Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon production to begin early May, CTS Coupe still on track

[coolmazda5]

After speaking this morning with Cadillac's product communications manager, David Caldwell, we've fleshed out some near-term product plans for General Motors' luxury brand – in particular the timetable for the 2010 CTS Sport Wagon. The automaker's Lansing Grand River plant is scheduled to begin building the stylish rear-drive load lugger in early May, and the first examples should be at dealerships around Memorial Day (May 25), or perhaps early June.

Cadillac's first-ever U.S-market station wagon (no, the SRX crossover doesn't count) is expected to offer a reasonable 25 cubic feet of space beneath its rakish rear glass, and while it rides on the same 113.4-inch wheelbase as its sedan counterpart, the wagon will actually be .3-inches shorter. The model looks to be particularly important for GM's fortunes in Europe, where the luxury division is still struggling to gain traction against the entrenched domestics. While being something of a fringe interest in the U.S., sport wagons do solid business in Europe, and the overseas-only BLS Wagon has played largely to lukewarm reviews. Back home in the States, Cadillac expects just 20 percent of CTS customers to opt for the estate version, while the European model mix is slated to be more along the lines of a 60 percent/40 percent split in favor of the wagon.

So... what about the CTS Coupe? As we reported in January, the stylish two-door's production plans remain firm for next year, despite company-wide cutbacks and rumors to the contrary. While that's still later than Cadillac had originally hoped, officials say the delay will give them the opportunity to focus on launching the Sport Wagon as well as the 2010 SRX replacement. No official word on the likelihood of a CTS-V Coupe or Sport Wagon, but mules of the former have already been spotted, so perhaps we'll get lucky.

Source:
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/03/20/cadillac-cts-sport-wagon-production-to-begin-early-may-cts-coup/

 

[coolmazda5]

Damn, just that D Pillar does not help the cause, but me likes

 

[mikeyb]

I thought the CTS sportwagon was for export only? I would like to see the next gen BLS sedan and wagon make it here.

 

[coolmazda5]

I would like to see the next gen BLS sedan and wagon make it here.

with Diesel engines (naughty)

I think GM has some bad experience with European models brought here, nice cars but too pricy (unless they only bring the car design and the manufacturing model and make them here of course)

 

[mikeyb]

with Diesel engines (naughty)

I think GM has some bad experience with European models brought here, nice cars but too pricy (unless they only bring the car design and the manufacturing model and make them here of course)

The only euro model that Caddy sold here was the Catera. The BLS is based on the current Saab 9-3. The next BLS is suppose to be RWD and AWD.

 

[genericuser]

Bah.. No pictures of the coupe..

I really don't like that wagon. They could have done better with it.

 

[Foolish]

Cadillac's first-ever U.S-market station wagon (no, the SRX crossover doesn't count)

Wait... what about this?

 

[coolmazda5]

^^ (boom01), Who you gonna call? Wasn't that thing a hearse? (lol2)

 

[coolmazda5]

The only euro model that Caddy sold here was the Catera. The BLS is based on the current Saab 9-3. The next BLS is suppose to be RWD and AWD.

The Catera was a nice Opel based sedan, but if I remember it had some bad bugs. Also RWD and AWD are a cool thing, but that since Cadillac has successfully introduced the American design of the CTS (STS/XLR...) they are banking into it.

Based on recent experience (Saturn Astra, Pontiac G8) I guess GM is not willing to bring more imports into their brands for the time being

 

[robin2660]

Are they gonna make a CTS-V wagon?

 

[Foolish]

^^ (boom01), Who you gonna call? Wasn't that thing a hearse? (lol2)

Hearse/ambulance. Those were used as both. I'm not sure they (or any of the Cadi hearses) were actually built as such by GM. I think they're all converted, like limos.

 

[mikeyb]

The Catera was a nice Opel based sedan, but if I remember it had some bad bugs. Also RWD and AWD are a cool thing, but that since Cadillac has successfully introduced the American design of the CTS (STS/XLR...) they are banking into it.

Based on recent experience (Saturn Astra, Pontiac G8) I guess GM is not willing to bring more imports into their brands for the time being

Its called marketing. When was the last time you saw either an ad for a Astra or G8 on TV?

 

[coolmazda5]

Its called marketing. When was the last time you saw either an ad for a Astra or G8 on TV?

You may be right, but now that you mention it, I just saw an Astra commercial this week. G8 I've not seen any on TV, but plenty of ads on the web

I believe for the Astra I found out about it here in the forum, nowhere else, GM actually had a great drive-test marketing setup, it just didn't convince me at the end (I then bought the 2nd Mazda5 weeks later):
http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showpost.php?p=3542243&postcount=8

Marketing works in weird ways sometimes. They stopped advertising for the Mazda5 at the end of 06 (except for one TV ad during the Olympics last year), and was a slow seller until early 2008, but it now sells well on its own with zero marketing.

Are they gonna make a CTS-V wagon?

Not yet, but I think it depends on sales. If it sells well, that would be a nice add

The Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon will join the CTS sedan early next year as a 2010 model. Although it’s not exclusively for the European market, the wagon version is something that Cadillac is hoping will improve sales in wagon-friendly Europe. No V-series version is planned, at least not yet. For now, the wagon will get the same choice of engines as the sedan, either a 263-hp, 3.6-liter V-6 or a 304-hp version with direct fuel injection.

Europeans will get a 2.9-liter turbo-diesel V-6 making 250 horsepower.

 

[Flash5]

saw this thing at the Philadelphia auto show, looks even better in person.

 

[genericuser]

saw this thing at the Philadelphia auto show, looks even better in person.

I hope it looks better in person.. the pictures aren't terribly flattering.

 

[TinmanMS6]

Motor Authority First Drive: 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon

If you were Cadillac, maybe you'd jet off a planeload of journalists to the south of France for the design-y new 2010 CTS Sport Wagon that's up for sale in Europe and the U.S. in the near future. It's sexy, in a most unwagonlike way, after all. The roads would be better--or at least more picturesque--than staying home. The food? Better, for sure.

So let's pretend the picture here is from a spectacular Monegasque afternoon in the Motor Authority road-test diary. In reality, we flew up to GM's proving grounds in Milford, Michigan, to drive the new CTS Sport Wagon as a bookend to and from our first drive of the Cadillac SRX Turbo earlier this month. But we're willing to lay on the other pretend itinerary to point out how not-American the Sport Wagon seems--let's be clear, that's "not-American," not "un-American."Why that? In between commutes in the Sport Wagon, we hammered the SRX crossover ute around Milford in a revealing back-to-back comparison. The two cars might land on top of each other in price and vaguely in shape, but they're dimetrically opposed in their appeal. The 2010 Cadillac SRX is a crossover based on front-drive parts, with optional all-wheel drive and an expanded cargo area, and it's aimed at the crossover crowd also shopping tall, all-weather utes like the Land Rover LR2, BMW X3, Benz GLK, Audi Q5 and Volvo XC60.

In sharp contrast--just look at the D-pillar and low, low roofline, will you?--the CTS Sport Wagon bears the hallmarks of the rear-drive CTS family, which includes the CTS sedan, CTS-V sedan, and next year, the CTS Coupe. It also offers all-wheel drive and an expanded cargo area, but it's taking a direct shot at the BMW 3-Series and Audi A4 Avant wagons that hang on to what remains of that compact class. It's a far smaller niche than true crossovers, and it's not growing--but the CTS Sport Wagon's a necessity as Cadillac tries to push its away into Europe's consciousness.

We get the luxury of choice in America, as always. Is the CTS Sport Wagon a better choice than the SRX--not to mention the Audi Q5, the Volvo XC60 or the other small crossovers flooding the market? For most of you reading and shopping for a new car, we're inclined to answer yes, with a couple of hedges. It's a little less conventional and slightly less roomy than the competing SRX and some of the others, but it may be the sweetest small Cadillac you can buy, because of its handling, its utility, and its uniqueness.

CTS Sport Wagon: More Kinky, For Sure
You might find yourself compelled by the CTS Sport Wagon's outre shape. We weren't thrilled by it at first, but in the past year since it first hit our radar screens, it's grown more familiar and more handsome. There's something about the skewed collision of the tail and rear glass lines that's interesting to look at, over and over.

The wagon's clearly more visually kinky than the four-door CTS. V-shaped details on the tailgate remind you of Cadillac's tailfinned past, gently. And those cues all usher your eye right down the sides of this "Art & Science" body, and make a flirtatious statement about its pert rear end. Is it more appealing than the SRX? To some eyes, though that answer carries a lot of cultural baggage. If you like shiny slacks, glasses with blue frames and boil over at the mention of Karl Rove, you're probably a Sport Wagon fan. If you're in mom jeans and are late for the Meadow Brook carpool, we're betting the SRX is your lean-toward option.

When it comes to performance, there's precious little to differentiate the CTS Sport Wagon from the CTS. Like the four-door, the wagon comes with either a direct-injected, 3.0-liter V-6 with 270 horsepower, or a 3.6-liter V-6 with 304 horsepower. The six-speed manual available in the sedan isn't an option, but GM's six-speed automatic, with paddle shifters and sweet gear changes, does all the teamwork to combine the power with either rear- or optional all-wheel drive. Any CTS still can be ordered with tighter suspension settings, but our clear favorite is the "FE3" setup on rear-drive versions, shod with summer tires. In contrast to the SRX, there's no turbo option on the wagon, but the paddle shifters seem to impart more sporting feel than the blower, in any case. The SRX feels like a tall wagon; the Wagon feels like a CTS sedan with a more responsive touch on the wheel, and a more ably damped suspension.

CTS Sport Wagon: Tailors Need Not Apply
The key difference between CTS Sport Wagon and SRX is in the cargo area, and it's here where the wagon takes a back seat. It's a useful area, in that the CTS Sport Wagon adds on 25 cubic feet to the passenger space, and lets owners flip down the rear seats for a total of 53.4 cubic feet of room. And it's easily accessed, with a power tailgate standard and a roof system that adds uncovered capacity to its cargo-hauling profile (but that would spoil the shape, no?). Under the flat cargo floor and built into its sides are trays and hooks and all sorts of tiedowns for safe cargo hauling. The SRX is the winner here, though - 61.2 cubic feet of space versus the Sport Wagon's 53 cu ft.

The same story goes for the second-row seats. If any more than two adults will be riding in your CTS, the Wagon's the winner over the CTS sedan for sure. Mainly, it's because of the vertical height and longer rear doors. The CTS sedan can be a tough clamber for big guys and gals; the cutouts for feet are particularly small. The Sport Wagon's relatively easy to enter and exit, and that makes all the difference for those extra passengers. However, the SRX still sits taller and has larger door openings, and a touch more leg and head room in back.

It's a good thing those features don't mean as much for the crew fascinated by the CTS Sport Wagon's features, handling and its artfully glitzy look. If you want rear-drive balance and feel, there's simply nothing like the Sport Wagon in Cadillac showrooms.

And with its crisp and creased edges, there's not much like it, period.

 

[Rogue]

any pictures of the back of the car?

 

[TinmanMS6]

OR

???

 

[Rogue]

Thanks Todd.


I like it.

 

[TinmanMS6]

Yeah, I'm thinking a lightly used AWD one might find its way into my garage after the Forester. Cargo space looks great, and I can't think of many other wagons on the market that are even close in performance.