Cadillac STS Arrives In South Africa

[patrickbec]

Cadillac STS

General Motors has announced the arrival of Cadillac’s flagship STS model in South Africa. Following the local success of the company’s BLS and SRX models, the STS combines the marque’s distinctive styling with high levels of specifications and luxury that provides a refreshing alternative to the German “Big 3” of Audi, BMW and Mercedes.

Built upon the General Motor’s Sigma rear-wheel drive platform, the STS features such contemporary Cadillac design cues as strong horizontal spline lines, vertically stacked headlamps, LED tail light units and a stainless steel mesh lower grille section. The STS is distinguished from its siblings by its “doors-into-roof” construction, lower roofline, lower sculpted bonnet line and smoothed wheel arches that play host to a set of 9-spoke 18-inch alloy wheels.

The interior is accented with premium materials such as aluminium, Monaco woven fabric on many of the cabin surfaces and real wood finishes on the steering wheel, centre console, instrument panel and door armrests. The STS features analogue instrumentation that is defined by bright accents. An electrochromatic (light-sensitive) auto dimming interior rear view mirror is a among the standard features.

Standard features include keyless access with push-button start, cruise control, heated leather steering wheel, dual zone automatic climate control, 8-way adjustable power front seats with memory and an 8-speaker Bose sound system. Leather trim is available in either cashmere, light grey or ebony colours. The wood trim package is formed from real Sapele Pommele wood. Both front seats are heated.

The company’s well-known 4,6-litre “Northstar” V8 engine. This unit is mated with latest generation 6-speed automatic transmission – with Driver Shift Control (a clutchless, high performance transmission system that can be called upon under certain conditions) and develops 239 kW at 6 400 r/min and 425 Nm of torque at 4 400 r/min. Thus equipped, the STS completes the 0-100 km/h run in 6,2 seconds on the way to a top speed of 250 km/h.

Rest of article: http://www.cartoday.com/content/newc...ry1.asp?id=481



CORRECT YOUR PERCEPTIONS: The Cadillac STS is not what you'd expect from a big American luxury car.

FORGET YOUR OLD PERCEPTION OF 'YANK TANKS'

Cadillac STS: American muscle, European ride
[ See related stories ]

February 13, 2008

By Dave Abrahams

Before yesterday all I knew about Cadillac was that it was founded in 1902 by a perfectionist named Henry Leland, that it was General Motors' premium brand and that Elvis Presley bought his mom a pink one.

That's all changed with the release of Cadillac's flagship STS sedan on the South African market – and I've had a few illusions dispelled.

I expected the car to be big, and it is - but it's not as big as a Lexus LS or a Mercedes S-Class. It is, however, chunky and solid where other cars in its class are smooth and curvaceous, with lots of crisp vertical lines making it look bigger than it is. I expected it to have a big, lazy V8 – the sort of lump for which the term "Detroit iron" was coined.

I expected it to have a big, lazy V8 – the sort of lump for which the term "Detroit iron" was coined. It's a V8, all right, but it's certainly not lazy.

The STS's 4.6-litre Northstar engine is derived from a Lotus design commissioned by parent company GM; it's all aluminium with four overhead camshafts and 32 valves, revs to 6500rpm and cranks out 239kW and 425Nm.

That's good enough to take this 1817kg blingmobile from 0-100km/h in 6.2sec and on to 250km/h, GM says, driving the rear wheels through the smoothest semi-auto transmission I've yet experienced and accompanied by a quiet but authoritative "Nascar V8" sound track.

I expected it to be roomy and comfortable in the 1950's diner idiom, all ultra-shiny vinyl and chrome-plated. Certainly, it has impressive legroom fore and aft and generous squabs that support the entire length of the occupants' thighs, but it's all neatly upholstered with light grey, tan or black leather

Rest of article: http://www.motoring.co.za/index.php?...751&fSetId=381

[t-rex]

Good lucking unseating Benz and BMW in THAT market!

And it's about friggin' time we got a S'effrican on here!

[mgescuro]

Heh. That center stack looks really bad without the nav screen.
Is that car purple?? It's an interesting color to say the least.

I'm definitely convinced that the clear taillights are MUCH better than the standard red found in the US.
I also really like the the rear foglights (that's what I'm assuming they are) on the lower rear bumper. Why isn't that in American models??

[t-rex]

I kinda like those rear fogs too! Gives it an aggressive look!

I'm not digging those new SA registration plates though. I still miss these...

[sigma]

Can I yawn yet? The STS is completely irrelevant here and will be completely irrelevant in South Africa.

BTW- I love the 80's as much as the next person but that DIC/radio display looks atrocious.

[redimpss5]

When did the STS become the flagship?

[mgescuro]

Originally Posted by redimpss5

When did the STS become the flagship?

It's always been the flagship.

[t-rex]

Originally Posted by mgescuro

It's always been the flagship.

He may be referring to the XLR as the "flagship" model. I know it's just semantics but I'd call the XLR the "Halo" model.

[mgescuro]

Originally Posted by t-rex

He may be referring to the XLR as the "flagship" model. I know it's just semantics but I'd call the XLR the "Halo" model.

Yup. I would call it the halo as well. Even before XLR... it was the flasghip.

[patrickbec]

Originally Posted by t-rex

Good lucking unseating Benz and BMW in THAT market!

And it's about friggin' time we got a S'effrican on here!

I have been on here since 2003!

As you can see from the attached sales chart, ( http://www.cartoday.com/content/News/naamsa.pdf ) Cadillac manages to sell 25 to 30 BLS and 1 to 8 SRXs each month from its 5 for so dealerships. So don't expect too much from the STS. By the way, I test drove a 2008 C Class yesterday and compared to the BLS I test drove in November, I must say that the BLS was far better in just about every department (except torque steer). So maybe once the word gets out and Cadillac gets more dealerships, their sales will go up.

The lack of navigation is a big concern. Not for the sake of the STS (which will be a niche product anyway) but for what it tells us about the CTS to be sold outside the USA/Canada, namely that GM wil not invest in the software to make the nav system compatible with those countries. I can tell you this will not be acceptable to luxury consumers.

[cad1cts]

its a nice looking car but i agree that center stack is without the nav system...btw why cant they rig up a nav system for the whole world...like africa for africa, na for na, europe for europe, asia for asia?

[Robert Ryan]

for what it tells us about the CTS to be sold outside the USA/Canada, namely that GM wil not invest in the software to make the nav system compatible with those countries. I can tell you this will not be acceptable to luxury consumers.

One of the other things we do not like about Cadillac discussed on the Holden forums.

[patrickbec]

Originally Posted by Robert Ryan

One of the other things we do not like about Cadillac discussed on the Holden forums.

Its one of the few legitimate complaints you Holden lovers have about Cadillac. Still, I'd chose a CTS without Nav over any Holden even if it costs more, based purely on styling (interior and exterior). But as some other Aussie said, I'm a Caddy fan boy so my opinion is irrelevant (whilst those of Holden fan boys are sacrosanct).

[Exploder]

No nav? That's insane. They better change that fast.

So how good is the BLS actually?

As for the CTS's nav not working in Australia, couldn't you load a DVD with Australian mapping into it?

[patrickbec]

Originally Posted by Exploder

No nav? That's insane. They better change that fast.

So how good is the BLS actually?

As for the CTS's nav not working in Australia, couldn't you load a DVD with Australian mapping into it?

The BLS is not bad actually. I did not like the gauges, but other than that the interior is superior to the new C-class, although not as good as the last gen A-4, and just short of the 3 Series. If the CTS ends up costing over R340K (or USD 48k) for the base model, I'll likely get a BLS.

Here is a Cars in Action comparison with the 3 series and last gen Audi A-4. The rankings are in order of the A-4, 3 Series and BLS (in brackets is what the category is worth):

PERFORMANCE
Engine refinement (5) 3 4 3
Acceleration (10) 6 6 9
Tractability (5) 2 2 4
Economy (5) 4 4 2
Handling (10) 7 9 6
Steering feel (5) 3 5 3
Transmission (5) 4 4 4
Ride quality (5) 4 4 4
Total (50) 33 38 35
GENERAL
Interior practicality (5) 3 3 4
Interior ambience (5) 5 4 3
Ergonomics (5) 4 3 3
Value (10) 6 6 8
Safety (5) 4 5 5
Styling (10) 8 7 7
Fun Factor/Emotion (10) 4 4 4
Total (50) 34 32 34
Total Overall (100) 67 70 69

Here is the article:


SHOOTOUT
Caddy shock
Jason Woosey - Cars in Action
Pic: Ciaran Nunan


Think city car and you’ll no doubt conjure up images of small hatchbacks ideal for darting in and out of tight spaces. But if you’re living in the thick of the hustle and bustle, would you really want to be driving a Yaris or a Polo for the rest of your life?

Look at the eco system of any big city – you’ll find a bee’s hive of ambitious people with good jobs or successful businesses, people on the move and making a good living for themselves.

Question is, what is the next step up the automotive ladder for the city slicker? A luxury car with a trendy badge is a definite plus, but you don’t want something too big to weave through traffic, nor something that’s too heavy on gas – after all, you spend much of your time moving through heavy traffic. An automatic gearbox seems very tempting right now.

Eventually your choice comes down to the BMW 3-Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes C-Class – the established players and an all-too-common sight on SA’s city roads. If you still want to keep things economical, you’d be looking at the four-cylinder entry-level models that come in around the R260 000 mark. Now there’s yet another player that wants to stake a claim in the junior-exec game and its badge was once known as being the standard of the world in luxury car terms. Alright, you can’t deny that the Germans have moved to the top of this game over the past few decades, but when something from an old and prestigious marque like Cadillac comes in with all guns blazing, it makes for an interesting tussle.

It’s worth mentioning that the Cadillac BLS is made from mostly European genes – it’s built in Sweden and based on the Saab 9-3, although its styling is pure Cadillac. In the battle for style supremacy there’s no clear winner here. The BLS wins for individuality – not only is it a rare sight on the road, but its chiselled appearance sets it apart from the rest of the style set. But it’s a matter of personal taste and not everyone’s going to find it easy on the eye. The Audi A4 remains as elegant as ever, in a simplistic, uncluttered kind of way, but it is getting on in life and will be replaced by early next year. When it comes to the crunch, it’s the BMW’s design that pleases us most, with its sporty lines marred only by that over-complex grille and airdam design up front.

For the purposes of this test, we chose to feature the most basic models in each range, with the smallest engines mated to automatic gearbox options. Like that, all three cars cost in the region of R260 000. Bear in mind, though, that the two German cars can be had with a lot more in the way of power and specification if you’re prepared to fork out a bit more than that.

When it comes to the driving experience, these three cars offer a very mixed bag. It’s here that the Cadillac pulls out its first trump card with its turbocharged engine. With 131kW and 265Nm on tap, and the advantage its forced induction has at reef altitudes, the Caddy screams ahead of its two opponents here in the performance stakes. In fact, it proved almost two seconds quicker than the next most powerful BMW in the 0-100km/h and 80 – 120km/h acceleration tests.

We were also surprised by the ease at which the BLS pulls off from the mark, with little in the way of turbo lag. That’s often a big bugbear in force-fed, automatic transmission cars at high altitudes because without a clutch there’s no easy way to counter the turbo’s inability to spin at low revs. While the BLS is a bit laggy on pull off, it’s nowhere near as apparent as it is on many other turbo autos. The Caddy’s is a good, modern engine with a decent flexibility through the rev range and a quick-thinking 5-speed automatic gearbox that cooperates well with the engine. The gearbox has a manual function too, from which gears can be changed either from the gear stick or via levers at the top of the steering wheel.

The naturally aspirated BMW and Audi engines fall behind in performance terms. Especially the Audi, which still uses the old 20-valve 2-litre motor, rather than the group’s latest FSI direct injection units. With just 96kW on tap, it struggles at reef altitudes, but bear in mind that a turbocharged, 1.8-litre version of the same engine – aka Polo GTI – is available for R287K. For those who are discerning about their automatic gearboxes, the Multitronic CVT gearbox in the Audi impresses with its seamless shifting.

Rest of article:http://motoring.iafrica.com/carsinac...out/641077.htm