2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon & 2010 Cadillac SRX - A tale of two Cadillacs, where bigger is better
Psst! Here's a little inside information that the SEC cannot come after you for. Even before this road test was written, the CTS Sport Wagon was added to the year-end list of best cars.
Where on that list it ended up will remain a secret for another three weeks but it is solid evidence that despite bankruptcy and continuing management changes, the General can crank out some pretty nice iron.
So let us start with the CTS Sport Wagon. If you think this is Cadillac's first wagon in North America, you would be correct. It is the roughly the same size as the acclaimed CTS sedan but with more storage out back. Leave the second row seats up and there is 25 cubic feet of cargo space. Lower them and that grows to 53 cubic feet with ample tie downs.
Under the hood of the test car was the bigger of the two sixes offered, a 3.6-liter 304-horsepower unit with 273 lb-ft of torque at 5,200 rpm. I would strongly recommend this engine since it has to propel about 4,200 pounds of vehicle.
Pared with the excellent six-speed automatic, the wagon would get you to 60 from a standing start in roughly 7 seconds, something that would meet the needs of most prospective owners. The car was EPA rated at 18-26 mpg. I came in at 22.
While styling is subjective, I thought GM did a great job on the wagon, especially inside. A car in this price range should make you feel instantly pampered from the minute you sit down, and the wagon did. The seats were across-the-country comfortable with little fiddling. Day and night, the instruments were easy to read, the stereo spectacular, and the controls were easy to decipher and reach. Visible hand stitching and soft-touch materials, for the most part, made the driver feel that this car was something special.
Just to the left and right of the center stack were two little windows and buttons that controlled the ventilation for the driver and passenger. It went a long way toward making everyone up front comfortable and the idea should be copied throughout the GM lineup.
The Caddy was no sports car on the highway, but would gobble up a huge amount of highway that would be limited only by the limits of ones' (oh, how can we say this nicely) internal systems.
2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon. X10CA_CT022 (United States)
The test car came with a performance package that some have criticized for a rough ride. I did not find this to be the case in the test car, and it went over some tough city streets in D.C.
In top-of-the-line "Premium Collection" trim, the test car would sell for $54,635. Yet unlike some other luxury cars, this one would make the driver and passengers feel like they were riding in something special. It is the difference, say, of playing golf at your local country club vs. St. Andrews.
2010 Cadillac SRX
If your spouse would rather eat raw onions than drive something called a "wagon" Cadillac is here with the redesigned 2010 SRX crossover.
If you can imagine Caddy downsizing any vehicle, you can imagine it here. Compared to the SRX, this one is 4.6 inches shorter, a bit lower, and the wheelbase is down by nearly 6 inches. That means good-bye to the third-row seat that probably would have admitted you to the next Olympics if you could have easily navigated your way back there.
As opposed to the Sport Wagon, it was my impression that the STX exterior styling was a bit over the top, especially in front. The grille needs a tranquilizer in an overall design clearly intended to make the SRX appear bigger than it is.
Source: 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon & 2010 Cadillac SRX - A tale of two Cadillacs, where bigger is better
Where on that list it ended up will remain a secret for another three weeks but it is solid evidence that despite bankruptcy and continuing management changes, the General can crank out some pretty nice iron.
So let us start with the CTS Sport Wagon. If you think this is Cadillac's first wagon in North America, you would be correct. It is the roughly the same size as the acclaimed CTS sedan but with more storage out back. Leave the second row seats up and there is 25 cubic feet of cargo space. Lower them and that grows to 53 cubic feet with ample tie downs.
Under the hood of the test car was the bigger of the two sixes offered, a 3.6-liter 304-horsepower unit with 273 lb-ft of torque at 5,200 rpm. I would strongly recommend this engine since it has to propel about 4,200 pounds of vehicle.
Pared with the excellent six-speed automatic, the wagon would get you to 60 from a standing start in roughly 7 seconds, something that would meet the needs of most prospective owners. The car was EPA rated at 18-26 mpg. I came in at 22.
While styling is subjective, I thought GM did a great job on the wagon, especially inside. A car in this price range should make you feel instantly pampered from the minute you sit down, and the wagon did. The seats were across-the-country comfortable with little fiddling. Day and night, the instruments were easy to read, the stereo spectacular, and the controls were easy to decipher and reach. Visible hand stitching and soft-touch materials, for the most part, made the driver feel that this car was something special.
Just to the left and right of the center stack were two little windows and buttons that controlled the ventilation for the driver and passenger. It went a long way toward making everyone up front comfortable and the idea should be copied throughout the GM lineup.
The Caddy was no sports car on the highway, but would gobble up a huge amount of highway that would be limited only by the limits of ones' (oh, how can we say this nicely) internal systems.
2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon. X10CA_CT022 (United States)
The test car came with a performance package that some have criticized for a rough ride. I did not find this to be the case in the test car, and it went over some tough city streets in D.C.
In top-of-the-line "Premium Collection" trim, the test car would sell for $54,635. Yet unlike some other luxury cars, this one would make the driver and passengers feel like they were riding in something special. It is the difference, say, of playing golf at your local country club vs. St. Andrews.
2010 Cadillac SRX
If your spouse would rather eat raw onions than drive something called a "wagon" Cadillac is here with the redesigned 2010 SRX crossover.
If you can imagine Caddy downsizing any vehicle, you can imagine it here. Compared to the SRX, this one is 4.6 inches shorter, a bit lower, and the wheelbase is down by nearly 6 inches. That means good-bye to the third-row seat that probably would have admitted you to the next Olympics if you could have easily navigated your way back there.
As opposed to the Sport Wagon, it was my impression that the STX exterior styling was a bit over the top, especially in front. The grille needs a tranquilizer in an overall design clearly intended to make the SRX appear bigger than it is.
Source: 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon & 2010 Cadillac SRX - A tale of two Cadillacs, where bigger is better
