Cadillac, blaming the global economy as well as the need to fix its parent company’s continuing woes in Detroit, says it won’t launch its brand in the Australian market despite earlier plans. Cadillac had initially planned to launch the luxury brand in Australia in late 2008, but that was delayed until February 2009. Now those plans are on hold – indefinitely.

“There is only one chance to launch this brand in Australia and in these challenging times, we believe we couldn’t give it the best chance of success,” said GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director Mark Reuss. “This was a difficult decision but the only viable decision.”

“There is no doubt the Cadillac CTS is a magnificent vehicle and the response since it was revealed at the Australian International Motor Show in October has been very positive. But obviously since then the market for new cars has continued to deteriorate, the broader economic environment difficulties remain largely unchanged and the exchange rate has worsened for imports,” Reuss said.

Cadillac has struggled to launch its brand outside of North America, but the automaker has never put a thorough effort into expanding globally. With the introduction of the CTS Sport Wagon, Cadillac has never had a range that would be more appealing to global markets.

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