Cadillac STS will thrill, soothe drivers
The fiscal well-being of General Motors will ride on the broad shoulders of cars like Cadillac’s new STS.
The STS is a rear-drive, midsize sedan (think BMW 5-series, Infiniti M35/45, BMW E-Class). It’s based on GM’s Sigma architecture, which also serves the smaller CTS (3-series, G35, C-Class) sport-sedan.
Cadillac originally applied the STS label to an uplevel version of the Seville (STS = Seville Touring Sedan), which represented an admirable, though not wholly successful, attempt to crack the luxury-sport segment.
The new STS runs circles around that car.
And if the CTS is still a touch rough around the edges (think Corvette inside a sedan body), the STS makes a serious run at the big boys — which implies a dazzling blend of comfort, quality, performance and technology — and nearly succeeds at bumping off a few of them.
The STS has a base price of $41,220, including destination. That’s not a bargain-basement price, but it undercuts the competition sufficiently to make the STS a solid alternative for drivers who’ll never explore the performance edge of the top dogs. Besides, the STS is entering only its second year of production and is bound to improve with age.
It already has a pair of terrific engines — a 255-horsepower V-6 and a 320-hp eight, a classic profile, and enough computer-driven wizardry to outfit a science lab.
It’s comfortable, too, with a ride and handling package that can thrill one moment and soothe the next. It has very good seats (with firmer bottom cushions and softer back cushions for a nice blend of support and indulgence), generally excellent ergonomics and an understated self-assurance that hints at good things ahead for Cadillac.
The interior is awash in eucalyptus wood trim and high-grade leather, and Cadillac went to great lengths to make this its quietest interior ever. Triple door seals, a one-piece steel dashboard infrastructure and even wind-cheating “airfoil” windshield wipers contribute to the peace and quiet.
Cool stuff includes a head-up display, “active” climate control system (it constantly monitors temperatures near occupants), Bluetooth wireless cell-phone connectivity and an optional 15-speaker Bose 5.1 surround-sound audio system.
Cadillac has even exercised a certain amount of restraint in its controls interface, although accessing most functions requires entering the digital realm via the navigation system. It’s not as bad as some and not as good as others.
A keyless ignition system allows the driver to start the car without inserting a key into the dash, as long as the transponder is on his or her person. Equipped with the optional Adaptive Remote Start system, the STS can be remotely started from a distance of up to 200 feet — just remember it’s against the law in Washington to leave a running car unattended.
As is typical of the class, even the rear-seat passengers are bathed in opulence, although legroom back there is a little tight.
Fit-and-finish and the quality of materials are generally very good throughout the cabin.
In its CTS guise, Cadillac’s “Art & Science” design philosophy interprets as aggressive and daring; the STS, on the other hand, is all crisp lines, solid flanks and taut proportions. There’s not much wasted space or energy here, and it’s good to see a domestic manufacturer come to terms with a less-is-more esthetic (although the STS legend pasted onto the passenger’s end of the dash flirts with the dark forces of overkill).
The STS was introduced last year as an ‘05 model and the ‘06s are now appearing in dealerships, with the addition of four new colors and optional all-wheel-drive on six-cylinder models. In its first year, only the eight-cylinder car could be had with AWD.
To be competitive in its class, the STS must prove itself a driver’s machine and it generally succeeds. Our tester, which was equipped with the Luxury options package, handled crisply enough and GM’s Stabilitrak stability control system was there (in a quiet and unobtrusive way) to rein things in when they threatened to get out of hand.
On the track, the STS falls somewhat short of the class standard. Even equipped with GM’s adaptive suspension system, the STS doesn’t settle down into a corner with that firm sense of connectedness the best cars produce.
The all-wheel-drive system sends 60 percent of the torque to the rear to produce the handling characteristics of a rear-drive car. It’s a heavy system, though, and those who have driven it say it lacks the crispness of the rear-drive car.
General Motors’ speed-sensitive electronic steering system feels vague and poorly weighted in some applications, but the STS engineers got it right. The steering is taut and certain on-center and provides decent feedback to the driver when approaching the car’s limits.
One wishes at such moments for a more decisive gearbox; the five-speed automatic has a sport-shift mode, which works well enough but is no match for a good manual — or clutchless manual — transmission.
Cadillac should also have gone for the gusto, not only with a more capable gearbox, but also with sportier seats; they don’t need to be firmer, but they do need more side bolstering to keep occupants in place during those outbursts of enthusiasm that are the only justification for owning a sport-sedan.
Cadillac has been fussing at the fringes of the midsize luxury-sport category for several years, but the STS is its first real contender. It’s a lovely car and, unless someone takes their eye off the ball,could be a harbinger of better times ahead at GM.