The day many of us at crankandpiston.com thought would never come has finally arrived. After close to ten months on fleet – one of the longest the team has ever undertaken – we finally bid farewell to our Cadillac CTS.
[Not a valid template]In some respects, it comes as a relief. During its tenure the 2010MY CTS has suffered not one but two punctures, several system glitches, and a couple of the editorial team trying to grab forty winks during one endurance race weekend or another. There’s also two kerbed alloys, one of which my colleague Phill dobbed me in about last month. Now we’re not in the habit of wearing long term loan cars down to the bodyshell, but we hope this at least shows how thorough this particular long term test has actually been.
Cosmetic damage aside, there are a couple of features about the Cadillac we’ve found it difficult to enjoy. None of us have been won over by the stiff seats, solid ride and cluttered centre console. Nor has it proven the most dynamic, the virtues of the gutsy 317bhp 3.6-litre V6 being overshadowed slightly by woolly brakes and a tendency to understeer.
And yet, having said all that, I can quite honestly say that I will miss the CTS. Despite the headaches (and occasional backaches), the Caddy has been worked hard and done so with very little grumbling. Good boot space meant our digital crew could ferry load after load of film equipment around in the boot. The almost-menacing looks have proved a big hit with the team. It’s been put to the test against two luxury sports coupes and performed admirably. It’s tackled rain-slick highways between Dubai and Al Ain without pitching us into the guard rail. We’ve even put fuel efficiency to the test thanks to crankandpiston digital guru Moe and his strive to push the distances between petrol stops. A few cuts and bruises aside, the Cadillac has taken everything that has been thrown at it on its sculptured chin, and I can’t help but be impressed.
Now though, given the arrival of our new XTS, we’ll be keen to seen over the next few months how far Cadillac has really come since each made their respective debuts. Let’s just say we’re not expecting back-ache.
