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2008 Cadillac CTS4 DI Road Test

Rome, as you have heard many a time, was not built in a day. For the record,

This car will change the way you think about American cars. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

neither was Cadillac. At 105 years young, it's not quite the oldest of the GM brands, but as decades have rolled under its odometer, it's been through its fair share of ups and downs (big finned Eldorados to the Cimarron). But Cadillac is doing something that a lot of failed automakers can't, which is get up, dust itself off and put up a fight. Cadillac knows that the luxury market place in North America isn't under its lead as it once was, although the Escalade has done extremely well in its segment. Most premium car buyers, mind you, want European brands, a reality that Cadillac has struggled with since the '90s when it tried to sell us the Cadillac that "zigs", the GM of Europe-derived Catera. Following this bland looking attempt, and the much more enticing albeit previous generation CTS, Cadillac now produces a vehicle that you'll not only want to own, you'll want to show it off to your friends and family. Welcome to the new CTS, the new face of Cadillac.

There are absolutely zero traces of Floridian retiree in the new CTS. Sharp, sleek, and sexy, it's better looking than the car that it replaces, with a lower and more aggressive stance due in part to a shorter overall length yet increased width and track. It passes close-up inspection; the tri-coat paint is flawless, the panel gaps tight and consistent, and the detail work is just astonishing. The fender vents are real, the air ducts on the lower valance

Just look at the detail work of the engineer-grade graph paper-style grille. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

channel air to the brakes, and the detail work around the swiveling xenon headlamps is just fantastic. Taken in as a whole, you can really appreciate the contrast between German or Japanese design and American design. Not that anyone is better than the other, but the CTS wears its advanced Art and Science colors proudly, and rightly so. Just make sure you get it with the 18-inch wheels; the 17s look like castors.

Believe it or not, things get even better once you're inside. Plunk down into the bucket seats and you'll immediately see and feel things never expected from a Cadillac. We've seen French stitching before and Sappelle Pommele wood, but everything fits together so well, with fine tolerances and high-quality carpeting. Heated and ventilated leather-trimmed seats can be had, as can a power tilt and telescoping steering wheel plus power-operated pedals. Select those and you've got the perfect driver's seat. With the right options, you can also get proximity sensing keyless access, with a slick looking fob and interior mood lighting. Like music? The high-end Bose 5.1 surround sound system does no disservice to your favorite tunes, and with a 40 gig

Finally, Cadillac gets its interior right. Plenty of real leather and wood, plus it's available with all sorts of lovely amenities. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

hard drive there's plenty of space to rip and store CDs. The hard drive can also record up to 60 minutes of music from AM, FM or XM satellite radio. CDs too out of date? The CTS also comes with a built in USB/iPod jack with direct integration.

One of the CTS' must-have features is the new navigation system. The 8-inch gloss screen rises from the dash to display a plethora of stylish but easy to use touchscreen menus and options that both surprise and delight. The navigation screen is easy to operate, and when linked with XM offers live traffic updates plus live weather conditions. One thing that we Americans don't have the luxury of is the jaw-dropping rendering capabilities of the system, which give the view of the streets ahead, complete with buildings and landmarks. Retracted, the system provides the key information about the stereo. It's too bad that there isn't a secondary display in front of the driver so that nav information can be shown without having the screen upright. But since the ability to revel in 3D office buildings didn't present itself, I found other ways to entertain myself ... namely, learning about the chassis, ride

8-inch gloss nav screen rises to the occasion... (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

and handling.

By and large, the CTS is based off of the Sigma II platform found in the STS, widely regarded as an excellent driving vehicle, but all of the dimensions bar the wheelbase have been changed in the name of optimizing interior room. Engineer a car like a European, tune on Europe's most famous racetrack and by golly, wouldn't you know it, the car that emerged feels very European.

The CTS' suspension features a similar layout to the outgoing model, with double wishbones up front and a multi-link setup in back, but most of the components like the knuckles and links are now made from aluminum to reduce unsprung weight. Steering is the work of ZF's fantabulous Servotronic II rack, which is common to some of the best handling cars in the industry. It all sounds very good, and indeed it comes together astonishingly well. Perhaps the closest car to compare the CTS4 to is the G35x.

Grip levels are high in the all wheel drive model. The system works well in the wet and dry. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

The CTS' steering feels lighter, but it's surprisingly communicative in that you know what's going on - a very good thing especially considering the amount of grip that the car can produce. At low speeds, the lightness is welcome as it comes without compromising its pinpoint accuracy. Meanwhile, the FE2 sport suspension package provides a ride that's more comfortable than either the Lexus IS 350 or BMW's 335i without significant loss of body control. RWD cars can go one step further with the FE3 performance package that equips the car with supercar-grade rubber, plus further stiffened springs and dampers and wider anti-roll bars.

With all this talk of a world-class suspension, you've got to wonder if GM has followed up with a world-class engine. In short, yes they have. Putting forced aspiration aside, this is the most advanced gasoline-powered motor GM sells in North America, packing variable valve timing and direct injection. Indeed, it's something GM can fairly toot its horn about, as you won't find direct injection on Acuras, Infinitis or Mercedes-Benzes. Like all good direct injection engines, it produces fewer emissions and uses less fuel, but what

Direct injection enables the engine to provide more power while using less fuel. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

matters most is that it makes more power. A maximum of 304 horsepower, to be precise, is a happy hike up and over the non-DI model which sits at 268. Here's an engine that delivers an unusual amount of its power at the high end, which is intriguing yet welcoming, but it does have some ill effects. The engine's acoustics really kick in at about 3,000 rpm, where the cabin is filled with the sonorous sound of the V6. Closer to redline it sounds a touch rough around the edges, and quite noticeably like the Infiniti VQ35 engine. Nevertheless, it's a good V6 worthy of praise, and one that I'd be willing to wager ends up on Ward's 10 Best List.

What I'm not keen on is the automatic transmission. GM's Hydra-Matic transmissions are normally very good, and generally speaking most folks, including those at BMW would agree. After all, they've purchased them for use in their six-cylinder 3-Series, X3 and X5, but for some reason in the CTS it didn't seem up to par. It's got the gears, it's got the manual mode, but what it doesn't have is a clue as to what it's doing when left to its own devices. If you're choosing not to press along it's adept at

It's not quite as fun to toss around as the regular rear wheel drive model, but the CTS4 still exceedingly fun to drive. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

changing gears to improve your fuel economy, but start to press on and some brow-furrowing events may follow. On more occasions than I can recall at half-throttle, the car downshifted not one, but two gears, a process which is less than subtle. This is perhaps exacerbated by the firm weighting of the go-pedal and the slight hesitancy brought on by the electronic throttle, but nevertheless it takes time to adjust to the CTS. The manual mode is quite good though, and will not shift up at redline giving it a sportier feel than those that do. I would personally recommend to all in the market to seriously give the six-speed manual a shot, but it's only available on rear wheel drive cars.

The CTS' all wheel drive system is better. This is the first time that the CTS gets four driving wheels, following its platform relatives the STS and SRX. The CTS' all wheel drive system is permanent but also rear biased. It's more biased than most other systems on the market, sending a quarter of the power to the front and the rest to the rear wheels. Because all wheels are permanently engaged, there's no delay for slippage, and the system effectively moves power to where it's needed. With the right side on a pile

Art and Science design advances on the new CTS. Looking lower and wider, it has a distinctive and sophisticated appearance. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

of rain-slicked leaves and the left side on asphalt, the CTS responded with no sensation of wheel spin. In the dry, you won't get the traction control light blinking, not even if you try.

If there's a problem with the CTS4, it's to do with the fact that it's heavy. Very heavy. Adding all wheel drive, the automatic and countless other goodies helps to push the curb weight to nearly 3,900 pounds, a weight which nudges it beyond svelte and into the territory of clinically obese. For the record, fully equipped the CTS4 is heavier than its bigger brother, the STS. The factor of weight manifests itself in several areas, the biggest of which is that the car feels blunted in its activities. It doesn't feel 304-horsepower powerful, and while it handles well it lacks the agility and outright finesse of some of the cars it competes against, though some of this can be chalked up to the all wheel drive system's steering rack which is set at 19:1 versus 16.1:1 (or 17.4:1 on FE1 cars). The CTS4 also has a tendency to safely understeer around corners, influenced by its wider anti-roll bars versus non-AWD cars, though it goes about its business very swiftly and very smoothly, even with StabiliTrak in its competition mode.

Look closely for signs of quality and you'll find them everywhere in the CTS. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

This is the opposite of the RWD car, which can easily be provoked into contained and grin-inducing oversteer.

Beyond its weighty presence, there are few additional gripes regarding the new CTS. First, the big two-panel sunroof is a bit of a double edged sword; it bathes the well-deserved interior in light, but at highway speeds you can hear the wind rush over it. This wouldn't be such a bad thing if not for the fact that the blind is a thin mesh, with no real insulating properties. Another complaint? Though there's more interior room, getting in and out can be a bit tricky due to the rear door's tiny apertures, and while the trunk is of a reasonable size, access to it is limited too. Bluetooth is notably absent from the options list as well, and some of the more advanced goodies such as lane departure warning and the advanced StabiliTrak from the STS would be welcome on this smaller car. And while most of the interior is up to par, there are a couple of minor foibles; the keyless ignition twist knob jiggles loosely, and some of the switchgear that falls to hand can feel a bit cheap at times. But it's all minor stuff in the grand scheme of things, and not enough to detract from it being an overall great vehicle.

For what it's worth, the new CTS is a very affordable car. You get 5-Series size for, more or less, 3-Series money. Opting for the AWD system will set you back about $3,200, but includes the rather expensive $1,300 automatic gearbox in the package. The higher-powered DI AWD model starts at $35,290. As you see it here, expect to shell out $48,440. That's a lot for Cadillac's entry-level model, more than what you'd pay for a G35x, but five figures less than a comparably equipped 5-Series. Mind you, the Cadillac isn't quite as good as the 5, although the difference isn't anywhere close to five figures' worth.

Perhaps the best part of the CTS is what it represents. Here is a car that captures modern America without compromising character or capability. This is a domestic car that stands up to what the rest of the world can offer in all the usual categories, but does so in a way that's unique and different. It's good to see a Cadillac that's truly up to its name; if its future cars are as good as this, the brand will without question continue to prosper.

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