Ford, Chevrolet, and Toyota have a commanding lead in car brand awareness, as determined from interviewing car owners for the 2012 Car Brand Perception Survey.

Consumer Reports’ 2012 Car Brand Perception Survey reveals how consumers rank car brands across seven purchase-influencing factors, such as safety, quality, and value. And the research also sheds light on what brands consumers are likely to purchase from for their next new car. Ford, Toyota, and Chevrolet lead purchase intent, though Honda has a higher brand loyalty rate than its domestic competitors.

The people have spoken: Toyota, Ford, Honda, and Chevrolet excel over other brands in the minds of adult car owners, though the brand’s advantages are less this year than in the past. These are among the findings of the 2012 Car-Brand Perception Survey, conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center.

The Cadillac XTS, introduced earlier at the LA Auto Show, replaces two discontinued Cadillac sedans—the STS and DTS—with just one model. At first glance, the XTS might just manage to combine the best qualities of both.

The ATS aligns Cadillac’s sedan line-up with the import competition. Before the ATS, the smallest sedan in Cadillac’s stable was the CTS, a well-finished and enjoyable to drive car. But like many GM products, the CTS is a “tweener”—dimensionally and price-wise, it straddles two different classes. For example, you could compare it to a BMW 3 Series, or you could compare it to a BMW 5 Series. Neither of which can be considered entry level.

Shopping for any used car is enough to make some buyers feel like they’ve entered the netherworld, but how about specifically shopping for a vehicle designed to take you there? On Saturday, January 21st, the Barrett-Jackson car auction company will put on the block the 1964 Cadillac Hearse (lot number 1293) that it claims transported assassinated President John F. Kennedy from the Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas to the city’s Love Field Airport, where Air Force One was waiting to take the president back to Washington, D.C.

As I made my last tour of the Cobo Center show floor in Detroit, it struck me how few new models stood out to me this year. I love that most unveilings were practical, or at least skewed toward the practical, from traditional mainstream models edging upscale to prestige brands reaching down toward mainstream budgets. The cars that etch themselves into my memory are distinctive in appearance, function, and/or mission, leaving so many others anonymous in an army of clones.

The last 20 years saw the rise of luxury brands, including Lexus, Acura, BMW, Infiniti, Audi and Mercedes-Benz. Even Cadillac, once near death, was revived by edgy styling, improved driving dynamics and a rocking Led Zeppelin ad campaign.

Detroit automakers seem resurgent in their hometown. That’s the take of Consumer Reports Senior Director of auto testing, David Champion. The most impressive models on display so far at this year’s Detroit auto show in the Motor City include the Big 3’s bread-and-butter sedans. The midsized Chevrolet Malibu and Ford Fusion sedans, and the smaller Dodge Dart, the first offspring of the combined Chrysler and Fiat all look competitive in their segments. Another impressive domestic is the Cadillac ATS. The company’s first small car in decades could be a credible BMW and Mercedes fighter, says Champion.

The Cadillac Escalade is popular. In fact, it is so popular with car thieves that it tops the latest car theft report from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), carrying the distinction of being stolen six times more frequently than the average car and resulting in losses that are 10 times greater. Thieves may have their lock picks and tow trucks, but Cadillac is responding for with enhanced security technology for 2012 that promises to thwart even the most ardent felon.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced a recall of 2010-2011 Cadillac SRX sport-utility vehicles for improperly installed transmission shift cables. The problem, which affects 8,789 SRX models, may prevent drivers from shifting the Cadillac SUV into or out of "Park" and possibly cause a collision.

It’s clear that the designers of Cadillac’s new CUE infotainment system paid a lot of attention to the negative feedback surrounding the much-maligned MyFord Touch. After getting a run-through of CUE in Los Angeles, my initial impressions are that the system is more intuitive and user friendly, although questions remain about the potential for driver distraction.

With Southern California considered by many as the Mecca of automotive coolness, we were pleased to see so many exciting debuts at the end of the first day at the show. Here’s a look at some of the most significant cars we saw.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is issuing a recall notice for 2012 model year Cadillac CTS sport sedans. Approximately 674 of the General Motors vehicles are plagued with loose nuts that could lead to unexpected brake failure.

When we tested the then-redesigned Cadillac SRX in 2010, we had one big complaint: The 3.0-liter V6 managed to get the job done, but it was outmatched by the overall heavy weight of the vehicle. We wondered why the SRX didn’t just come with GM’s corporate 3.6-liter V6. Now it does.