Daily Auto News First Reviews of 2011 CTS Coupe
Daily Auto News
The first drive reviews of the 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe are in — and, for the most part, reviewers like what they see.
“It’s difficult to describe just how striking the CTS Coupe is in the flesh. Fresh, crisp, bold, sexy, smart, savvy and even – to quote Cadillac – audacious. We hate to swallow marketing pabulum of any sort, but in this situation, with this car, the descriptor ‘audacious’ rings absolutely true,” says Autoblog.
According to reviewers, that audacity starts with the CTS Coupe’s design. Jalopnik writes, “It’s the most polarizing car shape I’ve ever seen. From that sassy ass all the way forward, you either love it or you hate it. Your eyes move from the back, past the touchpad door handles and the side vents, all the way to the ‘Art & Science’ signature pointed nose. The whole car (whether with the performance tuning setup with 18-inch wheels and all-season tires or the summer tire setup with 19-inch wheels and summer tires) just screams ‘look at me.’”
Of course, for many drivers, true beauty is on the inside. Left Lane News says: “If you liked the interior of the CTS Sport Sedan, you will love the interior of the new CTS Coupe. Borrowing heavily from the sistership CTS Sports Sedan, the dashboard, and new center console are identical to those found in the four-door. Legible gauges easily display pertinent info, and the hidden navi-screen pops up from its perch on the top of the center stack to give directions or to hide everything but the audio information in a discreet fashion.” Plus, “Seats were very grippy with the side bolsters that kept us in place during the twisty mountain roads in Napa, California.”
When it comes to passenger space, however, Jalopnik says “The CTS Coupe is on par with its 2+2 competition — meaning, it’s a great car for a couple and their two amputee children.”
If the CTS coupe is to compete with offerings from BMW and Audi, it needs to hold its own on the road. Autoblog says it does: “On the road, everything that’s good about the four-door CTS is amplified in the coupe. You’re lower to the road, the wider rear-track and sticky 19-inch summer tires provide gooey gobs of grip and the view out over the hood is definitely sporting.”
Still, “The direct-injection 3.6-liter V6 provides adequate if not good forward thrust, though introducing a new model into such a hyper-competitive segment and not being the most potent in class can be viewed as a bit of a head-scratcher. For instance, the Coupe is more powerful than the E350 Coupe and Audi A5, but is nearly thirty ponies down on the Infiniti G37 Coupe. … more power would do the Coupe wonders.”
So, head-turning design? Check. Well-appointed interior? Check. Class-leading performance? Well…for that you may have to wait for the CTS-V Coupe.
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