The Cadillac CTS coupe seats four and is available in three trim levels. Rear seat headroom and storage space are at a premium in the CTS coupe, which feels oddly cramped despite its weight and size.
Overall, the Cadillac CTS coupe can’t compete in terms of performance with its V-8 rivals and lacks the comfort and thoughtful design of true luxury-oriented vehicles.
What is luxury? Blinged-out baroque still has its adherents, but as the Napa Valley hotel where the Cadillac CTS Coupe was launched proves, a more subtle, sophisticated version of luxury is gaining popularity as well, differentiated by the use of recycled materials and environmentally-friendly technologies. So where in this fragmented and changing category does the CTS Coupe belong?
The Eldorado name may not have launched the “Personal Luxury Coupe” segment (this honor goes to the Ford Thunderbird), but by the dawn of the new millennium, it was keeping the old-school, front-drive, waft-all-day luxury coupe flame alive. In dark colors, its Darth Vader meets Don Draper: a symmetrically-creased exercise in sleek, bunker-windowed coupe-doom. The proportions are classic “Personal Luxury” coupe: kicked-back cabin, long doors, bold face, and clean rear-quarter. Interior dimensions are predictably hampered by the Coupe’s crisply-tailored suit. Fire up the standard 3.6 liter V6, pop the shifter into drive and the Coupe pulls into traffic with ease. Things have changed in eight years, but Cadillac CTS coupe are still best when cruised graciously from luxurious destination to luxurious destination.
Though Cadillac does not re-map engines for sport-mode, the transmission changes alone are downright surprising. Thanks to the wider rear track, there’s little scope for tail-wagging, and you’ll probably find the Coupe pushing on its front tires as often as it slips its rears. Weight, visibility and damping deficits keep this Cadillac firmly in the “competent” category of cornering coupes.
Meanwhile, the standard Cadillac CTS coupe is available at a base $38,990, with prices ranging to our loaded tester’s $51,825. Unlike the Regal, however, the CTS Coupe hits its styling cues to perfection, and manages to fuse the brand’s future to its past in terms of both style and abilities.
Owners of the BMW 3-Series Coupe, Audi A5, Infiniti G37 Coupe, and Mercedes E-Class Coupe (including those planning on buying the new C-Class Coupe), have long been considered owners of the road when it comes to two-door mass production performance vehicles. For 2011, GM has added a coupe to join the Cadillac CTS sedan and station wagon in the lineup. The “CTS Coupe is the new focal point of Cadillac, expressing both our design and technical capabilities,” said Don Butler, Vice President of Cadillac Marketing.
When viewed head-on, the Cadillac CTS coupe shows heavy design influence from its sedan and station wagon brethren.Other features that enhance the car’s styling and offer a clean profile include the touch-pad operated doors and trunk that remove the need for conventional door handles, sculpted lower-front fascia with unique vents that serve to cool the brakes, center-placed rear exhaust with twin dihedral-angled tips that pass right through the rear-fascia, and rear-spoiler that flows seamlessly with the integrated, signature center-mount brake lamp.
Given the performance orientation, particularly with regard to the seating, we found the CTS Coupe to provide for an extremely comfortable driving experience.The rear-wheel-drive "Cadillac CTS coupe" certainly does not fall short of expectations in this category. For the coupe, Cadillac decided to do away with the 270-hp 3.0L V6 offered as the entry-level motor on the sedan and wagon. The final drive ratio measures to 3.73:1; compared to the 3.42:1 measured on other CTS body styles. Ultimately, this equates to more responsive acceleration from the coupe. When it comes to considering performance against dollars, all of this puts the CTS Coupe right in the pack with its competition.
The competition offers arguably better options with regard to handling and a sporty driving dynamics, but the CTS Coupe offers tremendous bang-for-the-buck in performance driving.The 2011 CTS Coupe stands as solid competition against the comparative offerings from Audi, BMW, Infiniti, and Mercedes. If you’re still not convinced that the 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe offers tremendous power and performance for its price, I encourage you to check back in a few days for our review of the 2011 CTS-V Coupe, and be reminded that the sedan remains the fastest sedan in production today, having bested the much celebrated BMW M5 around the Nürburgring.
