Spied 2010 Cadillac BRX

Although Cadillac was one of the first brands to realize the notion of the luxury SUV with its tank-sized Escalade, the brand has been notably late in further populating the luxury utility market it helped popularize.Cadillac’s first compact SUV, the BRX, will be no less tardy, set as it is to appear in 2009. It will compete in a segment that includes the Acura RDX, BMW X3, and Land Rover LR2—all of which will have enjoyed between two and five years of market traction by then. By the time the BRX goes on sale, the all-new Mercedes-Benz GLK and Audi Q5 will be vying for attention.

It adds up to the fact this Caddy needs to be better than good. The BRX will be built atop a stretched version of GM’s new front- and all-wheel-drive TE platform, the same architecture used by the 2008 Saturn Vue, which is the North American version of Europe’s Opel Antara.The TE platform is a combo of the original Theta architecture found underneath the Chevy Equinox and Pontiac Torrent and the Epsilon mid-size-sedan platform that underpins the Chevrolet Malibu, Saab 9-3, and Saturn Aura.

The long-awaited Saab 9-4X crossover is also expected to be built on the TE platform. Both utes could go into production at the GM plant in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, starting in 2009, alongside the Chevrolet HHR and Saturn Vue. BRXs intended for export markets could also be assembled in Trollhättan, Sweden, alongside the Cadillac BLS sedan and wagon.Sources say the BRX will be powered by 2.8-liter and 3.6-liter V-6 engines similar to those found under the hoods of a litany of other GM products.

And although the BRX is expected to come with standard all-wheel drive, we’re not sure if this platform, with its pedestrian roots, will be able to sustain a luxury vehicle with BMW-grade performance, which is what the BRX needs to offer.At least it should look cool, based on these spy shots that appear to have photo-shopped backgrounds, but the vehicle cues seem genuine.

© Source: caranddriver