Dayton Daily News

With the 2008 CTS, Cadillac is showing its glory days are far from behind it.

The CTS already has snagged Motor Trend's 2008 Car of the Year award and been named to Car and Driver magazine's 10Best list. The CTS also is a finalist for North American International Auto Show COTY (Car of the Year). The winner will be announced at 9:30 a.m. on Jan. 13 in Detroit, and I'll be there watching, along with thousands of auto journalists from all over the world.

The competition: The Chevrolet

Malibu and the Honda Accord. To be eligible, vehicles must be "all new" or "substantially changed" from the previous model.

How does that criterion apply to the CTS? Here's how:

• With the chiseled, edgy design inspired by Cadillac's landmark Sixteen concept car, the CTS sports a front grille more complex and vertically stretched. Other highlights adding personality and élan are side air extractors and bright chrome accents.

• The CTS is built on an all-new chassis with a 2-inch-wider track, giving the vehicle a more planted stance and aggressive proportions. A new suspension system also makes cornering and handling even more precise and enjoyable, comparable to the best four-door cars on the road.

• A new 304-horsepower 3.6-liter V-6 engine has been introduced, equipped with direct-injection technology, along with a 263-hp 3.6-liter V-6 with variable valve timing. With the DI V-6, less gasoline is used, emissions are lowered, and there's more power (including 20 additional lbs-.ft. of torque). Both engines use regular unleaded gas, too, lowering fuel costs and earning EPA mileage estimates of 17 mpg/city and 26 mpg/highway. What's not to like?

• Sophisticated 6-speed manual and automatic transmissions are offered.

• A CTS first: All-wheel drive is available as a $1,900 option, making the normally rear-wheel-drive CTS a more practical choice for snow states like Ohio.

• High-grade, hand-sewn leather upholstery on the seating for five, evenly grained surfaces, optional Sapele wood trim, straightforward Euro-neat buttons and gauges and sophisticated technology mark the CTS' interior.

Prices for the base CTS with the 263-hp V-6 start at $33,490. Standard highlights of the base sedan are StabiliTrak stability control, 17-inch aluminum wheels paired with Michelin H-rated, all-season radial tires, a Bose eight-speaker sound system, express up/down front and rear windows and an eight-way power driver seat. The six-speed manual transmission is standard, with an automatic tranny a $1,300 option.

The DI V-6 CTS (although my DI tester's Monroney had $34,545 on it) starts at $35,790. This trim includes the more powerful engine, the six-speed Hydra-Matic automatic transmission with Driver Shift Control, all-speed traction control and four-wheel independent suspension, added to StabiliTrak, the same wheels, the Bose sound system, express up/down front and rear windows and power driver seat.

Other standard features include front, front side and curtain side airbags (the dual-depth front passenger airbag is a segment first); cruise control; a trunk pass-through; satellite radio; automatic headlights; remote keyless entry; and OnStar with turn-by-turn navigation assistance. Turn-by-Turn allows customers to talk to a live personal adviser, who sends complete step-by-step directions to customers' vehicles through their OnStar system. These audio directions automatically play through the stereo.

In our tester, front-seat occupants were treated to deluxe accommodations, with plenty of headroom, comfortable, well-bolstered bucket seats and dual-zone climate controls, with very cool individual digital screens displaying temperature settings placed down low, next to the thigh. A Premium Luxury Collection package ($8,015) made the experience even more special. Highlights included an upgraded Bose

10-speaker audio system; 40-gig hard drive with a USB port for iPod integration and battery charging; a nifty 8-inch pop-up navigation system that rises from the top of the center instrument stack; sunroof; gorgeous Sapele wood trim from door to door, arcing across the instrument panel; Rainsense wipers; interior LED ambient accent lighting; heated and cooled front seats; rear split/folding seats; universal garage door opener; rear parking assist system; leather upholstery; and heated windshield washer fluid. A 18-inch Tire Performance package ($1,740) added 18-inch painted aluminum wheels, low-profile all-season tires, a limited slip differential, sport suspension, fog lights and a performance cooling system. All-wheel drive ($1,900), special Crystal Red paint ($995), antilock brakes ($395) and a compact spare tire ($250, replacing the standard tire sealant and inflator kit that comes in all CTSs, brought our tester's total options to $13,295. With destination and delivery of $745, the grand total was $48,585.

What haven't I mentioned? The CTS' Adaptive Forward Lighting that angles the headlights when the car is turning. This is a feature I hope will become an industry standard. Also, GM's convenient Driver Information Center, a favorite of mine, is ever-present for tailoring the vehicle's settings and checking its functions and systems.

Like the rest of the CTS' systems, it's intuitive and simple to use, something I can't always say about its competitors. You get in, you turn a knob (the key fob stays in your pocket, and as long as it's near, you don't have to do anything else), you make a few adjustments, and the CTS is all yours.

It all adds up to wanting to say, as Motor Trend did when its editors selected the sporty CTS for its Car of the Year honors, "Here on Planet Earth landed an all-new, thoroughly reborn Cadillac, model year 2008, A.D." For sure, the CTS has the goods to send auto aficionados over the moon." Amen. C'mon, Detroit.

Looking for a Cadillac CTS? Click here for 2008 local listings.

Amy Rollins is Wheels editor at the Dayton Daily News and may be reached at (937) 225-6901 or arollins@coxohio.com.

Go online to DaytonDailyNews.com/Wheels.