In Brasstown, Georgia, there aint no brass, and not much of a town either. But they have this road, Highway 76. And for 50 or so miles west out, it scythes and snakes and roller-coasters its way across the breathtaking Appalachian Mountains.
This is Gods driving road. Tight bend after tight bend. Pool table-smooth asphalt. More twists and turns than The Da Vinci Code. But with short, sharp straights for rapid-fire passing.
Plus, those two essential ingredients for balls-out, stupid-fast, lock-me-up-officer driving; little traffic, no cops.
Which is why weve come here with not just one of Cadillacs rocketship V-cars. But all three. The new supercharged 469bhp STS-V sedan, the new 443hp XLR-V roadster, and the original V, the Corvette-engined 400hp CTS-V.
Each one boasts the distinction of being able to lunge from green light to 60mph in under five seconds. Each one can show you life at 150mph. Each one is guaranteed to put a Julia Roberts-sized smile on the face of any driver who puts pedal to the metal.
So join us on Highway 76 for a little hootin and hollerin across the Deep South as we take these red-hot Caddy V-cars in search of V-max.
Cadillac XLR-V
You have to admire Caddys chutzpah; the new XLR-V costs exactly $100-grand. Not the usual $99,999. Not even $109,000. But a nice, round, take-it-or-leave-it, 100-large.
What you get in return is a leather-lined rocketship; an F-16 with French stitching. In place of the regular 320-horsepower Northstar V8 theres a supercharged version cranking out 443 ponies and enough torque to uproot tree stumps. Power enough to launch this 3840-lb hardtop-convertible to 60 in 4.7 seconds and through the quarter-mile in 13 dead.
Pour on the power up the first, long climb out of Brasstown, and the XLR flies. Its what happens when 90 percent of the turbine-smooth V8s 414 lb-ft torque comes on stream from just 2200rpm.
Yes, you can flick the XLRs stubby shifter over to the left and change gears manually. But the rear-mounted six-speed auto is so intuitive at responding to the drivers calls for kickdown, and holding a gear all the way to the 6500rpm red line, that its hardly worth the bother.
Power through the curves and you can feel the Corvettes genes showing through (the XLR and the Vette share the same, super-stiff, hydro-formed chassis). Grip from the super-sticky 19-inch Pirelli run-flats is nothing less than astounding. And you can push and push, and push some more, safe in the knowledge that the guiding hand of StabiliTrak is there to step-in if you screw up.
I cant say Im a big fan of the Caddys magnetic steering, which feels heavy and wooden at low speed. Yes, its precise and lightens up with speed, but it just doesnt offer the same level of alive-in-your-hands feedback that the helm of Jags new XK or a 911 Porsche gives. And Im still learning to love the XLRs origami styling, with all those razor-sharp edges and its flat-as-Kansas hood and rear deck. That said, the V-series mods the glittery mesh grille, the deeper, bolder front fascia and those slender-spoked 19-inch rims certainly add to the visual drama.
In the end, the XLR-V is a cruiser rather than a bruiser. Yes, its a performance thoroughbred, but it hasnt lost sight of its gran turismo roots. This is a car for crossing continents at 150mph.
Is it worth $23-grand more than a regular XLR? Every cent.
Cadillac CTS-V
Talking of bruisers, this is it. Heres the bad boy from 8 Mile, the mild-mannered kid whos bulked-up bench-pressing 180 at the gym. Its Elvis in a black leather jacket with a curled lip.
The CTS was the original V-car. The car developed at the Nurburgring, the car that showed Mercedes and its AMG division, and BMW with its Ms, they no longer had the monopoly on making serious performance cars out of family four-doors.
The CTS-Vs muscle comes in the form of a 400hp 5.7-liter pushrod V8 from the last-generation Corvette ZO6 shoe-horned into an engine bay not much bigger than a file drawer.
And just in case you werent totally convinced of the cars hard-driving credentials, the folks at Caddy offered up only one transmission a six-speed Tremec T56 manual with a shift action that has all the lightness of a stick stirring molasses.
When Highway 76 gets narrow and twisty, the CTS-V is the car to be driving. Leave the lever in third and let 395 lb-ft of twist do the rest. Mid-range thrust is breathtaking. And forward motion is accompanied by the kind of staccato-beat V8 growl that sounds for all the world like Rambo gargling with roofing tacks. Rugga-rugga-rugga.
And the car sticks to the blacktop like chewing gum to a chair courtesy of 245/45-section Goodyear Eagle F1 rubberware mounted on seven-spoke 18-inch rims. But stay away from those ruts and ridges as the stiff suspension and low-profile rubber telegraph a cacophony of bumps and thumps to the cabin.
When we approach a downhill right-hander way too fast, the CTS-Vs massive four-piston Brembo stoppers shed speed with the immediacy of hurling an anchor out the back. With 14-inch vented rotors up front, and 14.4-inchers at the rear, these are brakes that can put a ripple in the earths crust.
Inside, leather-trimmed seats feature pant-gripping suede inserts and hefty side bolstering to keep you firmly in place. But the look and feel of the whole cabin is about as warm and inviting as a Serbian winter. And most of the somber gray plastic trim on the dash and doors looks like it came from the folks who supplied Yugo back in the 70s.
That said, for $50,700, this hot-rod Caddy offers one Semtex-sized bang for the buck.
Cadillac STS-V
Weve saved the best till last. A blisteringly fast, down-the-mountain section of Highway 76, in the pouring rain, demonstrates the extraordinary brilliance of the STS-V.
That it packs a Holyfield-sized punch is a given. With its 4.4-liter 32-valve Northstar V8 force-fed by a Roots-type blower, this low-riding Caddy summons-up a whopping 469hp and 439 lb-ft of torque.
Pedal to the metal, it runs standstill to 60 in 4.5 seconds, standstill to 100 in 11.3 and wont quit till the speedo needle is kissing the 155mph mark. And its performance is only enhanced by the Hydra-Matic six-speed auto that fires off changes with oily smoothness and reacts with light-switch rapidity to calls for kickdown.
But its the sheer poise and balance of the car that inspires and flatters. The steering is laser-precise and perfectly-weighted, while the grip from the fat Pirelli Eufori run-flats particularly in the wet is outstanding. Mid-corner braking or sharp lift-offs do nothing to upset the Caddys composure.
No, it doesnt have the razor-sharp responses of BMWs almighty V10-engined M5. But neither does it have the BeeEms brittle ride. Or its irritating iDrive systems controller. Or its frustrating 7-speed SMG automatic. No, the STS-V is a car that simply makes a good driver feel like a great one.
It certainly looks the part with its flashy mesh grille, deep front spoiler, composite, power-bulged hood, and massive Brembo calipers clearly visible behind the Caddys sleek, but rather too understated 10-spoke alloys (18s up front, 19s at the rear).
And while Cadillac cabins are supposed to ooze luxury, most of them are cheapened by low-grade plastics and iffy fit and finish. Not so the STS-V, which comes with enough high-grade leather to open a Coach handbag store.
The hand-stitched seats feature suede inserts and added side bolstering for support during hard cornering. And despite the cars sporting credentials, it comes with old school varnished lumber on the dash a greeny-brown Olive Oak thats unique to the STS-V.
Youll pay a cool $77,090 for this supercharged superstar, which seems a little steep considering BMWs benchmark 500hp M5 can be had albeit with much less equipment for only $8 grand more.
But if you like your performance stealthy, and you appointments sumptuous, then the STS-V takes some beating.
Tampa-based writer Howard Walker has been covering the auto beat for more than 30 years. Former editor of Britains Motor magazine and Editor-in-Chief of Classic & Sportscar, Walker now reports on the U.S. auto scene for more than a dozen international publications, including Britains top weekly, Autocar. He also edits the duPont Registrys Exotic Car Guide and is a member of the influential North American Car of the Year jury.
source:http://speedtv.com/articles/automotive/newmodels/25024/</EMBED>
