Off The Deep End

There's something wacky in the watercooler at Cadillac, but whatever it is, it sure is good!

By Johnny Hunkins

Let's make something perfectly clear right now about the 2003 Cadillac CTS: old people are gonna hate it. "What's so unusual about that?" you ask. "Old people hated the Catera too." Well, yes, but everybody hated the Catera, including Cadillac. Notwithstanding, we predict the CTS (ostensibly Catera's replacement) will be an unmitigated success, provided it can overcome Cadillac's reputation for making snoozemobiles.

While the outgoing Catera had a slight predisposition towards performance, the CTS has the heart of a thoroughbred. The all-new Sigma chassis on which it is built features class-leading stiffness in both beaming and torsional modes (26 and 33 Hz., respectively), making it the perfect platform for CTS's fully-independent suspension and near-perfect 53/47 weight balance.

A chassis like this isn't just generated on a supercomputer, it's the product of serious iterative testing. Work on Sigma and the CTS began in earnest in 1995 when a highly-modified Catera chassis first rolled onto Germany's challenging Nurburgring. Almost immediately, project engineers realized it wouldn't be an easy job, due in large part to the fact that development engineers were benchmarking such cars as the BMW 528i. Over the development of the CTS, over 400 laps were driven on the torturous 13-mile Nurburgring--a venue popular among performance manufacturers due to its ability to expose the smallest weaknesses in a chassis. One particularly humorous snippet revealed to us was how test drivers complained of the Catera mule's unsupportive seats. The proper result was finally achieved once program heads sent two seat engineers into the Nevada desert until they came up with the proper supports.

Parallel to chassis development, Cadillac stylists in Michigan began the dance of creating the now-familiar Art & Science theme through a series of pure concepts, starting with the Evok. Clearly, a serious performance effort would have to stand out from the pack with forward-think styling, and preparing the public for emerging leadership would not be easy. In fact, the CTS's styling is far from unanimously accepted. The proportions of the CTS are decidedly tall and narrow, but we're guessing this is to visually convince potential buyers of its comparative utility and interior room. We think the CTS's angular styling is provocative enough without falling into the chasm drilled into the ground by the Aztek. It's good to see that GM stylists have learned something positive from that fiasco. Still, many folks will not find CTS's Art & Science theme attractive, and therein lies its ultimate attraction: CTS will be the car owned (at first) by young, forward-thinking individuals of distinction. Regardless of your thoughts on the CTS's styling, you'll agree that it's pretty impossible to lose this car in a crowded mall parking lot.

Like most of you, we'd heard rumors of the CTS for what seemed like years. When we finally got the chance to lay eyes on it in person, our opinion was mixed. The two most profound styling issues are the new mug, and the ratio of height to width. Perhaps Cadillac did too good a job with its concept vehicles--meaning we expected something a little lower and meaner and less of an upright box. As it turns out, the new fascia is the lesser offender. It grows with every viewing and by the time we left, we were stealing backward glances at it just to make sure it really did look as good as we remembered. The proportions of its stance were somewhat harder to reconcile as its smallish wheels tended to exacerbate both its thinness and height. We think, however, that the judicious use of wider aftermarket wheels and tires, and some lowering springs, will take care of this visual tendency with the maxing of a single credit card.

From a tactile standpoint, we were impressed with the feel of key touchpoints. Exterior and interior door handles, shifter, seating surfaces and steering wheel were as good as any luxury car we've driven. Instrument panel and console switchgear were a bit off the mark but better than average. What we never really got used to was the huge R2D2 console housing the HVAC controls, stereo, information center, and optional navigation system. This puppy is freakin' huge and busier than a Walmart at Christmas. All that's needed now is Majel Barrett's voice emanating from the IP calmly telling us that our starboard deflector shield is down to 27 percent efficiency. Not being luxury car fans at GMHTP, we don't go in for all this tomfoolery, but apparently Boeing 767 avionics are the cost of admission into this highly-competitive entry-level luxury segment. For what it's worth, none of the other entry luxury cars on the market are any better, so it's probably just us.

On to the main course. The Opel-derived 3.2L V6 has 220 hp, which it makes with minimal fuss at 6000 rpm. We question why Cadillac didn't use the 3.8L Buick V6, but we suspect the Opel's overseas breeding, higher DOHC technology, and its uniqueness among domestic GMs give it enough snob-power to overcome its lack of horsepower. Perhaps the fact that European models get a smaller 2.6L version of the same engine (which is already available on Opels and Saabs and built at GM's Ellesmere Port, England engine plant) makes the odd choice of powerplants a done deal. At any rate, there were absolutely zero photos of the CTS's underwhelming V6 in the reams of press material provided, which means it's probably about as wonderful to them as it was to us.

Power, although adequate for some, is not this car's strong suit. What is impressive is the rest of the drivetrain and the entire chassis. This is not merely a diamond in the rough; on the contrary, it's already cut, polished and set in platinum. CTS was forged in the crucible of the world's most challenging race track, and it shows. It's fully-independent suspension, RWD layout, manual transmission with optimal pedal placement, superb front/rear weight balance, StabiliTrak vehicle management, top-shelf brake hardware and segment-leading chassis stiffness make the CTS a car not to be trifled with in the twisties.

Both transmission choices, an automatic and a manual, are five-speed overdrive units. The automatic--Hydramatic's new 5L40E--was actually designed for BMW and used first in that mark's cars for three years as a result of a super-secret non-competition agreement. The result of all this is that the BMW 5-series has been a convenient guinea pig for the 5L40E's reliability. (Hydramatic was originally contracted by BMW to design and build the ground-breaking unit.) The five-speed slushbox, which is built in Strasbourg, France, shifts crisply and responsively, and even has an optional "sport" shift button on the console (think of it as an electronic shift kit). Can it be made to handle another 100 lb.-ft. of torque? Probably not, at least if that power is to be bestowed on CTS by mother GM. The same goes for the Getrag M35 5-speed manual. We're thinking that if Cadillac gets with the engine program a few years down the line, they'll have to come up with something stronger, but if anyone's up to the task, it's Hydramatic.

What really ought to shock people is that for the first time in 50 years you will be able to buy a Cadillac with a manual gear box. Cadillac only expects 10 percent of CTS sales to be equipped with the manual, but the message it sends to the rest of the automotive community is that Cadillac is truly serious about performance. The Getrag-sourced box is geared with the engine's 6000-rpm power peak to produce a 0-60 time just south of seven seconds prior to the 2-3 upshift. It doesn't sound like much by today's standards but, in historical perspective, that's quicker than a 1987 IROC Z28.

The CTS is no drag strip stormer, but the drag strip is not this car's forte. The open road and the road course are where this unit wails. When you heel-and-toe downshift, the hardest thing to remember is that this thing is a Cadillac. Heaven forbid if the CTS ever gets a real engine under the hood. Not only is the pedal position absolutely perfect, but the brake force is well modulated and the steering response is nearly psychic. Again, if drag racing is your gig, you just won't "get" this car, but if you like corners, the CTS might be your kind of ride.

Balance is the key to this car's success. Clamp the binders for an upcoming corner and there is, surprisingly, minimal brake dive. Turn-in is precise and body roll is well contained. As the tires bite near the apex, there is a delicious camber gain which plants the car firmly in spite of its high visual center. There's just enough power from the V6 to dial in a tad of power oversteer, but only if you're in the right gear--which brings us full circle to that excellent, inviting pedal placement. It really is a shame that only 10 percent of CTS customers will ever experience this, but that's the nature of the entry/luxury beast. (Enigmatically, luxury/performance cars are like fine wines: most of their customers have to be told the product is good because they can't actually discern for themselves.)

As you read this, you've probably wondered aloud why GMHTP is even reviewing a car like the CTS. Is the cupboard so bare at GM that we've resorted to driving Caddys? Not hardly. The big news at GM is that the Sigma platform will be the basis for all future rearwheel-drive cars (besides Y-body). If performance is the operative word, then it will likely have a Sigma chassis under it--and that includes any possibility of a new Camaro. Naturally, GM won't comment on future products, but insiders have intimated that big things are coming from Sigma mechanicals, including possible high-performance variants of the CTS. With the recent ouster of GM North American VP and eye-care maven Ron Zarella, this scenario becomes not only likely, but a sure bet.

The price of entry for CTS is $29,900 which, in short, means you're gettin' a whole lotta stuff for not a whole lotta cash. Well optioned, the CTS comes in around $35,500 (the 5-speed manual by the way is a no-cost option). While the lack of power is certainly a big issue with our readers, we can say that as a blank canvas, the CTS has a lot of potential. There's plenty of room under the hood for a V8 and plenty of room in the wheelwells for big rubber. All we need now is for hot-shot GM tuners to come to the rescue and strut their stuff. To wit, we're offering a bounty to the first tuner to pull off a serious triple-threat CTS project: build it and we will feature it--possibly even as a cover shot. That's how good the potential really is for CTS. Now go out there, guys, and get to work!

CTS To Camaro: How Do We Get There?

Perhaps one of the most difficult things to understand about the CTS, and the Sigma platform in general, is that it represents a major shift in GM's passenger car strategy. For once, GM is heeding the advice of product people within its organization, rather than brand managers. Until Sigma, normal thinking at GM was that if a car didn't sell well, it was because it was being sold the wrong way or packaged incorrectly. (In the end, you can only paint an orange "red" so many times before buyers figure out it's not really an apple.)

Reality has now set in--and it's had a glorious effect.

Driving GM's change of heart is a raft of new luxury and near-luxury products from overseas, both European and Japanese. GM wants a big bite of this prestigious and lucrative market and they realized that a 10-year-old front-wheel drive Cadillac STS wasn't going to get them there.

State-of-the-art rearwheel drive platforms don't come cheap, so part of the bargain is that if Cadillac gets a BMW-beater, they must also engineer and source their technological lovechild to be adaptable to other uses. What we're saying is: the CTS isn't the real story here, the real story is Sigma, and whatever else GM decides to build with it.

So far, we know the remainder of the Cadillac lineup will be revamped almost entirely on Sigma. Besides Catera (now CTS), the STS, DTS and a new SUV (dubbed LAV, or luxury activity vehicle) will be based on Sigma. Both STS and DTS are rumored to be real fire-breathing pavement eaters, along with a high-performance variant of CTS due out in 2004. (The uplevel CTS--internally called CTSi--will likely have a 275-300 hp supercharged or turbocharged V6).

Outside of Cadillac, things are still a little sketchy. Buick will likely get a Lacrosse-style vehicle with an open-air roof. Pontiac may also get a performance version which could be built on a dedicated assembly line in Bowling Green, Ky. (GTO anybody?) And then there's the option everybody here is banking on: a new Camaro.

What makes Camaro a likely option is the fact that all of Holden's next generation of product (including a 2-door coupe called Monaro) will be based on the Sigma platform and it's a foregone conclusion that they will get big V8 horsepower as is currently the case. That makes the business case for a Sigma Camaro a whole lot easier as much of the development costs could be absorbed or shared with Holden. (Vice chairman Bob Lutz is said to have a lot of admiration for what Holden has accomplished and sees it as an inspiration for other divisions.) Don't expect to hear a lot of firm news for any Camaro development, however. Internally, the Corvette and Camaro development teams are merged within Chevrolet, so a Camaro could be developed under the Corvette umbrella without any outward signs whatsoever.

When could a Sigma-based Camaro happen? The best guess is in calendar year 2004. Contract disputes at the current F-body plant in Canada are rumored to be forcing a date later than enthusiasts would like for reasons we don't entirely understand.