CTS Sport Wagon right in tune with Euro-class

PETER BLEAKNEY/FOR THE TORONTO STAR

Canadian Tenors Clifton Murray (left), Fraser Walters, Remigio Pereira and Victor Micallef are seen with the 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon 3.6 AWD.

Peter Bleakney

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

In the early days of my music career, I spent an inordinate amount of time behind the wheel of a rusting 1965 Ford Falcon Futura station wagon, ferrying band mates and equipment around the Maritimes. With three-on-the-tree, an overworked 170-cubic-inch (2.8 L) straight-six, a burned out clutch, no radio and a busted heater, the Arctic Mobile, as we affectionately dubbed it, got us where we were going .?.. most of the time.

Three decades later, I find myself doing essentially the same thing, although circumstances are considerably improved. Instead of high schools and hurtin’ clubs, I’m performing at a number of cushy theatres in Southern Ontario with the Canadian Tenors — a quartet of harmonizing hunks whose career is currently on a mercurial trajectory.

Playing the part of the ferrous Arctic Mobile is another American-made wagon: the new-for-2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon — with a working heater no less.

Cadillac’s recently redone CTS wants to play in the Euro sport-sedan big leagues, and indeed, it has the goods to get the attention of those looking at BMW, Audi and Mercedes. As those marques offer wagon versions of their mid-sized sedans, it makes sense that Caddy would follow suit.

But wow, who woulda thought this wagon would out-sex the already handsome sedan by a couple of furlongs?

Expanding on Cadillac’s distinctive angular design language, the Sport Wagon looks spectacular from every angle, especially from the rear where the spiky vertical tail lights recall Caddy’s legendary fins of yore. I would normally balk at a $1,295 paint treatment, but the Blue Diamond Tricoat on this specimen looked terrific.

Guitarist Dave Gray and I popped the Sport Wagon’s powered liftgate, flipped down the 60/40 rear seats (with ski pass-through) and loaded ’er up with amps, guitars, pedals and other musoid detritus. The cargo floor is flat and capacity a useful 1,642 litres — not in the league of the Volvo V70 (2,082 litres), but certainly enough for our purposes.

You can get into a base rear-wheel-drive CTS Sport Wagon fitted with a 270 hp 3.0 L V6 for $39,998. This tester was the all singing/dancing $53,790 AWD model powered by the same 304 hp 3.6 L direct-injection V6 found in the Camaro LT. The only transmission offered is a six-speed manu-matic.

Optional equipment here, which included the $3,660 Luxury Performance Package (real wood trim, keyless entry and ignition, heated and ventilated front seats with memory, rear park sensors, powered steering column, security system), pushed the bottom line to just north of 60 grand. Navigation with rear-view camera is an additional $2,885.

The interior is suitably upscale with nicely stitched leather dash top and upper door panels, although the wood inserts are so processed it looks like plastic to me. Major gauges are clearly back-lit and the sharply sculpted centre console gives the cabin an intimate dual-cowl feel. One niggle: the interior temp control and seat heater buttons are located right where your knee grazes the side of the console.

Having just stepped out of a new Mercedes E-class, the comparisons were inevitable. Granted, that car is considerably more expensive than the CTS, but this is what Cadillac is shooting for. The Merc’s interior is richer, more finely detailed, and isn’t betrayed by the odd hard plastic bit that can be found in the Caddy. Similarly, the faux metal surface of the console would benefit from a richer, i.e. less fake, looking finish. Just trying to help out, Mr. Cadillac.

If this were my nickel, I would certainly go for the double-sized “Ultraview” powered sunroof ($1,660), which really brightened up what could have been a pretty dark cabin.

My biggest gripe here is with the heated and ventilated sport seats that come with the Luxury Performance Package. Although they look well bolstered, I found them too hard and not particularly supportive. Both Dave and I felt we were sitting on them – not in them.

No complaints with the excellent 10-speaker Bose sound system with a 40-gigabyte hard drive. So what do a couple of musicians listen to on the way to a Canadian Tenors gig with the world of satellite radio at their fingertips? Blue Collar Radio. Yeeee-ha.

Performance from the 3.6 L V6 is adequate, but blunted somewhat by the wagon’s portly 1,851 kg and AWD system. Since the V6’s maximum torque of 273 lb.-ft. isn’t fully accounted for until 5,200 rpm, you don’t get the low-end kidney-punch delivered by pressurized German mills like BMW’s turbo 3.0 L straight-six (300 hp, 300 lb.-ft at 1400 rpm) or Audi’s supercharged 3.0 L V6 (300 hp, 310 lb.-ft. at 2,500 rpm). You’ll find yourself down a couple of gears and spinning above 4,000 rpm to get the real action (paddle shifters would have been welcomed here). Happily, the V6 makes a pleasant snarl in the upper reaches.

With a 70 per cent default rear bias in the AWD system, this is a fine handling wagon with accurate steering and decent body control — not as engaging as the BMW 535 xDrive Touring ($71,000) or as silken as the A6 Avant 3.0 TSFI quattro ($66,700), but it does offer a quiet and compliant ride with the standard 18-inch wheels.

Opt for the performance package on the RWD 3.6 L ($54,045) and you’ll get more sport in your Sport Wagon — performance handling suspension with automatic rear-level control, paddle shifters (should have these in every CTS), revised steering and 19-inch wheels wearing P245/45ZR19 Y-rated summer performance tires

During intermission at a St. Catharine’s concert I brought the Canadian Tenors out to check out our ride. Like everyone else who laid eyes on this blue CTS Sport Wagon, they thought it was a visual tour de force. And these Armani-clad lads know a thing or two about style.

Perhaps the real beauty of this exceptionally well-turned-out American wagon lies in that fact that choosing it over its European competitors will save you enough coin to buy your own Armani wardrobe.

Freelance auto reviewer Peter Bleakney can be reached at pebleakney@sympatico.ca

2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon

PRICE: base/as tested: $53,790/$60,400

ENGINE: 3.6 L direct-injection V6

FUEL CONSUMPTION: city 11.7, hwy 7.4, 11.9 observed L/100km (XX MPG)

POWER/TORQUE: 304 hp/273 lb.-ft.

COMPETITION: BMW 535 xDrive Touring, Audi A6 Avant 3.0 TSFI quattro, Mercedes-Benz E350 4Matic wagon, Volvo V70 AWD

WHAT’S BEST: striking looks, utility, fine dynamics, drinks regular fuel

WHAT’S WORST: hard front seats

WHAT’S INTERESTING: Caddy’s first North American (non-hearse) station wagon

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