2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon photo gallery; Fit and ZR1 test drives coming shortly
First up: Cadillac has released pictures of the upcoming 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon. The new CTS wagon will offer the same 3.6 liter engines (in both 263 horsepower and 304 hp versions) as the CTS sedan. Will it sell? Well, BMW, Mercedes and Saab didn't do particularly well with their small wagons -- but that was before gas cost $4/gallon. Buyers are turning away from SUVs in droves, but that doesn't mean they need less space to haul their families. Looks like General Motors may have finally gotten a break -- the CTS Sport Wagon is going to be the right car at the right time. Unless gas is at $2/gallon next spring when the CTS Sport Wagon hits the dealerships... anyway, check out more photos in my 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon photo gallery.
Photo © General Motors
Comments
People in this price category aren’t concerned about gas mileage. They’ll still have an SUV parked next to their regular CTS. This puppy will bomb just like the Bimmer, M-B and Saab. Actually I liked the Bimmer wagon I drove a lot…but what does a Mini driver know?
This product is mainly for European consumption. If Caddilac is too compete they need a vehicle that covers all spectrums of one class i.e. coupe, convertible, wagon and sedan.
I would buy a good RWD wagon in a heartbeat but it seems the only companies putting them out are the luxury brands. This vehicle isn’t supposed to sell here in large numbers although having a 6 spd manual good gearing this could be alot of fun to drive.
I’m 60 years old and I learned to drive in Mom’s ‘59 Caddy Sedan Deville. It was huge, roared like a jet fan, and handled a lot like my old Radio Flyer wagon BUT it was very distinctive and you knew instantly that it was “The Standard of the World”…a long, elegant Cadillac. Mom drove a succession of big Cadillacs…a ‘65, a ‘72, a ‘78 and finally an ‘89 Brougham. They were stately and the styling always said, “This is the finest car Detroit has to offer.”
I don’t feel this way about Cadillacs anymore. They’re not long and elegant. The distinctive chrome grill is gone; Mom’s cars had only minor tweaks in grill styling year after year. You knew from the front view that it was a Caddy. Accessories (automatic headlight dimmer,electric antenna) that were available only on Cadillacs for at least 2 years are now available a year later on everything GM makes. They do handle a lot better than they used to and that’s because Cadillac is trying to copy European luxury cars. The word “copy” sums it up. Cadillacs are copies of cars with more status, more engineering, and more acceptance by the automotive critics.
Cadillac is no longer the leader they used to be and they won’t be a leader again until they stop copying their competitors and stop designing cars that look like angry Pontiacs. Cadillac used to target their designs towards people my age. Now they’ve lost site of who their target customers are because they’re trying to grab a piece of the already established European luxury market; a target that may be too small to share.
I’ll hush now!
It looks like Cadillac is trying to split the difference between being a full-fledged station wagon and being a hatchback. The rear side windows are tiny and the C-pillar is HUGE! Rear visibility, while changing lanes for example, must be horrible.
I think Cadillac should have put more emphasis on “wagon” and less on “sport” as the resulting car is odd-looking and seems to lack most of the additional practicality that a wagon should have. A Volvo V70 is better-looking (and more practical) station wagon.
“…that doesn’t mean they need less space to haul their families.” What are you talking about? I’m a child of the 70’s when parents had more children to haul then they give birth to now. We rode around in station wagons and sat in the “way back.” Nobody was left behind. Trucks like suburban’s were rarely seen and sparsely accomodated. Large SUVS were the exception and not the norm. Maybe it was minivan aversion that lead to the giants ruling the highways. It wasn’t safety. I mean c’mon. Now I admit that sitting in the “way back” may not have been all that safe, but the track record of trucks is none to grand either. In fact, their standards are often less consumer friendly. Maybe we just need sportier cars with better use of the available space. What was your point again? Oh yeah. I hardly see this car as a substitute for the people haulers you reference nor is it a solution to $4 and $5 gas. It is, however, a young sporty, more attractive and smartly laid out alternative than anything else I’ve seen Cadiallac put out to address families that purchase luxury foreign wagons—with which it competes.
I LIKE it! It is distinctive and not the same old thing. I am a big fan of wagons. We have a Subaru Outback Wagon my wife drives…goes everywhere, gets okay mileage, hauls our little girl, her little friends and mass quantities of related accessories easily. We are VERY much anticipating the Diesel version. Now…if Cadillac offered it with a diesel and all wheel drive…I’d seriously consider it.
I love wagons, they drive like a car yet have the space/utility of an SUV. I drive a MBZ E-class wagon now; I would have bought a domestic wagon if one were available. I like the looks of the Caddy wagon - clean and sporty - but I think visibility will be a problem. The back windows look too small and the rear pillar is huge. Looks like the designers were after form over function, which is not always a bad thing, but wagon buyers tend to be very function oriented. I wonder if the Caddy will come with a 3rd-row rear-facing seat like the MBZs and Bimmers?
BTW, Kevin: I just checked out Cadillac’s web-site. Looks like the wagon WILL come with diesel and AWD. The website doesn’t specify if the two will be available together in one package, though. And it looks like the diesel will only be available in Europe, so even if the two options were available together, we wouldn’t be able to get it here…
Just goes to show that everytime I see something on this website people always seem to take pop shots at the domestics. Why does my wife still have this website on my yahoo browser is beyond me.
Andre — obviously, your wife has exceptionally good taste in web sites!
I’m absolutely crazy about wagons for all the reasons noted by John in San Jose. Although I’ll never be able to afford the likes of the CTS Sport Wagon, I say BRING IT ON! If the people with the big bucks start eating them up, there’s some hope that wagons will move down market.
Aaron: I am sorry for GM! This will be a bust! I still believe GM should have dropped Buick and Pontiac and kept Oldsmobile! Their designs were unique and comfortable for YOUNG and OLD! When will GM and others use RWD in their bigger vehicles and FWD in the smaller models! Actually Aaaron I agree with you and Andre’s Wife! I enjoy your web site! Keeps my juices flowing!
Aaron! After sleeping on my recent comments I must agree with implied comments from the “older” writers! Growing up as a younster we were able to “spot” the different brands of autos by looking at the front ends! You could tell the year also. Today I had my oil changed and tryes rotated and drove through four new car lots! THEY ALL LOOKED ALMOST ALIKE! 2 of the lots were imports and two were American (?) manufacturers. One brand was interesting and I got out to look at a few vehicles close up! A salesman, very young, came out and offered to help me! THIS IS THE TRUTH..I asked him what YEAR was this vehicle and HE HAD TO LOOK AT THE WINDOW STICKER TO TELL ME!
Am I wrong..is this part of the problem…they all look alike!
Great, another “station wagon” YUK, with a high price tag. This is why GM is in the mess it is in now.
C Pillar must be a huge blind spot.
Aaron, any idea as to what Cadillac is going to do about the CTS coupe it had at the auto show. Now that has winner written all over it.
What do you say ???
Allen — I think the CTS coupe is going to happen. I saw some camoflaged prototypes in the Detroit area, and they looked GREAT. I bet the CTS Coupe is going to give the Infiniti G37 a serious run for its money.
I think that the CTS is a beautiful sedan; sporty, elegant, not too big, dependable, and all that jazz. That being said, the wagon/hatchback version is UGLY. I wish that this was one of those concept cars that will never make it to production. I know that many people might not agree with me on this, but, what were they thinking?
I don’t see this specimen doing very much for GM at all. As stated in an earlier post, the people who can afford these cars AND are attracted to Cadillacs are likely the same ones who are going to continue to drive the Escalades and STX’s because they can’t concern themselves with getting better gas mileage. I am a huge fan of hatchbacks and wagons, and I think that like me, others who like said types of vehicles are going continue to migrate to cars like Subarus, MB’s, Audis, and the like. Just my honest opinion.
I have a Dodge Magnum RT (5.7 litre MDS V8)–a great car that gets better highway mpg than some of the 4 and 6-cyl crossovers. And now, stupid cerberus/chrysler is cutting it while cadillac is bringing out a sort-of clone in the CTS sportwagon–and probably at a much higher price!