The 2009 CTS-V: Cadillac’s last hurrah?

The date was December 22, 2003, and General Motors was enjoying the pinnacle of the American auto industry; His shares were above the $53 mark! Fast forward 5 short years and GM is barely making ends meet, and its poor stock looks worse for wear: less than $5 a share. Although it has recently bottomed out, GM is ignoring, without question, the 92% stock drop with the new 2009 Cadillac CTS-V. That’s right; General Motors’ Performance Division has given us the fastest, most powerful and imposing Cadillac of all time… the CTS-V.

Let me tell you, right off the bat, this is not a car for the elderly. I remember the Cadillacs of my youth; big, long, heavy and slow! But yes, they were super comfortable and packed with options. Well, the newest generation of Cadillac has all the goods. The first-generation CTS-V came with the powerful LS engine from the C5 Corvette and a six-speed transmission. The car also had a beefier transmission, sports suspension, 18-inch wheels, and a restyled appearance. The totally redesigned 2004 CTS-V sought to challenge the reigning kings of the Super Luxury car world; the Mercedes C63 AMG, BMW M5 and Audi RS.

The 400-hp first-gen CTS-V held up pretty well in a sea of ​​high-performance luxury sedans. Fast forward a few years and the new generations of the BMW M5 and Mercedes C63 AMG got more power and grew a bit faster. With the long-awaited launch of the greatest American sports car of all time; the corvette ZR-1, Cadillac was looking to reclaim the top spot once again in the world of luxury. New that the new 2009 CTS-V would sport a detuned version of the LSA V-8 engine (still over 550 hp), the same short six-speed transmission as the Corvette, a super high-tech magnetic tuned suspension that I can’t understand, and Recaro seats; this car was making waves in the automotive community long before it ran!

There was soon talk of a black demon making ridiculously fast lap times at the Nürburgring, a famous proving ground in Germany. In fact, this was the 2009 Cadillac CTS-V. While en route to posting a time of under 8 minutes (the course is 12.9 miles long), this CTS-V set the fastest time for a sedan on rubber tires. serial. Beating the Mercedes CLK 63 AMG, the BMW M5, Audi RS4, Porsche 911 Carrera and a Dodge Viper; this Cadillac is all business. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordschleife_fastest_lap_times)

There are those BMW riders who are so stubborn they won’t give the CTS-V victory. They argue that the BMW M5 was a 2008 and this Cadillac is a year newer. They will argue that nothing can affect the quality and reliability of a BMW; even though Cadillac is #3 behind Lexus and Buick in terms of reliability. They argue that a BMW or Mercedes is the cream of the crop and that well-informed car buyers (yuppies) only settle for the best. But the real kicker and moral of the story is that the Mercedes will set you back $80k and the BMW is $85k. So how much does Cadillac charge for superior performance?

How does $65k sound to you? That’s right for a whopping $25k less than an M5 you can have an American car that will kick anything in the way!