Road Test: 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon Premium AWD

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Handy Caddy

Adding a fifth door only adds to the appeal of GM's best car

By John LeBlanc Pity our self-conscious friends south of the border. Seemingly, they don’t have the same appreciation for old-fashioned station wagons as us Canadians. Whatever the reasons—cultural, economic, social—station wagons (and hatchbacks) have been anathema to U.S. car buyers since SUVs and minivans effectively replaced station wagons in the 1980s. So it’s with considerable interest that that quintessentially American luxury car brand, Cadillac, is introducing its first ever North American station wagon, the CTS Sport Wagon. Since its introduction in 2003 as the replacement for the Opel-based Cadillac Catera, Cadillac’s CTS entry-level luxury sport sedan has been the volume model in the General Motors luxury brand’s philosophical resurgence, which started with the Evoq show car in 1999. Not only was the CTS one of the first cars to feature the brand’s now decade-old Art and Science design language, it also separated itself from more plebeian GM products with its unique rear-drive platform, a distinction luxury-sport makes like BMW, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and Infiniti also enjoyed. While the ‘03 CTS was flawed—Legoland interior; less-than-stellar drivetrain refinement—when the more refined, better built (and arguably better looking) second generation CTS showed up in 2008, I declared it The Most Competitive GM Product Since Nixon was Sitting in the White House. A real alternative to the more established luxury-sport brands, the CTS is also a bit of a value, offering midsize accommodations for only compact prices. At $44,325, the base model, rear-drive, 3.0-litre V6 with 270 hp CTS Sport Wagon is priced more inline with compact rivals like the $45,260 BMW 328i xDrive Touring or $42,700 Audi A4 Avant. But in reality, the CTS Sport Wagon offers interior room similar to the $52,900 A6 Avant. My CTS Sport Wagon tester only had a sport package missing from its options sheet. With the larger 3.6-litre V6, all-wheel-drive and Premium package, its $53,790 base price totaled to $61,495. Adding a fifth-door hasn’t taken anything away from the CTS sedan’s already excellent cabin or its crisp styling. Those trademark Cadillac fins, blended into the wagon’s rear pillars, really defines the car’s looks. By far, the CTS—sedan or wagon—offers GM’s best interior, executed with soft-touch plastics, stitched leathers, and just the right amount of wood. The driving position is spot on too. And overall fit and finish is excellent, if not the laser-like assembly you’ll find in the Audi. Unfortunately, once you head into the back seat and cargo area of the Cadillac wagon, it starts to lose some of its competitive zeal. That sleek rear roofline and sloped back glass eat up a lot of rear head- and cargo space. While the Sport Wagon offers almost twice as much cargo space over the sedan (736 litres of space behind the rear seats, and 1,642 litres with the rear seat folded), A6 wagon offer more room for passengers and their luggage. At least the Cadillac’s cargo bay is nicely executed. Floor rails provide attachment points for various tie-downs and the area is lined with carpet. Upping for the CTS Premium adds the more powerful of the pair of CTS’s sixes—a sweet revving 3.6-litre unit. With 304 hp, it’s comparable to the A6 Avant in power. But with only 272 lb-ft, it lags in the torque charts. Unlike the CTS sedan, the Cadillac wagon isn't available with a manual gearbox, only a six-speed automatic. It’s no surprise, then, with the additional room and hardware out back, the CTS AWD wagon weighs more than the CTS AWD four-door. Straight line speed suffers accordingly. Compared to the sedan, the wagon CTS takes almost a full extra second to go from zero to 100 km—7.4 versus 6.5 (right where the pricier Audi wagon is too.) If that's not enough oomph, though, there's a 556 hp Sport Wagon version of the CTS-V sedan on the way. Beyond the aesthetics, one of the biggest reasons customers choose wagons instead of utility vehicles is the promise of a sedan-like ride and handling. To this end, there’s little difference between the already competent CTS sedan and the new five-door. Overall, an A6 Avant offers a more refined ride. Yet even without the optional sports package, the CTS Sport Wagon isn’t afraid of a twisty back road. It starts with quick and accurate steering, and follows up with a strong desire not to roll in tight corners. One bonus of the Sport Wagon’s avoirdupois is better handling. The CTS wagons are less nose-heavy than the sedans. And like the four-door, the five-door doesn’t suffer from  harsh ride. In my week with the car, the weather provided only dry roads. So my experience with the wagon’s optional AWD system was limited Complaints from the driver’s seat are few. The addition of power to the front wheels seems to have dulled the steering a bit; something I found in the CTS4 sedan I drove last year. Plus the automatic gearbox is a bit schizophrenic. It can be tardy in down shifts (I’m assuming for better fuel economy), and in “sport automatic” mode it holds gears, surprisingly, too long. As American as Cadillac is, offering a European-style sport wagon may seem like blasphemy. And it’s been decades since anyone outside of GM could recommend a Cadillac over such import heavy hitters like BMW and Audi. But as Cadillac’s first ever wagon on these shores (the short-lived Saab-based BLS wagon was never sold in North America) the CTS Sport Wagon should be considered a real alternative to some of the pricier Euro competition. 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon Premium AWD WHAT I LIKED: Sharp styling Added functionality of fifth door; drives just like the sedan; comparatively good value WHAT I DIDN'T: Extra weight dulls performance; larger rear seat occupants may complain; steering could use for feel Base price/as-tested: $53,790/$61,495 Type of vehicle: Midsize, AWD station wagon Engine: 3.6L V6 Power/Torque: 304 hp / 273 lb.-ft. Transmissions: Six-speed automatic Fuel consumption L/100 km: 11.7 city, 7.4 hwy, 11.8 as-tested Competition: Audi A4/A6 Avants, BMW 3 Series Touring

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