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Sedans Cadillac CTS/CTS-V 2008 Cadillac CTS
2757 messages, Last post on Oct 09, 2009 at 8:13 PM
You are in the Cadillac CTS/CTS-V Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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Replying to: 1487 (Sep 18, 2007 4:55 pm) Bluetooth and the sunroof will be, for many, deal breakers and that is my concern.
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Replying to: 1487 (Sep 18, 2007 4:55 pm) That unforgivable sunroof design is not a minor problem if it can’t block out 70% of the heat and the sun light when I don’t need them. It’s a major SHOW STOPPER in my opinion and many others on this board. Anybody cares to state his/her opinion has the right to speak up; if a person has to praise or criticize the car I’m thinking of buying, I would like to hear it loud and clear without getting offended, even if that criticism was exaggerated or wrong, because that critic is a real Cadillac fan, saying his/her honest opinion, not a paid Auto Writer.
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My SRX had to go back to the dealership this past monday...apparently somebody on my normal maintenance visit forgot to check the brakes. Oops. Well that got me more time in the CTS and I'm starting to notice a few things that I hadn't before on first blush. Handling. The car I test drove was a FE2 eqipped car, not the FE3. The FE3 only comes with the summer tires (not unlike my original 2003 CTS LuxSport). I'm reading some of the complaints of the FE2 car around here and I'm scratching my head in disbelief. Nobody I've seen in any of the automotove publications dislikes the FE2; in fact, it's seen as the "daily driver" suspension for most. "Floaty" is not an adjective I'd use to describe it. I think that's a misconception since the CTS's steering rack is lighter than the outgoing one by far. It's not floaty, just different...a bit on the light side. It was commented on in the very same automotive press, but it wasn't considered a problem. I heard more howls when BMW went to their active steering scheme, frankly. The Sunroof. OK, nobody else seems to be complaining about this in the auto press either except the people here. Look, if the sunroof isn't for you, then don't order it! If you feel it's enough of a deal killer, shop for something else. I wouldn't call it cheap at all. As I said before, the roll up screen has been used in the SRX for four years now. The bigger issue frankly is the perforated sunscreen which I think is a debatable issue. It's also not the only time an automaker has used such a screen (Land Rover comes to mind). Bluetooth. I agree completely here...it's a problem. I don't think it'll be a long lasting problem...most likely fixed through a mid-cycle upgrade knowing Cadillac. One thing I learned is that only in the last two years did GM move away from the computer language they had been using to program vehicles since the '80s (Modula-2) to using something more recent (C++). Since Bluetooth connectivity affects both the radio and Onstar (two seperate systems that have to communicate together), I could see a problem getting this right from a software standpoint. There's still no excuse for not making the product launch deadline, but I can understand why it might happen. Lack of front seat grab handles. Another inexplicable decision, but personally I think it was cost cutting. The grabhandles above the rear seats are the same, just in mirror. A front seat grabhandle would have to likely have a different shape since a sculptered resting place for it would have to integrate with the contours of the ceiling (there are lines that frame where the sunroof would be if you don't order the sunroof). This costs money and I think it got nixed for something else. I don't miss a driver's side handle so much since you often use the steering column for the same purpose.
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The interior styling. I'm getting a whole new level of respect for the interior design. I started looking at the details more closely and I discovered something that hasn't been discussed here. There is a central theme to the interior that it only referenced tangentely. On the seatbacks are a chrome chevron...the "V" used under Cadillac crests from 1946 until 1984. The version they are using is the superexaggerated late 1950's version. What you don't immediately notice is that the Caddy chevron is used as a central design theme everywhere through the dash. The central section of the dash is a big extruded chevron, right down to the central spline line. The chevron is used on the seat stitching, the cover for the cup holders and the center console and a few other places. Now I don't claim to know much about designing. But I do know that quality design often starts with a central design element that gets reused if possible. One major secondary theme is the shape of the Cadillac crest which is a variation of the extruded chevron. The steering wheel center uses the same basic shape as the Caddy crest inside it, but I notice that extruded chevron reappears below the center section on the steering wheel's "C" pillar. Bottom line is that I really respect how the CTS interior design team came to its final product. Nice work guys. If you compare this car to a STS (which my dealership had on the same floor), the STS seems like a proverbial "old maid" versus the CTS. Everything in the STS is boxy, upright and dreadfully boring in comparison. One major difference in the two cars...the top of the dashboard. The CTS uses a leatherette stitched down...the STS uses a hard piece of plastic like just about all other Caddys. The difference in refinement is obvious. Other observations. The battery is in the trunk behind a velcro attached panel on the right hand side. If you open the trunk, you'll notice the right side doesn't have as much room as the left side rearward from the tire. But you won't need to back the car up to the nose of another car to use jumper cables...there is a battery terminal labeled underneath the hood for that purpose. There is a passthru port from the trunk to the rear seat just like on the previous car. The spare tire is not standard but the space under the trunk floor is there is you order it. There is a canvas panel underneath the front seats that keeps crap from falling underneath the seats...a nice touch. Finally, the much maligned old CTS glovebox is a reasonable size. |
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Replying to: sevenfeet0 (Sep 18, 2007 9:00 pm) Mike |
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The keyless entry/ignition feature on the 2008 CTS is one of the nicer options and I have a hard time believing anyone could have any serious fault with it. Is the complaint that Caddy used a "switch" that you turn rather than a button that you push? It's the same natural and traditional motion we have all been executing for years without having to take the key out of your pocket and physically place it in the ignition. The key fob that accompanies the keyless entry/ignition is sleek looking and feels solid. I was very impressed. The remote start is an added bonus. This is a feature that should be put into the "positive" category.
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Replying to: mikemckena (Sep 19, 2007 7:58 am)
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Replying to: 1487 (Sep 18, 2007 4:55 pm) They have updated CTS site on caddy.com. I dont see the big deal with bluetooth and would not base a car buying decision on that at all. It is offered with many other cars but typically only if you get navigation which means that many luxury cars do have bluetooth. I dont talk on the phone enough while driving to make it worthwhile. Besides, with BT headsets around I dont see why you need handsfree calling in your car too. It sounds like many of you are not going to get the car for a few reasons that I consider minor. Perhaps the CTS isnt for you. As for the keyless start, the CTS has the same type of system that Infinti and Acura use. I wouldnt say its outdated by any means. Just because it doesnt have a pushbutton doesnt mean its not advanced. Last time I checked the competition does not offer remote start with keyless go. ===================================================== This is the thing. I am not sure half the opposition to the car is well-informed. The press has just raved and raved over this car. "Cheap" sunroof? "Excess heat"? I have not read any indication that any of the people here have experienced the car's AC being unable to handle the "excess heat". It's just a wild extrapolation. This car may not be "the car of the ages", but it is a no-compromise car, as there are many features it has that the competition does not (as all "full" cars do when they are new). I agree. I highly doubt any assertion that "lack of Bluetooth" and a "cheap sunroof" (otherwise taken to be a marvel of panorama in every car it appears in--QX7, SRX) would negatively affect any serious attempt to buy this car. It could, cheaply, confer an "air of discrimination" though. |
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Replying to: markcincinnati (Sep 18, 2007 5:22 pm) Replying to: 1487 (Sep 18, 2007 5:55 pm) Many of my issues with the car have to do with a broader issue: marketing. Bluetooth and the sunroof will be, for many, deal breakers and that is my concern. ===================================================== But you cannot purchase the car for "many". You can only purchase the car for you. The car will do at least as well as the old one, and possibly better (with variants); so we cannot tell what will be a "deal breaker". My feeling is that both are superfluous concerns. Bluetooth earpieces are ubiquitous and widely used, and that the sunroof is "cheap" is subjective (and probably a minority view). It certainly won't affect the car's sales numbers, since its sheer size is impressive. Let us pick this back up in a year and see how it fared. |
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Replying to: knotem (Sep 18, 2007 8:33 pm) Replying to: 1487 (Sep 18, 2007 5:55 pm) "It sounds like many of you are not going to get the car for a few reasons that I consider minor. Perhaps the CTS isnt for you." That unforgivable sunroof design is not a minor problem if it can’t block out 70% of the heat and the sun light when I don’t need them. It’s a major SHOW STOPPER in my opinion and many others on this board. Anybody cares to state his/her opinion has the right to speak up; if a person has to praise or criticize the car I’m thinking of buying, I would like to hear it loud and clear without getting offended, even if that criticism was exaggerated or wrong, because that critic is a real Cadillac fan, saying his/her honest opinion, not a paid Auto Writer. ======================================================== Please point to multiple car reviews from magazines, online publications and new owners or people who have test-driven this car that point to the sunroof being a "SHOW STOPPER" (sic). Such a view is unique to a few posters on this forum and largely rhetorical. Can anyone refer me to any reviewers here who failed to overcome the "70%" heat problem with the AC? Did I miss the posts where people complained about the heat (on actual test drives)? Other than that, this is the first time I have ever heard anybody try to suggest that auto writers could be biased in favor of Cadillac (or GM).
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