On this episode of Ignition
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MotorTranscript
00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:04 The CTS V Sport represents Cadillac's open assault
00:07 on the established German powerhouses,
00:10 specifically the BMW 550i and Mercedes-Benz E550.
00:17 And if its name is any indication,
00:19 the V Sport aims to best them on performance.
00:22 Now, that may seem strange because this Caddy
00:25 doesn't have a V8.
00:26 That's because the V Sport also represents downsizing.
00:30 It instead uses a twin-turbo V6 that
00:32 makes 420 horsepower and 430 pound-feet of torque.
00:35 And critically, the car is much lighter
00:38 than its intended competition.
00:39 So that power needs to carry fewer pounds.
00:43 That sounds like a good philosophy to us.
00:45 And this week, we'll find out how well it works.
00:47 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:51 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:54 The V Sport hits 60 in 4.4 seconds.
01:13 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:20 And the quarter mile in 12.8 seconds at 111.9 miles an hour.
01:27 60 to 0 braking took a staggering 98 feet,
01:30 which is one of the best stopping distances we've ever
01:32 recorded from a sedan.
01:35 The V Sport lapped our figure 8 in 24.7 seconds
01:39 and put down an average lateral G of 0.94.
01:42 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:45 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:49 CTS V Sport.
02:01 What a car.
02:02 [LAUGHS]
02:03 [MUSIC PLAYING]
02:06 This is an absolute surprise how well this car handles.
02:13 I am completely blown away.
02:14 [MUSIC PLAYING]
02:18 But first, let's talk about the engine.
02:21 We have a twin turbo 3.6 liter V6.
02:25 Makes 420 horsepower, 430 pound feet of torque.
02:29 And it delivers those numbers pretty much
02:32 throughout the entire rev band.
02:33 I'm really impressed at how strong this powertrain is,
02:37 seemingly regardless of the RPM you choose.
02:42 Sounds good, too.
02:43 They're pumping in a bit of audio through the stereo.
02:46 They say it's real induction, real exhaust noise,
02:50 but it is artificial.
02:51 Who cares, though, because it sounds good.
02:55 The thing that surprised me the most,
02:56 though, is just how well this car handles.
03:00 I honestly don't believe it needs stability control.
03:03 There's so much traction in the front axle and the rear axle,
03:07 so much precision.
03:09 I can't make it understeer unless I do something wrong.
03:12 I can drive it into the corner as hard as I want.
03:15 I can drive it out of the corner as hard as I want,
03:18 and it doesn't scare you.
03:19 It doesn't surprise you.
03:21 It just offers grip and control and finesse.
03:27 It's amazing what this car can do with a set of Pirelli P
03:32 Zeros, which often are regarded as not the finest sports car
03:37 tire you can get.
03:39 And this thing is just amazing.
03:41 Part of it we have to attribute to how light this car is
03:45 versus the comparable BMW 550, whatever E-Class you would line
03:50 up against this.
03:51 This car is significantly lighter than both of those.
03:54 And you can just tell from the experience behind the wheel
03:58 how much that matters.
04:00 That weight is more important than horsepower.
04:04 [MUSIC PLAYING]
04:08 This car is so much fun and so nice to drive,
04:15 because even though it's down on horsepower,
04:17 maybe versus the BMW 550, it's carrying less weight.
04:23 So that makes it faster.
04:25 It makes it better handling.
04:26 It's nicer to corner.
04:28 It stops short.
04:29 [MUSIC PLAYING]
04:33 We are in the track setting right now.
04:36 And that firms up the magnetic fluid-filled shocks.
04:39 It gives you more engine note, firms up the steering,
04:43 and it just makes this car behave like a sports car.
04:46 That's what this feels like.
04:47 It feels like a sports car.
04:49 It has sports car-like tendencies,
04:51 sports car-like qualities.
04:53 And it is, again, amazing.
04:56 We have to attribute the rear grip partially
04:59 to the active electronically controlled differential, which
05:02 shares its internals with this Corvette C7, which, again,
05:06 shows why this thing works so well.
05:09 Now, if there is a slight problem,
05:12 it's with the transmission.
05:14 Because the rest of the car is so good,
05:17 but the transmission isn't as aggressive on downshifts
05:21 as it could be.
05:23 Occasionally, I get a shift denied, shift denied,
05:25 shift denied when I want to go to second.
05:27 And so it means I have to give up
05:28 a little bit of concentration on the road, my braking
05:31 point, and the speed to know when
05:33 I can downshift to second.
05:35 Slight problem, slight problem on the road,
05:37 on a mountain road, on the highway.
05:39 Who cares?
05:40 [MUSIC PLAYING]
05:45 OK, let's talk about things that aren't having fun.
05:48 It's hard to do in this car, but we have to talk about them.
05:51 The design.
05:52 I think this is Cadillac's best execution
05:54 of the art and science design language on the exterior.
05:58 It looks different, but in a good way.
06:03 It has a very luxurious look, a very striking look.
06:08 And the way those vertical beams appear
06:11 when you have the parking lights on look really nice.
06:13 Then we have the interior, which I'm not so much enamored with.
06:17 We have the Q infotainment system,
06:20 which seems to have become better since we last
06:22 drove it in the ATS.
06:24 But the Germans still do this stuff better.
06:28 It's a haptic feedback touchscreen interface.
06:31 And more often than not, the button
06:33 that you actually want to press doesn't respond.
06:36 You miss it.
06:37 A touchscreen requires you to look at the screen
06:39 in order to use it, instead of paying attention
06:41 to the road, which is what you should be doing anyway.
06:44 [MUSIC PLAYING]
06:49 And what blows me away is we're still
06:51 waiting for the Cadillac CTS-V. And how is that
06:55 going to be different?
06:56 I think you take this package, and what can you improve?
07:00 Sure, you can make the tires stickier, bigger.
07:03 You can make it a stiffer, higher grip generating chassis.
07:08 You can give it more torque, certainly.
07:10 But the fundamentals of this platform are here,
07:14 and they work really, really, really well.
07:19 But man, the way this thing drives, I'm content right here.
07:24 [MUSIC PLAYING]
07:27 Love that part.
07:28 I love that part so much.
07:30 [MUSIC PLAYING]
07:33 This is the kind of Cadillac we've been waiting for,
07:47 and the kind of car other automakers
07:49 need to pay attention to.
07:51 Sharp looking and great driving, it's
07:53 a refreshing reminder of what a large luxury car can be.
07:56 [MUSIC PLAYING]
07:59 Sure, Q remains frustrating, as do the HVAC controls.
08:11 But in terms of performance and fun,
08:13 the CTS-V Sport handily trounces any comparable sedan.
08:18 More importantly, the V Sport's driving dynamics
08:21 and commitment to lightness is something
08:23 the Germans could learn from.
08:24 [ENGINE REVVING]
08:27 I got to fart.
08:31 OK.
08:37 You just sealed yourself in the credits.
08:38 Good.
08:40 OK, you got a little lift on it, too.
08:42 CTS-V Sport.
08:44 [CLAPPING]
08:47 Does that help with editing?
08:49 If I just--
08:50 [CLAPPING]
08:51 Keep clapping.
08:52 Oh, you want to air it out?
08:53 Air it out.
08:54 A little bit of air out?
08:55 Yeah.
08:56 Got to warm up.
08:57 You can tell exactly what kind of hammer you had.
09:00 All right, 3, 2, 1.
09:03 [ENGINE REVVING]