Deutsch

The negative response from members from other parts of the world really doesn't surprise me for very obvious reasons, especially when you consider that almost all of them haven't even seen nor driven the standard car.

Centurion

During the latest years I've never said anything negative about Cadillacs. Their current design philosophy is original, bold and appealing to the eyes. It's just that there's too much "fence" in the front, far from neat as the standard CTS. The missile/machine gun looking fog lights look a little silly as well. Someone has obviously looked at too many jet planes. All I'm saying is that the front could have looked a bit more graceful, or left the lower grill unpainted.

Just_me

No I haven't driven a Cadillac since we don't have many of them in Sweden, therefore I can only comment on the design and thats what I did in my previous post. I didnt mention how it is to drive.

Kowalski

Looking good.

Weighing 1860 Kilograms, the current CTS 3.6 V6 with 4WD is already quite a porker.

There are rumours the new CTS-V will be 4WD; so one has to assume it will be a 2 ton car.

PC Valkyrie

We know GM can make a super performance car at a reasonable price (just look at the Corvette Z06 and upcoming ZR1).

With that in mind, the upcoming CTS-V has the potential to be competitivev with cars like the M5, E-AMG, and S/RS6, at a price of a M3, C63 or S/RS4 or cheaper. Now that's pretty good, regardless of how it looks.

Let's see if Cadillac will pull a fast one like Chevy did with the Corvette.

Merc1

You’re photographing a car being photographed?

Yes. The chap leaning out the back of this car is Cadillac’s official photographer, and we’re snapping him because we've caught the Daddy Caddy – Cadillac’s new CTS-V – being photographed for official press and sales literature, ahead of its arrival at the 2008 Detroit Motor Show next month.

This explains why the CTS-V is completely stripped of camouflage and in full production trim. So much for top-secret photo locations. Click 'Next' for the full details of the American answer to the M5.

It certainly looks a bit quick…

When the CTS-V looms large and fast in your rear-view mirror, there will be no mistaking it for anything other than a brutish modern muscle car. Check out the massive power bulge on its bonnet, the mesh-backed grille flanked by piercing bi-xenon headlamps, the liberal application of chrome, the low-slung front air intake (yet more mesh) and the flared wheelarches housing 19-inch alloys. And when it bolts past you, it will be spitting out a thunderous V8 soundtrack from two vast exhaust pipes.

Its cabin will also get the all-boxes-ticked treatment, with electrically adjustable leather front bucket seats, premium Bose stereo with 40GB hard-drive, 3D sat-nav, LED interior lighting and advanced climate control system.

So will it be fast?

Hell yes. The all-wheel-drive CTS-V will be powered by the mighty 7.0-litre all-alloy LS7 powerplant borrowed from the brilliant Corvette Z06. It’s one hell of an engine - the dry-sumped V8 is hand-finished, features titanium con-rods, a forged steel crankshaft and develops 512bhp at 6300rpm and 470lb ft at 4800rpm. That makes it easily GM’s most powerful passenger car engine and largest-displacement small-block to date.

So despite a kerb weight the wrong side of 1800kg, the hot Cadillac should claw its way to 60mph in five seconds or less, rocketing on to an estimated 175mph top speed.

It’s hooked up to a six-cog Tremec box that drives all four wheels through GM’s new 4x4 set-up that's been recalibrated for a strong rear-end bias. And it was obviously a tight fit squeezing the hand-assembled smallblock into the Caddy’s engine – just look at the size of that power bulge needed to house the engine and still meet stringent pedestrian impact regulation.

So it’s brisk, but will it go around corners?

It’s beginning to sound like a dog-eared cliché, but the CTS-V spent most of its development time hammering around the Nürburgring, a 17-mile long circuit with 73 corners. If it can't go around corners after a thousand test laps of this unforgiving circuit, it never will.

The multi-link rear and wishbone front suspension has been uprated with firmer springs and dampers and thicker anti-roll bars, while the variable-assist steering has been tweaked for more off-centre feel.

The big Cadillac is expected to use the Z06’s formidable braking set-up - four-piston Brembo brakes gripping 355mm vented discs up front and 365mm vented rotors at the rear. And Cadillac’s engineers believe the CTS-V’s intelligent all-wheel drive will give it a useful real-world advantage, allowing drivers to use more power more of the time, irrespective of weather conditions. Try booting an M5 in the wet, and you’ll see their point.

So how much for this American M5?

Not a lot, relatively speaking. Caddy's V-division will produce no more than 7000 CTS flagship models a year, and although European sales have been confirmed, its arrival in the UK has yet to be given the green light.

Given the low production runs for Europe and America, the cost of tooling up for a handful of right-hand-drive sales in the UK and other rhd markets like Australia and Japan means Cadillac UK is likely to have a left-hook performance flagship come early 2009.

Still, with a proposed £45,000 price, it should have the looks, performance and exclusivity to tempt a few (brave) drivers away from the default M5/RS6/E63 choice.

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Just_me

I still can't find the beauty in this car, too many hard edges for my taste. I'm sure its going to be fast, all 500hp cars are.

I hope Americans can accept that I dont like its design without having driven a Cadillac.

SDNR

^^I do kind of agree with you Andreas.

Cadillac definitely has a strong style-theme here ...but they are playing it very safe. I bet the Cadillac designers are desperate to create something as dramatic and aggressive as the Lamborghini Reventón.

I think they should just "bite the bullet" and go nuts ..........like they used to (half a century ago)

Tycoon

With 'Vette's engine and precize suspension set-up, this car should be rocket fast!

martinbo

I doubt it's going to have suspension that even remotely resembles that of the Vette...