SHOWN IN AUSTRALIA in concept form at the 2008 Australian International Motor Show, the production version of the Cadillac CTS Coupe has at last been revealed.
GM Premium Brands - managed in Australia by Holden and responsible for Hummer and Saab - had planned to introduce the Cadillac brand this year before the global financial crisis caused the company to cancel its plans “indefinitely”.
“There is only one chance to properly launch this brand in Australia and in these challenging times, we believe we couldn’t give it the best chance of success,” former GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director, Mark Reuss said in January.
“…the market for new cars has continued to deteriorate, the challenging broader economic environment remains largely unchanged and the exchange rate has worsened for imports,” Mr Reuss added.
The CTS Coupe’s US debut remains on course, however, with the unveiling of the final production model today.
“CTS Coupe is the new focal point of Cadillac, expressing both our design and technical capabilities,” Bryan Nesbitt, Cadillac general manager said.
“It is intended to appeal to a new generation of car enthusiasts.”
In sedan form, the CTS and hi-po CTS-V have been well-accepted by the world’s motoring press, with the consensus being that Cadillac has produced a well engineered, well made and, in the case of the CTS-V, astoundingly capable new model.
Sharing only its dash, headlights, front quarter panels and grille with the sedan, the Coupe is 50mm lower and 50mm shorter end-to-end than the sedan - despite sitting on the same wheelbase.
Visually, the Coupe is the most distinct of the CTS-badged Caddies, with a hidden B-pillar and a centre-mounted exhaust pointing to the car’s true intent.
Powered by GM’s direct injected 3.6 litre V6, the CTS Coupe develops 227kW and 370Nm of torque.
The Coupe will be paired with automatic and manual transmissions, both six-speed.
Two suspension-tuning levels will be offered. The Performance Package, featuring 18-inch wheels and all-season tyres, and the Summer Tyre Performance Package, including 19-inch wheels and performance tyres.
GM has not announced an official launch date for the CTS Coupe, but it has been confirmed for a mid 2010 release in the US.
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Shame they aren’t being re re re introduced into Aus…. would of liked one…. a BLS.. =) or CTS V
“and the exchange rate has worsened for imports,” Mr Reuss added.”
How is this so? The Aussie dollar is currently buying 92 US cents. 3 months ago it was even closer to parity.
Crapola
I detest the back of it :O
I hate the back. I hate the front. The side view looks OK. Typical American styling… absolutely terrible.
Nice.
Good to see Cadillac making cars people can aspire to again.
The people that dont like it are probably lexus heads.
No history before 1990.
Side on, it looks good.
Unfortunately, that’s its only good angle!
Please bring us Cadillac. These are much better cars than many other are offering in the luxury segment. They dont need to worry about a big launch - everyone know what Cadilac is. Why should we miss out on such great cars.
Awesome car, GM makes the hottest cars on the road.
looks crap….another failure from GM…they will never learn.
cadillac should be introduced into australia as well as the chev camaro.dollar being strong is an advantage
Ghastly
Kind of looks like they’ve taken a Nissan Skyline/Infinit G35 and turned all the curves into sharp edges.