit, which is capable of 20 percent greater output at hot idle.

6L90E transmission

Source: GM HydraMatic
The longitudinal transmission is a newly developed six-speed (6L90E) capable of supporting more powerful engines, including the supercharged LS2.

Oil condition sensor

Source: GM
This oil probe can determine and detect the actual level and remaining engine oil life, unlike current sensors that are controlled by complex algorithms, in all driving conditions regardless of the oil brand in use. The sensor is an integral part of GM’s strategy to develop technology that greatly extends oil drain intervals.
The benefit of using such a sensor is:
• Industry first in new-vehicle features
• Reduction in warranty costs: engine repairs for poor oil maintenance
• Increased customer satisfaction due to less frequent oil changes
• Elimination of waste oil that still has useful life

Driver shift control

Source: GM
This transmission features driver shift control, giving the driver the ability to shift gears sequentially with a tap up / tap down mechanism.

Electronic limited slip differential [eLSD]

Source: GKN
An electronic limited slip differential [eLSD] can smoothly and seamlessly modulate its clutch (preload) between a fully open state (open differential) to a fully locked state (spool).

Historically, passive limited slip differentials typically used in passenger cars could only be tuned with one mechanical limited slip tuning. This forces engineers to compromise the tuning between high-demand activities, such as race track or off-road use, and typical everyday driving. The eLSD receives vehicle data via the GM LAN to provide different preloads for varying driving conditions. For example, low preload for parking lot situations (tight turns) or high preload for limit handling situations.

The main benefits of an eLSD include:
• Increased tractive capability without brake/engine intervention
• Vehicle stability enhancement from the differential yaw damping effect
• Smooth and seamless operation in all conditions, including tight turns
• Ease of integration with stability control system (ESC)
• Increased compatibility with mini spare tires

[Matt]

The eLSD system in the Cadillac STS SAE 100 uses a clutch pack internal to the differential housing. The clutch pack is engaged by a ball ramp actuator. The ramp is driven by an electric motor through a gear reduction system.
The gear ratio for the eLSD in this demonstrator is 3.42:1, while in a V-series it would be 3.73:1.

Multi-link front suspension

Source: McLaren
The goal of the multi-link suspension design is to offer world-class sport luxury handling in a package that allows for both rear- and all-wheel drive powertrain configurations. The multi-link design changes the steering rack from a rear to front mount location and replaces the front lower control arm with two lower links.
The design of the multi-link offers a variety of performance benefits. Compared to a similar short long arm (SLA) suspension, the multi-link offers appropriate levels of understeer, improved Ackerman correction, decreased torque steer, increased tuning options, improved road feel / force feedback and less high-speed shake. From a packaging standpoint, the multi-link offers smaller tire flops. The benefits of the multi-link are primarily derived from the forward steering rack location combined with the dual lower link setup.
The forward location of the steering rack offers several advantages over the existing rear steer SLA suspension in the all- and rear-wheel drive STS. The front rack offers the appropriate amount of understeer while reducing the steering gain increases at elevated speeds. This improves race track, slalom and maximum lateral g-force performance. By inducing the appropriate amount of understeer with the suspension design, the same size tires can be used on both the front and rear of the vehicle. The front rack location enables better road feel. This is accomplished in two ways. First, by decreasing the intermediate shaft to steering column angles, lumpiness is removed from the steering. Second, the motion of the knuckle in steer combined with front rack location decreases the angle between the tie rod and steering gear, creating a lower load gradient on the tie rod.
The usage of dual lower ball joints creates a virtual steering axis. The motion of the knuckle in steer no longer follows the fixed axis from the upper ball joint to the lower ball joint that defines a standard SLA front suspension. The wheel center now tracks through a virtual axis that allows the wheel center to pull fore and aft during steer. This decreases the size of the tire flop. In an all-wheel drive application this virtual axis allows for a much shorter spindle length (approx 36 mm vs. 65-74 mm for a standard SLA). With a shorter spindle, the moment arm that contributes to unwanted torque steer is cut almost in half. The dual lower links increase the flexibility in tuning of the ride and handling bushings. Because the ride bushing and handling bushing are no longer both on the lower control arm, the fore / aft link can be tuned softer. This offers better impact feel and decreases the harshness felt by the driver.