Article Comments - 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon First Drive

11 messages, Last post on Oct 09, 2009 at 11:48 AM

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2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon First Drive - First Impressions: Do we like more practicality with our CTS? Yes we do.(more)

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#2 of 11 Overpriced and un-American by charlesb Aug 26, 2009 (1:04 pm)
Sadly Americans have decided that the wagon is a conveyance that it not wanted on these shores. And the GM pricing strategy on this model will justify their staying away. Replies to this message: pao (Aug 28, 2009 6:44 am)
#3 of 11 Not the first Cadillac wagon by mbek Aug 27, 2009 (1:43 pm)
"Cadillac might have been slightly nervous that it would be perceived as stodgy for creating this, the company's first station wagon." Sure, American buyers are kept happily unaware of the REAL first Cadillac wagon, the BLS Wagon, which is still sold here in Europe. Even though produced by Saab - and the BLS is based on the old fashion 9-3 - the BLS Wagon is actually the first Cadillac wagon.
#4 of 11 Re: Overpriced and un-American [charlesb] by pao Aug 28, 2009 (6:44 am)
Replying to: charlesb (Aug 26, 2009 1:04 pm) depends on what you are comparing the new wagon to brand wise...the BMW 500 series wagon starts at a few thousand more than this fully loaded Cadillac wagon....dont beleive this was ever intended for the basic family wagon.....but rather a choice other than the SRX......and in competition with the other high end offerings...such as BMW, SAAB, VOLVO etc....... I beleive this will be just as popular as the 2 gen CTS sedan has been.....I would go for it if I didnt already own an 09 CTS sedan......
#5 of 11 Nice to have choices... by sevenfeet0 Aug 30, 2009 (5:11 am)
There is a segment of potential CTS buyers who would love to have the sedan (or coupe) but can't because of the needing to haul the kidlets and their gear. This is the primary reason why my wife and I traded our '03 CTS for an '05 SRX. Not to mention that Costco/Home Depot errands are a little harder without having a tailgate. The previous SRX was pretty much a tall CTS wagon anyway, so you got some of the CTS DNA along with the practicality of the design. I emphasize "some" of the DNA since the platform didn't drive exactly my my old CTS but still was more fun to drive than nearly everything else in its class. With the new SRX going all female real estate agent Lexus RX-apeing, buyers who wanted a little more out of the SRX design would have to make a hard choice. Amazingly, Cadillac has given us the wagon, which I will admit I would have bought in a heartbeat if it existed a few years ago (my wife and I were crossshopping the Volvo V70 at he time). Caddy may not sell many of these, but who knows? I suspect the potential buyers will know what they want and won't have to be talked into taking a wagon home. Replies to this message: b4z (Sep 13, 2009 11:37 am)
#6 of 11 Re: Nice to have choices... [sevenfeet0] by b4z Sep 13, 2009 (11:37 am)
Replying to: sevenfeet0 (Aug 30, 2009 5:11 am) What to do, what to do............. A 3.6L Sport Wagon with 19" Summer Tires is $48K. I could probably buy it in the $44K range. A leftover base '09 SRX could be bought in the $32-34K range. Granted a Sport Wagon has more equipment, but a LOT less utility than a '09 SRX. less legroom, less cargo capacity, et.c But the Sport Wagon sure is purty to look at. That counts for something in my book.
#7 of 11 Pricing by plawin1 Sep 14, 2009 (6:18 pm)
As b4z points out, Cadillac has just put up pricing on their website. As always, the trend toward packages frustrates me. For the 3.6L AWD model, if I want ventilated seats I have to take a $2,645 package. If I want a backup camera, I have to take the $2,145 Navigation package. And they apparantly dropped the deep blue color that I thought I'd like.
#8 of 11 Saw the wagon today... by sevenfeet0 Sep 26, 2009 (1:53 pm)
After a lengthy delay, the CTS Sport Wagon finally showed up at my dealership this week and I got a short chance to look at it this morning. The model was the 3.6 DI RWD Premium package and stickered for about $54K. Final mileage was 18/26. In my opinion, the car's lines are even more dramatic in person, especially looking at it from the from quarter. The rear roof slope is exaggerated and dramatic, much like the late Dodge Magnun except I'd say the CTS is better sculpted. Walking around the car, I'm amazed GM even built the thing. From the driver's seat, you'd be hard pressed to notice that you're in a wagon until you look at the difference in the rear view mirror. The mirror is large enough for the window and not much else, de-emphasizing the large D-pillars. One disappoitment is that the parking brake is still on the floor and not the electric one that is on the CTS-V and the SRX, despite the fact that a place for the brake release is on the center console (and has been for the entire CTS run). This is probably the case for all 2010 CTS's that aren't the V-series. Oh well. The adjustable thigh support in the SRX also has not made it into the 2010 CTS. The rear seats are a bit more sculpted that the sedans. The rear seat armrest still has a passthrough port. And yes, the seats fold flat to extend the cargo bay's utility. The cargo bay has an electric lift hatch similar to the SRX and how high it opens depends on a user setting (useful for shorter people and short garages). The cargo utility for a vehicle like this is going to be limited by the roof line, so you give up some utility for style, Given that, I was wondering why the listed cargo room was only slightly less than the SRX and the reason is that the CTS has more room from the rear seat back to the liftgate door than the SRX does. So the SRX is taller but less deep, and the CTS is shorter but deeper. What you want depends on your utility needs. Neither car will hold the cargo that the outgoing '09 SRX would though. The rear cargo area also has rails to tie down stuff and the floor lifts up to reveal a shallow cubbyhole (and below that is the optional compact spare). A privacy screen shields your cargo from view and can be removed entirely. Both the CTS Wagon and the SRX have 12 volt outlets in the cargo bay for tailgating (my '05 SRX has this). The CTS's battery and fuse panels are behind a panel in the rear right hand side of the car, sharing this feature with the sedan. I haven't driven this car but people have commented on the D-pillars creating a large blind spot. That's true but I usually orient my side mirrors so this doesn't happen. Ultimately, the question is "CTS Sport Wagon vs. SRX"? It's good to have a choice since the old SRX ultimately satisfied fewer buyers since it was a category bending product, even for a crossover. If you have to have the dynamics of the car and need to haul more than the trunk allows every now and then, get the wagon. If you want the soft-ute experience and need a little more utility (but not that much more), get the SRX. I'd also say the SRX has a higher level of luxury than the CTS does these days. It's not a huge difference, but I can tell. Replies to this message: b4z (Oct 06, 2009 4:04 am) b4z (Oct 06, 2009 7:24 am) sevenfeet0 (Oct 09, 2009 11:48 am)
#9 of 11 Re: Saw the wagon today... [sevenfeet0] by b4z Oct 06, 2009 (4:04 am)
Replying to: sevenfeet0 (Sep 26, 2009 1:53 pm) did you get to sit in it? I really want to see this vehicle. For me, the Y43 package with 19" wheels in silver would be a stunning vehicle. I'm just having a hard time spending 9-10K more for a vehicle that is smaller than my SRX. The SRX does almost everything i want it to do. The only thing i would like is a 3.6L DI motor and 6 spd, unfortunately they never offered it like that. The new SRX is small. backseat and cargo room is significanlty less. i am seriously considering buying a 3rd RWD SRX. Replies to this message: b4z (Oct 06, 2009 7:24 am) sevenfeet0 (Oct 09, 2009 11:48 am)
#10 of 11 Re: Saw the wagon today... [b4z] by b4z Oct 06, 2009 (7:24 am)
Replying to: b4z (Oct 06, 2009 4:04 am) sorry, reread and you did sit in it. how was leg room, or more correctly knee room? Did the console bother you? I can't see the temp display because my legs block it in the CTs rentals i've driven. Replies to this message: sevenfeet0 (Oct 09, 2009 11:48 am)
#11 of 11 Re: Saw the wagon today... [b4z] by sevenfeet0 Oct 09, 2009 (11:48 am)
Replying to: b4z (Oct 06, 2009 7:24 am) Yes, I sat in it. It's exactly the same car from the B-pillar forward, and that includes the inside (except the tailgate control). So if you've sat in a 2008-09 CTS, you've sat in a 2010 CTS Sport Wagon. The console doesn't bother me because my knees are high enough up that it doesn't hit the same place that everyone else complains about (in fact, it doesn't hit anything since it's in the air). The downside if probably the same that you have meaning that the temp gauge is blocked by my knee. I thought this would be a bigger problem but in reality, I pretty much leave my SRX at the same temp all year round and let the car figure out how to get there. The only other issue would be activating the heated/cooled seats, which would require me to move my knee to access the control. For the 2010 SRX, engineers recognized that some of us were tall enough to have our knees block the control (or it was too low to see quickly) and have moved the control on that vehicle. Otherwise the driving position is comfortable enough for me to own one....FAR more comfortable than the Gen1 CTS I used to own. I rented another '09 CTS from the Avis lot at Newark Liberty airport just this past week. One last gripe...I was hoping that the CTS Wagon would have ditched the emergency foot brake and gone with the electric one that the CTS-V has (there's always been a control space on the center console for it). Alas, the CTS Sport Wagon still has a emergency foot brake which means all 2010 CTS's will likely be the same, save the CTS-V.