Inside Line 2008 Cadillac CTS First Drive, Full Test and Long Term

55 messages, Last post on Jul 17, 2009 at 6:09 PM

You are in the Cadillac CTS/CTS-V Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens

What is this discussion about? Cadillac CTS, Sedan

First Drive: 2008 Cadillac CTS - This substantial 2.0-inch track increase improves handling, as it's easier to manage body roll and weight transfer. The new ZF Servotronic steering forward of the axle (a packaging measure largely related to the availability of all-wheel drive) improves steering precision. (more)

Full Test: 2008 Cadillac CTS V6 DI - Cadillac has stopped trying to be German, something it is not. Instead it has rediscovered itself and produced a uniquely American sport sedan without peer. That's a bold statement for sure, but name another American car like the 2008 Cadillac CTS. (more)

Long-Term Test: 2008 Cadillac CTS V6 DI - What We Bought: It all starts with the engine. With the 550-horsepower supercharged LS9 not being available for the CTS until next year, we were left with only two engine choices: a 3.6-liter V6 or a 3.6-liter V6. One has the benefit of direct fuel injection and makes 39 more horses. (more)

Outline

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#1 of 55 Article Comments - 2008 Cadillac CTS First Drive by KarenS HOST Jul 26, 2007 (11:07 am)
Check out our 2008 CTS test drive and post your comments here. First Drive: 2008 Cadillac CTS Replies to this message: 2006300c (Jul 27, 2007 9:10 pm) xrunner2 (Jul 28, 2007 6:15 am) sevenfeet0 (Jul 28, 2007 6:52 am) and 3 more... bonddog (Oct 07, 2007 2:59 pm) avatards (Oct 07, 2007 3:47 pm) bonddog (Oct 07, 2007 3:59 pm) artmbgolf (Feb 27, 2009 12:02 pm) dgs4 (Jul 11, 2009 12:26 am)
#2 of 55 Re: Article Comments - 2008 Cadillac CTS First Drive [KarenS] by 2006300c Jul 27, 2007 (9:10 pm)
Replying to: KarenS (Jul 26, 2007 11:07 am) It’s the flashiest and brashest sports sedan, so at least that part of the Cadillac character has been preserved, but have they preserved a smooth ride, light steering and abundant passenger and cargo space? Or has that been chucked in favor of making a hard core 3 Series clone? Replies to this message: xrunner2 (Jul 28, 2007 6:15 am) sevenfeet0 (Jul 28, 2007 6:52 am) bingoman (Jul 28, 2007 3:55 pm) and 1 more... allargon (Aug 09, 2007 2:22 pm)
#3 of 55 Re: Article Comments - 2008 Cadillac CTS First Drive [2006300c] by xrunner2 Jul 28, 2007 (6:15 am)
Replying to: 2006300c (Jul 27, 2007 9:10 pm) but have they preserved a smooth ride, light steering and abundant passenger and cargo space? Perhaps those attributes will be covered in the DTS. From Edmunds review, maybe the BMW 5 series was the target. Hope that Edmunds, Car and Driver, R&T does a comparo of CTS, 5, Audi, Merc. This CTS had influence by Bob Lutz, and that is good. In a taped interview he did on Bloomberg Financial, he talked about the CTS, Solstice and how he is helping to return GM to the dominance in design(style) that it enjoyed in the 50's, 60's. He also said that all elements of Cadillac cars such as design/style, handling, engine, reliability, etc. have to be world class to compete with other luxury makes. Lutz did not mention dealerships. Never owned a Cadillac. Wonder if Cad dealers are on a par with Lexus and Acura for treatment of customers. Replies to this message: sevenfeet0 (Jul 28, 2007 6:52 am) bingoman (Jul 28, 2007 3:55 pm) harrison310 (Jul 29, 2007 8:31 am) allargon (Aug 09, 2007 2:22 pm)
#4 of 55 Re: Article Comments - 2008 Cadillac CTS First Drive [xrunner2] by sevenfeet0 Jul 28, 2007 (6:52 am)
Replying to: xrunner2 (Jul 28, 2007 6:15 am) So far, the car looks like a winner from the multiple first drive tests I've read so far. I can't wait to see one myself in about a month or so when they start showing up at the dealerships. Speaking of dealerships, I think Cadillac and the luxury industry had to begin to take notice on customer satisfaction when Lexus and Acura hit the market. They spent money on lavish new facilities and really hit home the customer satisfaction message. Some Caddy dealerships didn't have to be taught that. For example, my dealership treats me like gold even though I've only bought one car from them. But their rival dealership across town has a reputation for problems and something I heard recently made me think they still have a ways to go. This past week I was doing a favor for a friend of mine in the custom home business who is finishing a home for one of the Tennessee Titans draft picks. Recently he bought an Escalade EXT from a dealership in his home state, but before that happened he visited the other Caddy dealership which is within sight distance of the Titans training facility. They didn't treat the slim young black man in corn rows with any kind of respect, despite the fact that this guy had been in all the local papers and you'd think that a dealership so close to Titans headquarters would have known who might walk in. This did not go over well with said player who bought his vehicle elsewhere. His quote to me was "Don't judge a book by its cover". For that dealership, it was a $60K mistake and possible worse since he now has well heeled friends. Replies to this message: bingoman (Jul 28, 2007 3:55 pm) harrison310 (Jul 29, 2007 8:31 am) allargon (Aug 09, 2007 2:22 pm)
#5 of 55 Re: Article Comments - 2008 Cadillac CTS First Drive [sevenfeet0] by bingoman Jul 28, 2007 (3:55 pm)
Replying to: sevenfeet0 (Jul 28, 2007 6:52 am) So far Motor Trend, Winding Road, Edmunds and a few others who have driven the car seem to think The Cadillac crew has done an exceptional job on this car. Of course some have found some details to nit pick, but of course that is what they get paid to do. One man's switch click is another man's defect. I am looking forward to seeing the car at my dealer and possibly taking it for an overnight as I did before I ordered my '03 CTS. This time I am going to wait a few months to see what the early buyers have to say about nits. Last time I ordered my car too early and got one of the one's with a clock where the temperature gauge should have been. One of the nits I am concerned about is the limited choice of colors. My own choice would be a sky blue metallic, but I think the available blues are going to be to dark. The color samples I have seen on the internet are not very reliable. I guess I will just have to wait until the cars and/or brochures are available at the dealer. Replies to this message: harrison310 (Jul 29, 2007 8:31 am)
#6 of 55 Re: Article Comments - 2008 Cadillac CTS First Drive [bingoman] by harrison310 Jul 29, 2007 (8:31 am)
Replying to: bingoman (Jul 28, 2007 3:55 pm) I am also an 03 CTS owner. Love the car. Iffy about the dealership. I'm in a town where there's only 1 Cadillac dealership and they're only beginning to change their monopoly attitude when they realize that their real competition is Lexus, Benz and Infiniti. I waited for a later run of the 03 model year to get the 1st run bugs/fixes out of the way. I'm also wondering about the availability of the 6-speed manual transmission. Finding mine was very difficult - again, the dealership wasn't helpful.
#7 of 55 2008 CTS Question by jkross22 Jul 29, 2007 (11:23 pm)
Um, GM is in dire straits, so they need to make not just good cars or great cars... they need to make class leading cars to rebound and survive. Sounds like the new CTS is between good and great, but definitely not class leading. Where is the diesel offering? How about a hybrid? Where is the engineering prowess? Gas isn't going to EVER be cheap again, so how does this car address that? Good enough ain't good enough anymore. Replies to this message: sevenfeet0 (Jul 30, 2007 9:36 am) 2006300c (Jul 30, 2007 1:41 pm) 2006300c (Jul 30, 2007 1:37 pm) bonddog (Oct 07, 2007 3:27 pm) sevenfeet0 (Oct 07, 2007 4:10 pm) bonddog (Oct 07, 2007 4:55 pm)
#8 of 55 Re: 2008 CTS Question [jkross22] by sevenfeet0 Jul 30, 2007 (9:36 am)
Replying to: jkross22 (Jul 29, 2007 11:23 pm) Diesel is coming, but probably not until 2010 according to the rumors. Same for hybrid technology. Remember, GM (and Bob Lutz particularly) got caught flatfooted on the hybrid tech thing. They now had to make up YEARS of experience that Toyota has gained. Toyota's first hybrid Prius was marketing in 1997, which means that they were working on it years previous. GM only made a committment to hybrids recently and you just can't retrofit the technology into just anything overnight. Going too fast risks another Caddy V8-6-4 debacle. Yes they are losing sales over it (my wife will not replace our SRX with anything that isn't a hybrid). But going too quickly into this tech could be expensively disastrous. Replies to this message: 2006300c (Jul 30, 2007 1:41 pm)
#9 of 55 Hybrid by arby1 Jul 30, 2007 (9:37 am)
I don't want a diesel. The hybrid would take 5 years to recover the extra cost. I lease for 3 years. I will save 10% on fuel by buying regular instead of premium, which the other world leading cars require.
#10 of 55 Re: 2008 CTS Question [jkross22] by 2006300c Jul 30, 2007 (1:37 pm)
Replying to: jkross22 (Jul 29, 2007 11:23 pm) Your average Cadillac owner or Luxury car owner in general is not concerned about fuel prices. When you're dishing out $675 a month for a 300C like i am the $80-100 a month I spend on gas doesn’t really affect me, so the $1000 a month a top spec CTS requires is definitely no concern. BTW, when C&D tested the GS400h they averaged 20 MPG. When they tested this caddy on the autobahn and Nurburgring they averaged 18 MPG.