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"  Monticello, NY\u2014On the heels of the CTS Sedan, the CTS and CTS-V Coupe share the sedan&amp;#039;s platform and drivetrain in a two-door package that&amp;#039;s shorter vertically and longitudinally as well as wider. The 2+2 Coupe&amp;#039;s design carries through the concept car that was introduced at the Detroit auto show in January 2008. Cadillac intends the CTS family to appeal to an entirely new segment of buyers who have traditionally preferred European styling, performance and handling attributes. While not everyone is enamored of the new art-and-science design philosophy, it certainly speaks for GM management&amp;#039;s willingness to take a chance and let the designers sculpt a vehicle to which most people will have an emotional response. The Specs Dimensionally, Caddy&amp;#039;s new Coupe rides on the same wheelbase as the sedan, but it&amp;#039;s 2 inches shorter, and there are 2 fewer inches hanging ahead of the front tires. The seat has been lowered have an inch to compensate in part for the lessened headroom, while the rear track is 2 inches wider for better grip. The windshield is laid down a further degree, to boot. There is no B-pillar, for a clean look. The base engine is a normally aspirated 304-hp direct-injection V6, available with either the standard 6-speed manual or 6-speed Hydra-matic transmission. The CTS-V comes with a 556-hp supercharged 6.2-liter V8, and is coupled to either a 6-speed automatic or a Tremec 6-speed manual. And yes, that&amp;#039;s more power than most of the competitors Cadillac is trying to steal customers from. The V-6 delivers 18/27 mpg (automatic) and 16/25 (manual), with the very tall final gearing in the automatic providing slightly better economy. Fuel economy numbers for the CTS-V&amp;#039;s V8 aren&amp;#039;t official yet, but we&amp;#039;d expect them to be in the same neighborhood as the CTS-V Sedan: 12/18 (automatic), 14/19 (manual). To handle the V&amp;#039;s extra power, Brembo cooked up a set of two-piece composite rotors. These discs use the usual cast-iron rotor with an aluminum hub that&amp;#039;s cast in place. This new design is reportedly less prone to heat warping and less expensive than conventional two-piece rotors. Massive 6-piston front calipers up front and 4-piston units out back provide plenty of squeezing power and excellent pedal feel.  Since the CTS-V coupe is not a no-comprises sports car, Cadillac took measures to preserve the ride quality. That task falls to the adjustable magnetorheological (MR) shocks installed at all four corners. These dampers have small iron particles suspended in the oil that change the fluid&amp;#039;s viscosity based on electrical signals from the car&amp;#039;s ECU. These shocks first appeared on the Corvette but have now spread not only to other GM products but Audi and Ferrari as well.      The Drive Cadillac reserved a day at Monticello Motor Park, a new country club\u2013styled racetrack, and gave us the run of the entire 4.1- mile road-racing circuit to wring out the CTS-V. There were both automatic\u2013 and manual transmission\u2013equipped cars parked in pit lane, and they were equipped with data-logging systems to boot. Initial impressions were, umm, impressive\u2014the torque from idle is amazing, and the engine eagerly pulls all the way to the redline. Consequently, speed builds in frightfully quick bursts between shifts, and somehow the rear suspension and tires channel all that power to the ground with minimal wheelspin.  Aggressive cornering reveals a modest terminal understeer, enough to inspire some confidence, but not the usual American car plow. With the traction control and yaw control system turned on, it&amp;#039;s amazingly easy to drive at a pace that would make the CTS-V competitive at many racing venues. A click of the steering-wheel-mounted button turns off the traction control but leaves the yaw control activated. A second click turns it off altogether. There&amp;#039;s ample power in the slower corners to kick the back end around if you are determined enough. No surprise, lap times are not significantly faster or slower if you leave the system in its default mode and drive well, rather than turning it off and pushing hard. The MR shocks provide much of the CTS-V&amp;#039;s roll control, allowing a smooth ride over bumpy roads while providing flat cornering. The system encourages you to use up the entire racetrack and competently handles an occasion trip over the track&amp;#039;s sawtoothed rumble strips. On more than one spot on the track, the data logger showed a 1 g of lateral acceleration, a testament to the suspension&amp;#039;s ability keep the Michelin Pilots firmly attached to the asphalt. The car&amp;#039;s speed alone would intimidate anyone, but the brakes proved a worthy backstop, confidently and aggressively slowing the car at the end of the high-speed straights.  What struck us most was how easy it was to push the CTS-V from the very first lap. Placing the car is intuitive, and hitting the turn-in, apex and track-out points requires only that you look where you want to go. How fast is it? Most laps saw an honest 150 mph at the end of Monticello&amp;#039;s long back straight. Cadillac says the car will do 190 mph, which we find plausible.  The Bottom Line Cadillac wants this car&amp;#039;s competitors to be the likes of the BMW M6, M-B SL600 AMG and Audi S5. The performance is certainly there, as are the handling and brakes. The question remains whether buyers of high-performance cars that generally cost substantially more will find the CTS-V&amp;#039;s stunning performance a compelling reason to change their loyalties. At the least, those potential buyers should get behind the CTS-V&amp;#039;s wheel. We bet it&amp;#039;ll open eyes. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/reviews/a6031/2011-cadillac-cts-v-coupe-test-drive/>