Cadillac CTS/CTS-V

oldsman01

I hate it when folks tailgate me with their bright headlights. Thank goodness for the auto dimming mirror. Until you have a car with one of those, you don't realize what a great feature it is. When I get somebody tailgating me, I ease off on the gas and gradually slow down. I've literally slowed down to 45 on the freeway with someone on my tail before they realize what I'm doing and then pass me. Sometimes I think people are like cattle when it comes to driving:)

oldsman01

Congratulations on your new ride, the black on black must be very sharp. My Intrigue is black with a dark grey(closest thing to black offered on those) interior and when it is clean it is sharp! I remember when I first saw CTS pictures in auto mags in late summer of 01 and I was not overly impressed with the look. Then in September 01 while driving through Indiana on my way to Chicago, I passed a black CTS with Michigan "manufacturer" plates and it was love at first sight. Other than Diamond White, the CTS looks best in dark colors. My first choice is blue onyx with black second. Did you lease or buy?

cadman88

Yes there is a delay, GM wants this car to be perfect, here's a link that a GM insider posted at cheersandgears http://cheersandgears.com/boards/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2913

thebug

I always buy because I pay them off before 18 months in most cases. Additionally, with leasing, you aren't allowed to take them out of the country if you choose to work overseas. I have a strong tendency to take on special overseas assignments when pay bonuses are offered. A large portion of overseas pay is not taxable under certain contracts. Can't wait to take this caddy on the Autobaun. Most companies will ship one car to and from free of charge.
Looking for my next assignment in mid 2003. That is, if the upcoming war doesn't mess up travel for non-coms.

the bug

thebug

Congrats on the grandchild. If I were you, I'd do the same. I've seen just about every CTS color offered by Cadillac in the Las Vegas area. Some of the color combinations are good together, and some, well each to his own. I drive all day and depending on what part of town I.m in, I may see up to three a day. Of all colors, I've only seen one blue CTS.

the bug

1932caddy

Richw5, seems like we both have wife working and we are on the WEB. I too live near Chicago west of you on the Fox river. Often see a new CTS parked near RT 30 and 47 at a golf range. I plan to get a CTS for my wife with a manual shift. ( She is one of few women that like stick!!) Do any of you think the 04 will have a electrical lumbar support? Pete

b4z

1283 cars for the week.
Production for this calendar year is 45,742.
Production in 2001 was 992 cars.
They won't produce 50,000 cars this year but I would guess that production of 2003 CTS's will be around 75K or maybe a little more by the time they do the changover in June 2003.

An unqualified success.

If Cadillac makes 7K on each CTS total profit will be $525,000,000!!!

Not chump change.

mcgreenx

I just got a "Check Coolant" message and seem to recall that is one of the problems written about here. I don't know if it's possible to do a word or phrase search but would appreciate it if someone can direct me to a message number(s) dealing with this CTS problem.

Thanks.

mannytranny

It is post # 1565. This was the second check coolant level.

The first one was at 3000 miles right at the first oil change. Then they said that there was probably a bubble when the coolant was filled at the factory and it took about a half quart of coolant to fill it. When it happened about 1000 miles later , that's when they found the real problem.

bigdaddycoats

Where did you get $7000 profit on each CTS? I don't think they will ever build 75k in one year. The SRX and future STS will all be built at the Grand River plant and I don't think there is enough capacity to do so - I could be wrong though.

b4z

I heard that mentioned on another site. 7K is a lot but I am sure it is at least 4K.

My 75K production figure is for the model year 2003 CTS which has an extra long production run.
Production started very slowly in October 2001 and will probably stop around June 2003.

About 20 months of production.

sevenfeet0

This is much like the last year of the Allante's run (18 months). But Cadillac has to be pleased with the numbers. The car still needs better press, especially when it came out opposite the highly praised G35. I suspect that 2004 upgrades and V-series improvements will go a long way.

And its good to hear that the V-series will be delayed a bit to get it right. Cadillac has only one shot at this and they need to be perfect. Given the stiff competition in the marketplace and the things that Cadillac didn't get right with this car (gauges, new V6 engine late), Cadillac is fortunate that 2003 was still a very good year with this car.

On a happy note, we are starting to see more of our fellow CTS drivers on the road. I even parked next to a silver one in the parking lot of Houston's in Atlanta yesterday. With every passing day, I know I bought the right car.

richm4

I am wondering how most of you folks feel about the trunk space in the CTS. I'm considering getting one, but the trunk space of the CTS is probably on par with that of the Cavalier, er Cimmaron.

Since I don't have a second car or SUV, I want to to able to come close to hauling what I can in my Grand Prix.

bingoman

Rich, the trunk in the CTS is smaller than the trunk in the Catera by about 1.7cf. But it is all usable. My wife and I spent 7 weeks on the road and had everything we needed. That included two large roll-on bags, two small roll-on bags, a large, well stocked camera bag, a large computer bag with printer, two clothing bags on top of the roll-on bags, winter coats, assorted shoes, water bottles and other goodies. It all depends on how you pack them in. You have to plan where everything goes. You can't just throw everything in.

But if you really want to know if the trunk is suitable for your needs, collect everything you intend to take with you, drive on down to your local Cadillac dealer, and see if you can fit them into the trunk. You might also want to check out the fold down rear seat option.

thebug

Check around message 1563 or maybe 1565. I think I remember seeing something in that area on coolant problems.

the bug

thebug

Does anyone know if Cadillac is going to offer a tiptronic trans for the CTS in the 04 model year? It's an awesome feature. Have it in my 00 VW Passat. And that's the reason I didn't trade it on this purchase.

the bug

cadman88

I don't know because I don't own a CTS, but it has an option for split-folding rear seats, (if it's only you) then you wouldn't have to use the back seat anyways.

richw5

I haven't heard about an adjustable lumbar support being added to the '04 CTS. I have it on the STS and don't really use it much. My problem (on any car) is the thigh support for the accelerator leg. It took me a while, but I finally found the right setting on the CTS.

While I don't golf, we have friends that live in the Townhomes of Prestberry in Sugar Grove. Our CTS can sometimes be seen at the Sugar Grove VFW on Friday nights (Fish fry).

Richm4 - The trunk space on our CTS has more usable space than our STS. It's a little taller and deeper. We use rolling duffel bags a lot and they fit perfectly, along with any other soft sided bags. We haven't taken a really long trip, so I'm not sure how the CTS would handle my wife's habit of packing too much.

Bingoman - Thanks! I forgot about the fold down rear seat. You're right, planning makes packing any trunk work.

sevenfeet0 - While I had my concerns in the beginning, the CTS has been so much fun that I know I made the right decision, when I bought mine. My wife doesn't usually talk about mechanical things like cars, boats and airplanes. She loves her CTS and that's what really counts.

Rich

b4z

Scroll down to the bottom of the page.

http://www.angelfire.com/comics/lesabre_88/2002_auto_show.html

blckthree

Test drove a CTS over the weekend. It had the luxury package. A nice car, quiet, smooth on the road, well equipped, but seriously underpowered. Maybe next year, with the new V-6 it will be better, 220 hp, is just not enough for this car. The new V-8 will be an improvement I am sure when it comes out, but they will probably make the price for that much higher the I would want to pay for it.

mcgreenx

I find the trunk space adequate, but the size of the opening is inconvenient. I had an Aurora a couple of cars ago and had the same problem. But I have the split rear seat and find it useful for large objects if I don't have rear passengers. I wouldn't have ordered it, but I bought the car off the lot, and I'm glad it had it.

Did you notice the item in Friday's USA Today that silver is the most popular car color, being chosen by 23% of buyers? I have a Sterling CTS and most of the adds seem to use that color. The article says that "silver has a connotation of value."

For my needs the power is more than adequate. I have never felt the need for more acceleration than is available. But then virtually all of my driving is city/expressway/Interstate.

missouri2

got to test drive over the weekend a black cts with the sport package. the car handled great and was fun to drive. the bose sounded very good. it is alot of car for the money. what do you all think about the sport package, the pro and con. thank you.

thebug

blckthree: A test drive can sometimes be misleading. I personally don't test drive cars anymore because it doesn't really tell you anything. I equate it to kicking the tires and looking under the hood. If they would let you have the car for a couple of months or so (slim chance on that), then one could really understand what a vehicle is truly capable of.

On past purchases through the years, I would research the car for a few months. Talk to those who have one (word of mouth is the best source of advertisement), because people will generally tell the truth. If it sucks, they will let you know to no end, and if it's awesome (as the CTS is) they also will let you know.

You may also try renting one for a while so you can drive it like it's yours. As for my CTS, the more I drive it the better it gets. I am very, very pleased with this car. I didn't target horsepower as my reason for purchasing. I targeted the innovative engineering, handling, standard features, availablity of options, crash test worthiness, safety features, body style, the history of good service at Cadillac dealers (very important since I travel a lot), dealer incentives, and price.

This car has more than enough horsepower for my needs. My CTS powered and handled well with five large adults through the mountains of California on a recent weekend trip maintaining speeds of 85-90 mph. I was impressed with the performance. In light of all that, I have no plans to tow a trailer or race, so therefore 220 hp is plenty.

the bug

sevenfeet0

The horsepower is adequate but not overpowing. A BMW 330i is faster than a CTS but BMW 525i's and 530i's are not. An Infiniti G35 is definetely faster and is the current price/performance leader in the class. I expect Cadillac to close that gap with the new V6 engine in 2004.

automole

I agree that the CTS is slightly underpowered...but SERIOUSLY underpowered?? -No.

Your post hit on the most important qualities of the CTS...it's a nice quiet smooth driving car. Also, it's handling qualities are excellent and it has the best automatic transmission I've ever driven.

I also agree with thebug that in order to truly appreciate ANY car you have to drive it longer than a normal testdrive. When I first drove the luxury CTS I found its acceleration disappointing...after driving two other CTS's my opinion changed. I don't know if there are big manufacturing variations in HP between CTS's or if the added weight of a highly optioned luxury package CTS makes for worse acceleration but there was a big difference between the three cars.

After living with the CTS for 6K miles and 6 months it's actually a much better car than I would have expected in ALL areas (handling, acceleration, braking, transmission, ride quality, etc. etc.). The only thing I really dislike about it is the lack of a compass and heated seats on the base model and the lack of lumbar support. The seats kill my back after extended driving due to the nonexistant support to my lower back.

Overall, the CTS is a great car. I myself am used to V8's so ANY non-supercharged V6's are lacking in the torque department in my opinion.
I'm more than willing to live with the lack of horsepower/torque until the V series comes out...I just hope I will be able to afford ($$)to trade my current CTS in on the V series model when it arrives.

mcgreenx

Regarding your question about the SportLux, I drove both the Lux and SportLux two or three times before getting the SportLux. While I agree that I know more about the car now, after 3 mos./5k miles, the test drives showed me a great deal. The major difference is the ride. The SportLux is a noticeably harsher ride. On rough roads the ride is jarring. If you will be driving a good deal on really poor road surfaces, I would think two or three times before buying one. Most of my driving is on good surfaces, and I wanted the StabiliTrak and the leveler, and I'm very happy with the SportLux, but IMHO that's the difference between the two (in addition to the features, of course). Bottom line is that I am very pleased with the CTS, it's proving to be a great car and an excellent value.

blckthree

I would have to disagree with the idea of not getting a good idea of the cars capability in the acceleration and power areas. If I take a car for a test drive and I want to find out what kind of HP it has, salesman or no salesman in the car, I am going to find out! As far as the CTS is concerned, I would agree, that for expressway interstate driving, it is adequately powered, acceleration is good for merging onto the interstate, and it does have a good amount of low end torque for a DOHC engine. The area I was unhappy with in reference to HP, was the passing speed. The level of acceleration from 70-95. The car will cruise fine at 80-85, effortlessly. But, if you need to make a pass, it is a slow crawl from 75-95. I tried it twice, the first time, I eased into the accelerator, and when I was done, my foot was on the floor, and I never even noticed even the slightest surge in acceleration. It just crept up slowly to about 95. The second time, I stomped the pedal to the floor, it downshifted into a passing gear, but I still didn’t notice a significant improvement in acceleration even then. There was a lot more noise, which gives you the illusion of acceleration, but when you put your foot to the floor and it downshifts, it should put you back in the seat just a little bit anyway! Next years engine should help it out, and might make it an acceptable car in terms of horsepower.

On another not, I read today about the lack of lumbar support. I must admit, I didn’t check into this feature, or attempt to make any adjustments in the lumbar (good thing). But it did feel like the lower part of the seat was very flat and lacked a well defined lumbar support system. If that is indeed the case, that is another area which should be addressed.

As stated in the earlier post, the car did feel and drive well except for top end acceleration and I feel it will be a better car with the addition of more HP. That said, it is still a fine car, and should bring younger people into the Cadillac fold.

necros

You know, you shouldn't really be driving at 95 mph on public roads anyway. Also, I don't have the same problem you do, but I don't have an automatic CTS, either. The manual accellerates very well at pretty much any speed. I found 110-125 mph to be slow, but that's not abnormal.

Anyway, here's results from this weekend: http://www.rmsolo.org/results.html

The event was Event #3. I run in GS, and for some reason they have me listed as a 93 CTS, whatever the heck that is. Anyway, I said I'd be happy with a sub-65-second time, and I accomplished that.

It was a pretty exciting day, made a little unpleasant by the M Roadster driver who ran out of talent and totalled his car by driving into a light pole. Next event looks to be February.

Also, the CTS got hit in a parking lot the other day, and went in this morning for the $1075 worth of body work it now requires.

ajvdh

Whoa! I'll have to find out who wrecked their car. I was supposed to be there, but we had way to much Xmas stuff going on. I was (in essence) given the choice of not going and being resentful, or going and sleeping on the couch for the forseeable future. Next time will probably work (SWMBO owes me BIG TIME!). Sorry to hear about your car.

Kirstie_H

A journalist with a major daily newspaper is looking to talk with people who bought entry-luxury cars having owned more-expensive luxury cars (e.g. traded 5-series for 3-series).
If you have a story to share, please send your daytime contact information to jfallon@edmunds.com no later than Friday, December 20, 2002. Please be sure to include the vehicle model names and model years. Thanks for your consideration!

thebug

In regards to passing power, I also drive a VW Passat which has a tiptronic tranny. I have learned that while in the manual mode, the car will accelerate to pass by dropping to a lower gear such as 4th and 3rd (I like to call them the slingshot gears), whichever is necessary to get the job done. Although it's not as convenient as having the tiptronic, I use the lower gear settings while driving the CTS with the same results,( If you have the auto tranny, you do have three other gears at your disposal), and passing at any speed is successfully accomplished. As with the tiptronic in the Passat, it will not let you downshift into a gear that's too low for the speed being traveled (one of many idiot features), the CTS has a similar feature with the auto tranny, that applies to 3rd and 2nd gear. I'm not sure if this applies to the 4th gear. This has worked very well for me. I would have loved to have gotten the manny tranny, but I feared it would be too much additional work in my rolling office. I love driving this car.

necros: I don't know where you are in the country, but 90 to 95 mph seems to be normal traffic flow on interstates in the southwestern states.

the bug

thebug

nercos: Sorry to hear about your car. I would be sick. I hate parking lot calling cards. Hope the repairs go well. Let us know how it went.

the bug

necros

If you find out who did it, let me know. They had removed the numbers from the car by the time I got up there on my cone-picking-up rounds. I do know that they had to push the car onto a trailer, and that Graeme didn't think it would ever be drivable again. Yikes.

I won't be able to go to the next event in th Springs, but I should be at the one in February. Hope to see you there!

thebug, I'm in Colorado. Our freeways are far too congested for speeds in that range.

I'm sure my car will be fine. It costs a lot to fix, but the damage is extremely minor. I'm having the dealership do the fix, so I suspect they'll do a good job. The insurance adjuster quoted $544 for the job, so I'll let them fight it out. :rolleyes:

tvdirec

Hello, everyone. I posted here about two months ago waiting on XM to become factory installed. Got tired of waiting and decided to buy the CTS I had seen on the lot that had everything ELSE I wanted. Drove off the lot with 15 miles. Right now, I'm sitting at close to 900 and have to say I love this car.
I got the Luxury Sport package, neutral interior, sunroof, heated seats, HID headlights. I might be the only one on this board who owns a Cashmere color CTS. You don't seen many of them on the road in that color. I like that.
The main thing I've noticed is how much more fuel is used in the "sport" mode. So, I've been running in "normal" the past two weeks.
My dealer has given a mileage of 3,700 for the first oil change and then every 3,700 thereafter.
The Bose sound system is very good. Enough power for me. I may still put XM satellite radio in sometime this spring or summer.
I've been fortunate here in the northeast to miss the two big snowstorms we've had. So, I can't relate how the car drives in the snow.
I've only seen two other CTS's on the road in this area.
I'll keep everyone posted on anything I might find in the future. Here's to happy driving.
What a great car!!

mannytranny

Congrats on your new CTS. The cashmere are rare to see around here also.

Where do you live in the northeast that you missed the snow? It was a great experience with the CTS on the snow. I don't know how differently an auto would be but I sure had fun!

What mileage are you getting now? Remember it will get better when the engine gets broken in . I now have 4800 on mine.

brunobus

Sorry to those of you CTS people that this is off topic.

Dave,

Bruno here. When did the car crash, during heat 4 or during the fun runs? I left after I watched your first run and did not hear anything about it until someone from my LS club mentioned that they saw your post here. Where on the course did he crash?

bingoman

3700 miles seems like a very strange interval for oil changes. And why is the dealer recommending fixed interval oil changes when Cadillac went to the trouble of building in a special computer to calculate the remaining oil life.

I personally plan to use 85% to 90% of the computed oil life as the target for oil changes in my CTS. Why buy a Cadillac if you can't trust the engineers?

Years ago we used to have to change the oil every thousand miles, then engine machining improved and oil refining and additives improved and the interval was changed to every three thousand miles.
The machining of engine parts continues to improve, and so does the oil manufacturing process, but the dealers are stuck at 3000. I think it is a matter of money.

Personally, I wish they would include full service for the warranty period in the purchase price, then the dealers would be more interested in maintaining the car for long service with a minimum of service calls.

tvdirec

I live just sw of Hartford Connecticut in a town called Farmington.
I didn't miss the snowstorms I was fortunate enough not to have to drive to work in them when they hit. Especially, in a car that's only a month old. My last car was front wheel drive and I'm still getting used to RWD on the CTS.
I haven't checked the mileage because I drive mainly in and around town. I'm hoping to hit the highway soon and check it out.

tvdirec

The maintenance schedule I received from the dealer lists the oil changes at 3700 miles. I'll do like most people and take it in at 3000.
85 - 90% on the computed oil life sounds like a good plan.

b4z

Here is a CTS that has been modded without going over the top.

Nice and clean.

http://www.clubcts.com/cts1.jpg

richw5

Congrats on your new CTS. Keep us informed on your driving experiences.

Cadillac's Oil Life Monitor is extremely accurate. The CTS maintenance schedule calls for an oil change at 7500 miles. Currently my oil life monitor shows 11% oil life left at 7250 miles. It should start reminding me to change the oil in the next few days. When it does, I'll call the dealer and schedule an oil change. I'll also have them balance and rotate the tires.

Earlier this year, one poster stated that he had the grill of his CTS painted to match his car. Does anyone remember who that was? I'd like to see a picture of that car.

B4z- The clubcts car does have a nice set of wheels. I just hate to mess with a car that drives really well with the wheels it has. But, I'd rather see young people buying a Caddy and personalizing it, instead of some other car. I like the rocker panel ground effects, but I know I'll catch a lot of flack on that.

Speaking of tires and wheels, necros- have you been using the 30 psi tire pressure recommended by pmdriver2? Sorry to hear about your parking lot ding. My wife goes crazy when I look for two "new cars" to park between, when we go to the mall. I figure I'm less likely to get a ding from people with "new" or "well cared for" cars.

Rich

sevenfeet0

Your observations about passing power at high speed are indeed accurate. When Motor Trend compared the CTS against the G35 and the 330i recently, I noticed that the CTS was a tad slower, but generally kept up with the 330i within a car length up until about 75 MPH. After that, it took the CTS 3 additional seconds to get to 100 MPH (20 seconds versus 17 for the BMW). The 3.2L V6's power band starts to wind down after 75 MPH and it shows if you are trying to blow past another fast vehicle at those speeds.

The engine is good for 147 MPH in LuxSport trim. I personally have seen 110 MPH and I thought that it wasn't all that slow getting there. But I didn't try challenging a 330i or worse, the stronger G35 getting there. Some people in this forum who have been faster in their cars have said previously that the CTS takes awhile to see its upper top speeds.

sevenfeet0

Congrats on your new car and the color choice. You'll be on the rare side of us dark colored (or white diamond) CTS owners. Come back and let us know over time your impressions of the vehicle.

sevenfeet0

I would hope that the oil life monitor would be resonably accurate. Cadillac has had this feature for at least a decade. It was on my late '91 Deville.

I did my first oil change at 3200 miles. I did it early just to get the first "break-in" oil out of the car, and replace it with some new stuff. You never know what shakes loose in a new engine. I'll do it again at 7500 miles when I'll need other work done, then after that I may settle in to every 7500 as recommended.

bigdaddycoats

Any clue were they got those side sill extensions, they look pretty sharp.

fjk57702

I think that there are some misperceptions regarding the oil monitor. The monitor keeps track of more than just how far you have driven the car since the last oil change. It "monitors" the engine temperature and other factors, to determine how quickly to diminish the remaining life as you drive. So, when you start up with a cold engine, the oil life is decreased faster. After the engine warms up, the oil life will decrease more slowly. In general, if most of your driving is "highway", you should expect to get 7-8000 miles between changes. If your driving is more stop and go city driving, then the life will probably been around 3000. My 98 Aurora would go about 4000 miles in the summer under city driving conditions and about 3000 in winter. On the highway, 7000 miles was possible.

bingoman

Mine is the White Diamond CTS with the grill painted to match. Unfortunately I do not have a digital camera so I have not been able to show it. I will try to borrow a camera and take some pictures so that everyone can see the effect. I personally think it makes a considerable improvement in the car's appearance.

b4z

Don't know.

Here's another.

http://www.clubcts.com/ctsbackimg.jpg

mannytranny

I really think the extensions look great. Wonder what they would look like on a black CTS? Where did they come from? Try to find out.....check his plate from Jersey DMV

blckthree

Two lane highway, semi, you want to pass… start at about 65 mph, and you have roughly 110 feet to cover by the time you get in front of him and start out behind far enough to see… this is where the 75-100 power need comes from. You either need more power, or lots of patience! I have NO patience!!

I said it before, still say it, GREAT car, but I will wait another year and see what the new V-6 brings for it.

I currently drive a WS6 TransAm, that is overkill in the HP department (325 HP), but it sure is fun!! 260-280 would be appropriate, in my opinion for the CTS.