ATS puts BMW, Audi in crosshairs
New Caddy has genuine heart and soul
My father loved his big brown Cadillac Eldorado. Dad, now 75, also loves his iPhone, having become fairly adroit at using it. But two minutes inside the 2013 Cadillac ATS with its fussy, iPhonewannabe controls and dad would be marching back into the house for his Winchester to put a bullet into the dash of this mid-size sedan.
Which is unfortunate because the ATS is a fine car.
Not the first to fault the fickleness of Cadillac’s CUE system, I can now, after a week of driving the 2013 ATS, appreciate the frustration over the system that relies on touch-based controls and capacitive-touch switchgear. CUE eschews physical knobs and switches for something masquerading as a modern miracle. But too many functions are too hard to find immediately, or they lack response or they are simply too slow to respond.
GM knows it, too, and is readying a CUE revamp in the wake of owner complaints and media criticism. See? It’s not just me. The new software, to be installed by dealers sometime this year, should mean better haptic feedback to driver inputs and quicker responses. Down the road, a few more real buttons for basic controls will be added. While some of my respected colleagues like the CUE system, I say the upgrade can’t come soon enough. The main instrument cluster left me stone cold, too.
While the engineers are updating the CUE, GM might also have a word with the head of quality control at the Lansing, Mich., plant where the ATS is built. Our ATS tester — which in all fairness was one of the first off the line and had already been properly manhandled by more than a few auto writers — revealed a squeaky left arm rest, a squeaky steering wheel when cold outside, an odd gurgling noise in the centre stack and another ticking noise near the dash. This on a car that cost just shy of $50,000. Can GM lure customers from Audi and BMW with symptoms like that? Yes, in fact, it just might. Forgetting the interior for a moment, the ATS truly could be the first Cadillac in a long time to compete with the Germans. Proportionally matched to the benchmark BMW 3-Series, the rearwheel-drive ATS is an instantly wonderful driver’s car. From the moment the ATS gets rolling, there’s a special feeling of connectedness through the leather steering wheel, the responsive ac- celerator and especially comfortable driver’s seat.
Blessed with a pleasing exterior look, nicely squared-off LED tail lamps and projector headlamps (which should be LED headlamps) our test car was not the base model starting at $33,095, but rather the all-wheel-drive luxury model that rang in at $48,155. The only option at this level was the CUE navigation system at $1,495. All-wheel drive is included and would not even be noticeable were it not for the No. 4 on the trunk. The all-wheel-drive system does not affect ride quality either, working silently and, as we found out along our frost-heaved, mucky road to the cottage, quite effectively.
Interior space, however, can feel snug, especially so in the back seat where leg room is tight, while the trunk rings in at a mere 290 litres.
Weighing a decent 1,573 kilograms, the all-wheel-drive ATS is nicely matched with a 3.6-litre direct-injection V-6 engine. The 321 horsepower and 275 pound-feet of torque wrought from this engine sounds like a lot of power, but it never comes across as too much. It’s a treat to drive. Vibration and coarseness is negligible. Visibility is very good.
Power delivery is smooth and strong through the lower r.p.m. range. The six-speed automatic, while not always shifting with the deftness of an Audi, does an admirable job of keeping the revs at just the right spot for maximum sportiness in sport mode, yet remains well mannered in sedate driving. At full throttle, the exhaust note almost sounds like a small-block V-8. It’s as if the ATS begs to go faster, to which I happily obliged.
In those moments, when the road is unravelling far too quickly, the ATS and its perfect 50-50 front-rear weight balance comes into obedient form, becoming much more of a car than a base Mercedes C-Class. Absent is body lean that can make corners a challenge.
Instead, the ATS squats through the turns with confidence, constrained only by the available grip from the tires mounted on 18-inch wheels. Coupled with incredibly responsive electric power steering, I swooped through my favourite series of country S bends as fast as I think I’ve ever done it, and not once felt as though I was pushing things too far, even with a bit of sand on the road.
At high speed, the ATS displays tremendous stability with wind noise well controlled.
In those episodes of driving bliss, the 2013 ATS reveals it is a car built to succeed BMW. Here is where the ATS truly shines.
Yes, the ATS may be saddled with an interior that does not match its performance, but it nonetheless remains a car with tremendous heart and an honest soul.