After Cimarron and Catara, the third time’s the charm.
To many, compact Cadillac is as much an oxymoron as giant shrimp! Even though Cadillac downsized its cars from New York City sized studio apartments decades ago, the image of ginormous Fleetwood Broughams with mouse-fur interiors has been burned into our hard drives. That was then, this is now. For some time Cadillac pretty much owns the domestic luxury-performance market, with its V-Series CTS kicking sand in the faces of import standard bearers on a regular basis. And, they’ve doing it with mega-torque coupes, sedans and station wagons that go around corners (road racing tracks) as well as they do in a straight line (drag strips), and at a stoplight near you!
Compact Cadillac often brings to mind the ill fated, underpowered, badge-engineered Chevy Cavalier (Cimarron) and Opel (Catera) that Cadillac and GM would like to forget about. The new ATS, however, is the real deal: It’s fast, luxurious, handles, stops, loaded with technology and, in V6-trim, follows in the footsteps of its V-Series big brother. Like the kick-ass CTS-V, the 3.6-engined, all-wheel-drive, Brembo-braked ATS can show some of its German
competitors the quick way home!
When Cadillac designed and engineered its new compact, one of its bogeys (targets) was the car that essentially “owns” the compact-sports-sedan market: BMW 3-Series. It has been the reigning king of the segment seemingly forever. Many carmakers have been trying to dethrone the King for years; some have come close, none has succeeded. While a properly equipped ATS will outperform and outshine the BMW in some important categories, dethroning will take time.
Bragging rights are incredibly important and make great advertising copy, but the buying public’s brand perception is what drives sales. Styling also plays an important role. Cadillac has made incredible inroads with its cars since the debut of Art & Science styling (CTS), improved quality and world-class powertrains, but toppling a brand like BMW that has been enjoying elevated status for decades, is a tall order. But the ATS benefits from superior all new (rear-wheel and all-wheel-drive) chassis architecture, lightweight components, below,
and suspension tuning (developed in BMW’s backyard - Nurburgring) and has the
3-Series BMW clearly in its sights.
The new 2013 ATS can be had with an economical 202-horsepower 2.5-liter Four, a turbocharged 272-horsepower 2.0-liter Four with direct injection and variable valve timing that generates 260 pound-feet of torque or the ATS killer-app, a 321-horsepower 3.6 V6 with 275 foot-pounds of torque. All engines boast dual-overhead cams and are available with Hydra-Matic 6L45 automatic transmissions with paddle shifters. For those who prefer to row their own boat, only the Turbo powerplant can be fitted with a six-speed manual.
Our 3.6-liter ATS test car (Performance Collection model) had just about every performance-luxury goodie, listing out at $47,985 including $1,395 worth of options: Navigation and Cold Weather Package. Equipment worth noting are all-wheel-drive, six-speed automatic with performance algorithm tapshift (paddles), sport suspension, 17-inch alloy wheels, Michelin all-weather run-flat tires, Brembo front brakes, Stabilitrack stability control with traction control and great 12-way adjustable driver’s bucket seat (passenger’s seat is 10-way).
Regardless of what you might think about a compact Cadillac, the ATS equipped like our tester, above, is a driver’s car. A serious driver’s car. And while there will be whiners complaining about the lack of a manual mixer like the Turbo Four has, the ATS automatic’s appeal is boosted by PAL (Performance Algorithm Liftfoot) insuring automatic downshifts when needed plus quick-shifting paddles for doing it yourself. PAL detects when you demand more performance while negotiating a curve and automatically drops the transmission to a lower gear to improve acceleration out of the corner.
We found the paddle shifters, beautifully crafted from magnesium, to be less than easily accessible for those with other-than-model-like hands. The area under the steering wheel is too busy with stalks and controls for spirited paddle shifting. If I owned the car I’d probably get used to the maze below the steering wheel.
“The ATS is built to deliver inspired driving dynamics when the driver desires it,” said Adam Dean, Cadillac ATS ride and handling engineer. “When PAL is engaged, the driver will notice the ATS kick into a higher rpm.”
Once we mastered the multi-talented in-dash CUE screen, above, with eight-inch color touch display which lets you know where you are and where you’re going (when Navigation is optioned), when you’re getting too close to traffic and every entertainment function
known to man, we loved it. I can’t say that about many other makes with in-dash
screen-controlled displays.
Cadillac’s luxurious ATS sport-compact is really all about driving. Its styling is not bold enough to turn heads, but it does put up a good front that unquestionably says CADILLAC. Like a BMW, you know exactly what it is when you see its grille in your rear view mirror. In the bragging rights department, the 3.6 ATS has a number of advantages over the 335i Sport, the 3-Series BMW that comes closest to the 3.6 ATS. In a styling shootout with the 335i sedan, the ATS trumps its competitor.
Two nits to pick about the ATS are rear seating comfort and trunk access and capacity. There isn’t as much legroom as you would think since the seats are mounted on a carpeted platform that extends out beyond the seat cushions. Front seating is excellent. Then there’s a matter of a low mailbox-slot-effect trunk opening and a total capacity of just 10 cubic feet. The 335i Sport boasts 17 cubic feet.
The Bimmer is powered by an all-aluminum turbocharged 3.0-liter straight Six rated at 300 horsepower and 300 foot-pounds of torque, while the ATS has an all-aluminum 3.6-liter V6 rated at 321 horsepower and 275 foot-pounds of torque. Cadillac has the horsepower edge; BMW is the torque champ. Both cars are 182 inches long and the ATS weighs in at some 20 pounds less. Yes, the Cadillac is lighter than the BMW! Wheelbase is within approximately one-inch of each other (ATS: 109.3; 335i: 110.6). Weight distribution is superb and about the same, 50/50 or 51/49 depending upon powertrain and who is quoting the specs!
We didn’t run any instrumented tests, but the enthusiast auto magazines show that both cars will run 0-60 mph sprints in the sub-to-low 5s and the 335i Sport may have an edge on the quarter-mile running mid-13s to the ATS’s 14.0s. Both run trap speeds of 102-103 mph. What really surprised us was ATS lateral acceleration performance on the skid pad: 0.88 to 0.91-G compared with 0.89-G for the boosted 335i Sport. BMW has been developing the 3-Series for decades; the Cadillac ATS is a segment newbie in its first year!
The ATS has a very intelligent six-speed automatic; the 335i boasts an eight-speed. BMW has a fuel economy advantage over the ATS. Both require Premium fuel, with the ATS rated at 18-26 mpg and the 335i Sport at 23-33 mpg. During some cruising portions of our 500-mile test, driving from Sarasota to Miami for a SAMA (Southern Automotive Media Association) event, we were able to average 30 mpg.
While it’s entirely possible for a pro-driven, all-wheel-drive, V6 ATS to outperform a 335i Sport on the ‘Ring where GM engineers spent a lot of time during platform development, a skid pad and other enthusiast venues, where it really has to outperform the class-leading sports-sedan is in the county club parking lot or other locations where luxury, sportscar and sports sedan owners gather, right. These are the places where badging and image really count. Give Cadillac some time; the ATS is on the fast track to the compact-sports sedan throne. And check out those hard-driving TV commercials showing a ATS dominating some of the most demanding roads in the world, including Derek Hill at the Monte Carlo GP course, below.
Cadillac has priced its ATS starting at $33,000, while the BMW 335i Sport is $43,000. Considering that the ATS is all new, we can expect even higher performance models in the near future. ATS AWD architecture is ideal for boosted (single or dual turbochargers) 3.6-liter powertrains and there may even be an ATS coupe coming down the pike!
For more information about the latest luxury-performance vehicle from Cadillac, please visit http://www.cadillac.com/ats-luxury-sport-sedan.html
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