When the third generation of Cadillac's CTS debuts for the 2014 model year, it will have a much more defined spot in the product lineup. No longer will it have to serve as Caddy's dual-purpose vehicle tasked with battling smaller vehicles like the BMW 3-series and Mercedes-Benz C-class and bigger vehicles like the 5-series, E-class and Audi A6. The arrival of the ATS last year to handle the compact opposition unchains the CTS to grow into a proper luxury midsize entry.
The growth spurt of the new CTS begins with an additional 5 inches in length with 1.2 inches coming from a stretched wheelbase when compared to its predecessor. Usually a bump up in size is accompanied by added weight, but Cadillac went to great lengths to make sure that wasn't the case. Instead, Caddy claims that the CTS will be the lightest vehicle in its segment coming in not only lighter than the outgoing CTS, but being roughly 200 pounds lighter than a BMW 528i.
Helping to shave weight from the new car are features like aluminum doors, which is a first for GM in a production car, and that alone cuts 55 pounds. The front cradle is now also aluminum in place of rolled steel to trim 36 pounds. The front shock towers, front and rear bumper beams and IP structures are among other items that are now constructed of aluminum to slash efficiency-sapping weight. Another noteworthy result of all the weight reduction work is the latest CTS' near 50/50 weight distribution for sharper handling performance.
On the engine front, the CTS will launch with three options ranging from a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with 272 hp, a direct-injected 3.6-liter, 321-hp V6 and an all-new 3.6-liter twin-turbocharged V6 churning out 420-hp and 430 lb-ft of torque. Of particular interest is the force-induced V6, which is the first twin-turbo engine ever offered by Cadillac, that will power the new CTS Vsport model.
In the previous generations of the CTS, there was a sizable performance divide between regular CTS versions and the supercharged beast that is the CTS-V. With that in mind, Cadillac set out to fill that void with the result being the new Vsport. In addition to the twin-turbo V6 and eight-speed automatic transmission, the Vsport is decked out with 18-inch wheels wrapped in high-performance Pirelli PZero tires (245/40 R18 front, 275/35 R18 rear), quicker steering ratio, Brembo brakes with more aggressive brake pads, upgraded cooling system, a track mode with an exclusive steering and magnetic ride control calibrations, and an electronic limited-slip differential.
Like any responsible carmakers does, Caddy has logged plenty of miles around Germany's Nürburgring for development and was able to log a best time of 8 minutes, 14.10 seconds around the green hell, which the company likes to point out that it's almost 6 seconds quicker than the first-generation CTS-V. So that's not too shabby.
How does it drive?
Unfortunately, we weren't able to join the Cadillac development team in Germany to have our first crack at the CTS Vsport, but were invited to GM's proving grounds in Milford, Mich., to perform some quick instrument testing and to take a few laps around the road course. After the brief sampling of the Vsport, we were quite impressed.
Around the road course, it's involving from behind the wheel, which indicates to enthusiasts that Caddy is surely trying to entice with the Vsport. After every session, we got out of the car thinking that we had just piloted a much smaller car around a track that's littered with a variety of corners and bends that range from downhill, off-camber portions to quick chicanes that GM placed on the track's long back stretch to prevent us from killing ourselves.
Through the chicane and quick transitions, the Vsport feels nimble with good bite on turn in. Credit goes to the stellar magnetic suspension system that kept the car comfortably planted with an acceptable amount of dive under hard braking. The car also handled crests well, and rolling onto the throttle early out of corners is easy thanks in no small part to the electronic limited-slip.
The electric steering in track mode is communicative letting you know exactly what the front tires are doing. The Brembo brakes were pretty good, but the brake pedal did start to get softer as the afternoon wore on.
It takes a tight, off-camber, downhill turn to get the front end to wash out, meaning the Vsport will be plenty of car for spirited, long-way-home drives after work.
Backing the stellar chassis is the potent drivetrain that's got plenty of midrange guts with all 430 lb-ft of torque available between 3,500 and 4,500 rpm. Power does taper off a smidge as you approach the 6,500 rpm redline, but that's just a small quibble. The automatic transmission performed best when left in full-auto mode, letting the computer do all shifting for you. It holds gears longer before upshifting, and downshifts are well timed to again help get out of corners efficiently. We played with the manual shift mode using the steering wheel paddles, which felt sluggish carrying out shift commands.
We also have to admit that things sound pretty good in the cabin. The engine noises being piped in by the Bose audio system sounded mean for a turbocharged V6 in track mode. There are audio enhancements taking place to make those glorious engine noises sound so good, which to some may be cheating a bit -- but we're OK with it.
Do I want it?
If fuel economy is a little bit of a concern to you but you still like a healthy dose of performance, then the CTS Vsport should be on your shopping list. The main takeaway after spending an afternoon with the car is that it's probably the most involving car in the class when you compare it to the Mercedes-Benz E-class, Audi A6 and, yes, the BMW 5-series. It's actually a fun car to throw around, with great steering feel and performance and more than respectable handling reflexes. Throw in the strong turbo V6 and you have yourself a luxury midsize sedan that's tailored for drivers.
As for the other CTS models, we'll have to see how those behave when we drive them later this week. Stay tuned for driving impressions of the rest of the new CTS lineup in the days ahead.
2014 Cadillac CTS Vsport
On Sale: Fall
Base Price: $59,995
Drivetrain: 3.6-liter, 420-hp, 430-lb-ft twin-turbocharged V6; RWD, eight-speed automatic
0-60 mph: 4.5 sec (AW)
Quarter-Mile: 12.8 sec @ 112.8 mph (AW)
Braking 60-0 mph: 109.8 ft (AW)
EPA Fuel Economy (City/Hwy/Combined): 17/25/20 mpg
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