Cadillac CTS Road Test Report

Performance

It may have had a starring role in The Matrix film, but the Cadillac’s CTS’s performance is less than enthralling away from the silver screen. There’s a 208bhp 2.8-litre V6 and another V6 in 3.7-litre form with 307bhp. This should be enough to challenge the might of the German executive saloons, but the Caddy’s engines just don’t feel as potent as the figures make out. Both use a six-speed manual gearbox, which plays its part in blunting performance. The 2.8 model gets from 0-62mph in a tardy 9.0 seconds, while the 3.7 manages it in a more entertaining 6.3 seconds but still manages to feel sluggish in give and take driving as the auto’ box is always reluctant to kick down to a lower gear for brisker acceleration.

Ride & Handling

Ride comfort is where an executive class car should excel, and it needs to be nifty through the bends as well to compete with the best from Germany and Jaguar. Sadly for the Cadillac CTS, it’s not up to snuff on either account. The softly, softly suspension deals with bigger bumps ably, but smaller ridges and ruts catch it out. A saving grace here is the suspension does a fine job of isolating road noise from the cabin on all surfaces. Cadillac has tried hard to make the CTS better suited to European tastes when it comes to corners. There’s decent grip and the car is stable, but too much body lean and steering with all the sensitivity of a riot leaves the driver short on confidence when it comes to twisty tarmac.

Build Quality & Reliability

When you’re up against some of the best cars in the world for build and longevity, you have to be on top of your game to so much as get even. Cadillac is not on top of its game. There’s nothing wrong with the fit and finish of the leather trim on the seats and dash, but the centre console looks and feels cheap next to a Jaguar or Audi. The cheap looking plastic used for the air vents and some of the controls also lets the side down. Reliability also leaves a question mark hanging over the CTS’s head as there are so few on UK roads that it’s very difficult to tell how the car is faring. In the USA, the Cadillac CTS has scored well in the JD Power reliability rankings, so this should bode well for cars in the UK.

Safety & Security

There’s no shortage of safety kit in the CTS as it comes with twin front, side and curtain airbags, ESP traction and stability control in all models, and ABS anti-lock brakes. An alarm and immobiliser are fitted across the range, along with doors that lock when the car begins to move off. Deadlocks, a visible vehicle identification number and integrated stereo all keep thieves at bay.

Space & Practicality

Good, but not as good as the best Europe and Japan has to offer. The Caddy supplies its driver and front passengers with more than ample space to spread out and get comfortable. The driving position has plenty of movement in the seat and at the steering wheel, so the perfect position is easily attained. The main dials are easy to read, but the centre console is a mish-mash of buttons, dials and displays. Moving to the back seats, space becomes more of an issue, which is surprising given the size of the CTS. There’s not much rear headroom and the transmission tunnel eats into the available foot space, so this is a spot best reserved for two people at most. It’s also disappointing that the boot isn’t better shaped as it’s big but not very practical.

Ownership & Value

Finding a Cadillac dealer in the UK will be your first hurdle. Once tracked down, you should have no problems negotiating a discount, which will be essential as residual values of the Cadillac CTS in the UK are not good and it sheds value like a tree drops leaves in the autumn. New list prices are cheaper than most of the Caddy’s rivals, so it does have its compensations. This is tempered by the CTS range only being offered with thirsty, high emissions petrol engines where most of the competition offers fine turbodiesels. Company drivers will also pay full whack tax as the 2.8 V6 produces 263g/km of carbon dioxide and the 3.7 weighs in with 264g/km.