2004 Cadillac CTS-V V8

Calling the 400-horse, V-8-powered CTS-V a "four-door Z06" instantly brings its performance profile into focus. Yet it also does this polished hot-rod sedan something of an injustice.

The V's acceleration, braking, and handling are indeed just a whisper shy of the super Vette's, based on our hot laps of Germany's infamously challenging 75-year-old Nuerburgring race course--but there's an iron-fist/velvet-glove component here, too. When we backed up our hard-driving impressions with roadwork on the winding two lanes through the French and German countryside, we also discovered a pleasing ride, nicely weighted controls, and a quiet, feature-rich cabin.

Hmmmm--a well-balanced, luxurious sedan with a 400-horsepower V-8 and a six-speed stick. Remind you of our favorite BMW? Comparison to the fire-breathing Z06 is inevitable, too, because the CTS-V shares with the Corvette its 400-horsepower Small Block LS6 V-8 and robust Tremec T-56 six-speed manual, along with several clever ride and handling engineers from GM's Performance Division. The V represents that new group's first effort.

The happy result, despite 700 pounds more mass than the two-seat Chevy, is dazzling acceleration, arrestor-cable-quality brakes, and communicative, linear handling. On the 'Ring's long, uphill straights, the CTS-V felt as if it were being augmented by a Saturn booster as we snapped off quick upshifts. On the high-speed downhill sections and tight hairpins lined with battered guardrails, trees, and thrill-seeking German motorcyclists, the car's four-piston Brembo discs came to the rescue without hot fade or rotor shudder. Also providing rescue was GM's impressive StabiliTrak stability-control system. We drove to the howling limits of good sense and the Goodyear P245/45WR18s' adhesion. The stability system's switchable settings let us hang it out--without getting it bit off.

In order to muster the required grip, body/wheel control, and roll/pitch/dive resistance, the springs are 27 percent stiffer, the shocks are larger, and the anti-roll bar diameters are increased. Fortunately, the usual harshness and noise that follow those types of changes aren't evident, though the European roads we drove on are generally well maintained. So we'll wait until we cruise Detroit's pocked pavement or LA's grooved freeways before we give the CTS-V a final ride waiver.

Our initial impression, however, is that the V is on par with other big guns like the Mercedes-Benz E55 and BMW M5. GMPD also developed new steering calibration and used dedicated rack hardware to give the CTS-V its own slick cut and thrust. The steering-wheel action is light, tight, and as communicative as that in the E55 we drove for comparison.