Cadillac CTS: An American Icon Rivaling the Luxury Imports

What's New About the CTS:

The rear-wheel drive 8-cylinder CTS was last updated in 2008. This is the "Big Three" first luxury sports sedan, which truly competes in the same league as BMW, Lexus and Acura.

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Must Have Goodies:
The CTS is loaded with a lot of tech features. The vehicle's crystal clear 10-speaker Bose audio system is compatible with your Bluetooth cell phone and MP3 player. The CTS JeffCars.com reviewed was equipped with close to $12,000 in options: heated and a/c front seats; Sapele wood trim for the interior trim and steering wheel; keyless access ignition; rear-park audible alarm (no rear back-up camera in this Caddy); a headlamp washer with heated windshield washer fluid; and 18-inch polished aluminum wheels.

What Rocked:
The pop up navigational system which appears and disappears at the touch of the button neatly integrates into the hand-stitched instrument panel. Once the nav is out of view a small screen succinctly displays the radio stations and exterior temperature. Also the Caddy contained a double sunroof, with a tilt and slide sunroof, unlike the fixed panoramic roofs springing up today in most vehicles. And we can't forget the adaptive forward lightning (swivel headlights) that turns with the steering wheel, providing better lighting when turning or the real-time traffic alert system, which verbally warns drivers of upcoming traffic delays. (Unfortunately, we ignored the repeated voice warnings from the CTS while cruising on the highway. As a result off our hard head, we sat in Atlanta’s midnight traffic for over two hours before we were able to exit the expressway.)

What We Hated:
While JeffCars.com adored the hand-stitched front seats and the smooth riding sports suspension system, we found the front and rear seats to be uncomfortable for an American luxury sports sedan. Could we add some additional padding to the seats? Ironically, the seats of some of the Caddy's import luxury competitors were more comfortable. In a perfect world, we would prefer Caddy's suspension with a little more padding added to the extremely firm seats.

Any Juice:
A 3.6-liter 6-cylinder is available, producing 304 horses underneath the hood. If gas mileage doesn’t concern you, consider steeping up to the CTS-V, with the 8-cylinder engine, which produces over 556 horses. And if gas mileage is a concern for you, then there is a less powerful 6-cylinder available, which produces 263- horses, earning you a few miles over the other 6-cylinder engine.

Verdict:
Since the elegant, but sporty looking CTS was redesigned in 2008, JeffCars.com has considered this vehicle to be a stand out in its class. For true Caddy lovers, the styling is reminiscent of the once popular Eldorado. Overall the CTS manages to find a balance between being a sports sedan and an American luxury icon. The CTS is available in an all-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive configuration.

Pricing for the CTS ranges from $34,000 and can easily climb up to $50,000 like our test vehicle. The CTS also offers a high-end pricey performance package, too, which rivals the AMG packages in the Mercedes and the M packages in the Bimmers. Overall the CTS quality, fit and finish is on par with the imports, too. Like with most vehicles today, you should be able to work a good deal.

Other Competitors: Acura TL, Infiniti G37, Lincoln MKS, Mercedes C-Class and Volkswagen CC

To view our head-to-head comparison with the CTS and Acura's TL, click here.