Gojirra99

I like it's look over the regular CTS & it performs like a monster with a 6MT. They even praise the interior, which I still don't care for. Link HERE

Hameed

Here's an article by Toronto Star writer Jim Kenzie:

Chic hooligan
That's the vibe from Cadillac's CTS-V, thanks to stylish lines and rumbly V8

In fact, with its 5.7-litre Corvette engine


JIM KENZIE

The CTS, launched in 2002, is Cadillac's bid to take on the Europeans and Japanese in the entry-luxury sports sedan market.

I'm not sure whether GM's élite division is greedy, brave or foolhardy in fielding a hot CTS-V edition that takes aim at a BMW M5 at around an M3 price.

What you get is a genuine hooligan's car in downtown-chic clothing.

There's lots of room and practicality in a very fast package, with fabulous brakes. This one's got handling but not a ride.

To be competitive, Cadillac knew the V would have to have at least 400 hp, like the last (2003) M5. They know that next year's M5 will have more than 500 hp. And, yes, a 6.0-litre, 500-horse CTS has been spotted in testing.

The problem for the Cadillac engineers: there was no persuading the lovely 4.6-litre, four-camshaft, four-valve Northstar V8 to yield 400 hp.

So they looked through the corporate parts bin. Their solution: "Er, Chevrolet, any chance we could, um, borrow that Corvette V8 over there? It makes 400 horses, no sweat."

With fiddling, the 5.7-litre pushrod engine fitted under the CTS hood, something the bulkier Northstar wouldn't do with those darn high-tech overhead camshafts.

Despite the potential embarrassment of stuffing this supposedly old-tech mill into its flagship Bimmer fighter, a car company's gotta do what a car company's gotta do.

Caddy envisions a V line of performance models as part of the division's quest to re-establish itself as the Standard of the World.

When you fire this four-door Corvette up, you're greeted by the basso profundo rumble of an all-American V8, the last thing you'd expect to hear from a sophisticated, European-style sports sedan.

But there it is, mated to a six-speed Tremec (formerly, Borg-Warner) manual transmission.

Does anybody remember the last Caddy with a manual transmission (no automatic is available) or lacking an auto box?

CTS shares General Motors' Sigma rear-drive architecture with the SLX crossover five-door and a couple of future Cadillac models. It's stout enough to be able to handle all this grunt with just a few minor strengthening modifications.

Add it all up and you have a very reasonable 106 kg affixed to the base CTS's 1,636 kg curb weight, almost perfectly distributed over both axles.

The CTS is controversial-looking. I think it's gorgeous, especially in V trim, but that's far from a universal opinion.

Visually, a dynamite mesh grille replaces the egg-crate unit on the base car. A new lower front fascia with big air intakes, V badges on the flanks and the rear, and a mild aero rocker panel kit complete the modest mods.

Inside, there's no debate — it's a loser.

Too many planes, angles and cheap-looking textured materials. Look — and pray — for a serious upgrade here in 2005.

The V gets a new gauge cluster and a different steering wheel, removing one of the CTS's best interior features — the reprogrammable minor control buttons and thumbwheel audio volume adjuster on the steering wheel spokes.

Cadillac brags about the cabin's ergonomics, something that trumps questionable esthetics if it works.

But after driving this car for over a week, and having driven several other examples in the past, I was still yelling at the car's satellite navigation system.

It redefines "non-intuitive."

Every time I tried to get the system to calculate a set of driving instructions, it displayed the message: "Waypoints 1 and 2 are too close together."

So what? I don't care! I don't even know what "waypoints" are. Just take me where I want to go!

Infiniti still rules in the sat-nav game.

Can you shut off the infernal automatic-locking system? The owner's manual says you can; I defy anyone to follow the instructions and make it happen.

Visibility to the rear three-quarters is awful; I had to remove the rear-seat head restraints to see what was coming behind me.

Something that should be as simple as pie — getting the key out of the ignition — is tediously difficult.

Okay, enough complaining. Let's drive. This thing goes 0 to 100 km/h in about five seconds. And it sounds terrific, if distinctly non-BMW-ish.

Axle tramp — that horrible rear-wheel hopping if you release the clutch too quickly with too many revs wound on — is more of an issue than it should be, another indication that the suspension engineers haven't got everything dialled in perfectly.

Maybe it's racetrack ready, after several test sessions at Germany's Nürburgring circuit. Now it needs to become Cayuga Dragway ready.

With 395 lb.-ft. of torque peaking at 4,800 rpm, you hardly need any gears at all, let alone six. The upside: it doesn't matter a heck of a lot what gear you're in.

You won't use every available rev, which is just as well, because the rev limiter cuts in before the tach needle reaches the red zone.

I was told my test car had been thrashed around a racetrack by a previous tester, a partial explanation for the transmission's notchiness and balkiness, especially when trying to select reverse.

The CTS-V has the dreaded "skip-shift" feature — on gentle acceleration, the tranny goes from first gear into fourth, supposedly to yield better fuel economy.

I never noticed the change. Gentle acceleration? Fuel economy? Come on!

The V gets 27 per cent stiffer springs. The ride is distinctly firm, approaching harsh on lousy urban pavement.

Yet Daughter Number 3, the official "quease-o-meter" at Kenzie World Headquarters, started feeling nauseated before we even pulled out of the driveway.

There's something floaty about the CTS-V, despite the firmer suspenders.

The steering is rack and pinion, but it feels like the Corvette's: too light, too devoid of feel.

But again, like the Corvette, once you get used to the video game levels of tactile feedback, i.e., none, you can really hustle this car. Line it up straight, bang on the gas and hold on.

You can also stop it. Massive (355 mm front; 365 mm rear), four-piston caliper brakes by Brembo take care of that. The tires — Goodyear Eagle F1 245/45WR18 run-flats — can actually spin a little without making much noise.

Where's the fun in that?

You can reach into the glovebox on any CTS to switch off the traction control. On the V, the button is right on the steering wheel stalk, an indication that Cadillac figures CTS-V owners are going to do that more frequently. Press it again within five seconds and you enter Competition Mode, which reprograms the Stabilitrak directional stability control system to intervene later and less intrusively.

Hold that button down for — well, the owner's manual says five seconds, but it took over seven in my test car — and you turn off Stabilitrak altogether.

You're on your own now, buddy.

Still, the massive grip prevents the car from ever getting too luridly sideways, providing you're halfway sane about things.

And this Caddy really does handle.

The dash contains a digital accelerometer, which shows how lateral g forces the suspension is delivering — not something to look at unless you're sliding sideways.

Suede inserts in the huge yet supportive seats help keep you stuck in; not as good as proper cloth upholstery, but I've pretty much lost that fight.

The CTS-V is a bargain at $70,000, compared to the last M5 that goes for well over $100,000.

Options? None.

Choose your colour — black or silver outside, black or neutral inside — and you're done.

If you want lots of bang for the buck and will accept a slickness shortfall, compared to the best of the foreigners, this could be your ride.

Just get to your dealer early because only 200 CTS-Vs will be available in Canada this year.

Lil4X

Cadillac seems to be playing from their strength, the traditional muscle car. I applaud their initiative in going after the enthusiast market with the XLR and their LeMans racing program. It took them years to understand that by targeting the 60 y/o driver, their market was - quite literally - dying off. There is more to building an M5-beater however, than a big motor. Cadillac has yet to understand that tactile response is a major portion of the luxury equation. The CTS-V is a good start, now I hope they'll continue to pursue it. Meanwhile, for the $, the GTO may be the better buy.

I question the reviewer's statement about the engine's response to a prod of the throttle: "An aggressive bark erupts from under the hood, followed by subtle body tremors and a throaty rumble from the sport exhaust." Funny, I had an old Dodge with 120K on the clock and a leaky exhaust manifold that did the same thing . . . never thought of it as a "feature".

Someone tell me where automotive writers get the idea that EVERY review has to include the terms "meaty" or "beefy"??? Guys, buy a thesaurus! I look for "meaty" and "beefy" when I buy dog food, not a car. Is it some kind of union thing? Pick up any car mag, even the TV show spinoffs are doing it, and have been for years! Is there some weird automotive Strunk and White out there that says this is proper?

OK, [/RANT]

mmarshall

I strongly disagree with two things here.....first, that the market in this 60-plus age group is dying off, and, second, that Caddy did the right thing in forgetting them and going after the BMW crowd. The simple fact is that the HUGE post-World War II baby-boom generation, the largest generation in history in sheer numbers....those born between 1946 and 1964....are now mostly in their 50's.....and guess what? THEY are going to be tomorrow's gray-haired 60-plus drivers.....tens, even hundereds of millions of them. And THEY will then be ready for the soft-riding DeVilles and Fleetwoods that Cadillac is foolishly dropping.
Now...I'm NOT saying that Cadillac should have not developed the CTS/ SLX, the XLR, their derivatives, and the V-series...these cars WILL indeed help the company with younger drivers and the enthusiast auto press. But my point is that Caddy, in choosing to abandon the straight luxury car market, has bitten off the hand that has traditionally fed it....and will feed it even more as the baby-boomers reach 60 in a few more years...in fact, the oldest ones are 60 NOW.

CleanSC

LMFAO another one that totally sets my panties on fire is the word "Sleek".

ANYONE that talks about ANY new car uses this frikken word. "Sleek lines" or "sleek styling" or "sleek design" OMG STOP THE MADNESS.

Anyway the CTS-V. Odd you get no options. That's kinda like a slap in the face. "You buy what we tell you to buy." No soup for you! That's not very cool.

Also is it me, or is the price kinda steep? $70k? Christ, most will think it's a regular CTS. It's so closely styled to the CTS (although sleeker ) that most couldn't justify the price difference to be grouped in with the lesser cars. I'd rather get a Vette Z06 for 53k and spend the leftover on some fun mods.

And before you come at me with the it's only a two-seater line:

1. Really, who needs 4 doors with 400hp? To get your kids to school on time? You need to impress 3 of your friends at the same time?
2. With the 20k you save, buy yourself a second car with as many doors as you like.

Just some thoughts.

Hameed

That's $70K canadian or approximately US$53K

CleanSC

OOOOHH okay. Little more reasonable tho still a crapload of cash.

Lil4X

Surfing the rising crest of the boomer generation myself, I understand your point. Cadillac will have a solid market for traditional luxury cars for the next 20 years or so, if you base their demographic solely on age. Cadillac's DeVille and the Lincoln Town Car traditionally catered to the 60+ set because it was assumed that their idea of luxury was a large, showy car with a pillowy ride. That's what our fathers and grandfathers wanted. Not too many boomers share those sentiments.

The coming generation of seniors, particularly the boomers raised in the muscle car era who have owned or driven a Benz, BMW, or a Lexus are not necessarily defining luxury in the same old terms. Certainly, while there is still market strength to support the more traditional DeVille and the TC, they will be built. As you say, manufacturers would be foolish to totally abandon them. The technology and tooling are well established for that market. But my point is that it would be equally short-sighted to ignore the late-end boomers and the Gen Xers. The reason is this: Most car companies attempt to build brand loyalty to capture third and fourth generation sales.

One of the major problems with this market strategy is that by the time the traditional Cadillac driver makes his first purchase, he is usually a senior citizen with a limited number of vehicles in his future. A market plan based on a single repeat purchase offers little incentive to build brand loyalty for Cadillac. Typically Cadillac dealers reflected this - until foreign luxury vehicles became a major force in the US market. Many of the traditional upscale American product buyers have been siphoned off by German and Japanese makers. I'm one of them.

As I enter senior status, I recognize that my priorities in a vehicle have changed, but they’re not my father’s or my grandfather’s priorities. I still want performance as defined by power and handling, but it’s tempered by an appreciation for quality, refinement, and smoothness. The slam – bang sports cars of my youth, the powerful Dodges, the wild Mustangs, and an acquaintance with several minimalist English roadsters have now paled in favor of a “Gentleman’s” sports car, like Audi, BMW, Benz, Lexus, Infiniti and Acura are building in their premium sport lines. So far, American iron hasn’t made the cut, but new offerings from Cadillac and Daimler/Chrysler are going to make for a very interesting marketplace in my senior years.