New Cadillac model could be coming to Lordstown

LORDSTOWN — A new Cadillac model is one of the new cars coming to the Lordstown assembly plant, two analysts said.

The unnamed model should sell well because it will be a new size offering for Cadillac, said Erich Merkle, an analyst with IRN in Grand Rapids, Mich.

The United Auto Workers said Friday that Lordstown would make the Chevrolet Cobalt and Pontiac G5 until 2009. Its new products would be a new small car in 2009, followed by two versions of a new midsize model in 2010.

Analysts said the midsize cars are expected to be new Pontiac and Cadillac models.

Greg Gardner, an analyst with Harbour & Associates in Troy, Mich., said the Cadillac car will be a new version of the BLS, a car that GM makes in Europe.

Merkle said the BLS hasn’t sold well, but he expects that GM will make the necessary improvements for the U.S. model.

“If it’s done right, they should be able to do very well,” he said.

For more on this story, see The Vindicator or www.vindy.com Tuesday.