Author:
B.Keeler
For years now,
Cadillac has been telling us they are the new class in world class, and that
the only way to travel is Cadillac style. However, recent Cadillacs have
struggled to live up to the brand's marketing department.
True, the
Escalade and CTS have brought people under the age of 90 into the brands fold;
but Cadillac still lacked an entry-level sedan that would appeal to young urban
professionals.
That is why
Cadillac designed the ATS to compete head to head with the king of compact
executive sedan segment, the BMW 3-series. The big question does this Yankee
have the guts to take Berlin? In my opinion, it just might.
Power
The Cadillac
comes with a plethora of power train options. There is the choice of two
4-cylinders one with a turbo charger, and the mac-daddy engine is 3.6L
6-cylinder.
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| 2013 Cadillac ATS Front View |
All engines come
mated to a six-speed automatic transmission, when you opt for the turbo
4-cylinder or 6-cylinder, you can have a manual transmission.
The ATS put its
power down through either the rear-wheels or an optional all-wheel-drive
system.
When equipped with the 2.0L turbo engine and the manual transmission the Cadillac can sprint from 0-60mph in 6.0 seconds. I would imagine that with AWD you could cut that down a bit.
I will give
credit where credit is due, however, the BMW does have better fuel economy.
Compare 30mpg highway for the Cadillac to 32mpg highway for the BMW.
Luxury
For decades now
whenever something is said to be good it said to be the Cadillac of something,
and for me, the ATS is truly the Cadillac of the compact executive sedans.
The ATS features
a very driver focused cabin. This is not your grandfather’s Cadillac were you
get in and float down the Old Country Buffet. The ATS is a true driver's car,
and it shows in the design of the interior.
The controls are
designed to be intuitive for the driver from the pedals to the position of the
gear shifter. Additionally, performance seats feature power-adjustable bolsters
to help support the driver when cornering.
Adding to the
luxury feel of the ATS, is a wide range of different interior trims from warm
and cozy to dark and focused. Ambient lighting helps to highlight all
functional elements on the console and doors.
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| The Cadillac ATS's Interior in Morello Red with Jet Black accents. |
·
Jet Black with Jet Black accents
·
Morello Red with Jet Black accents
·
Light Platinum with Brownstone accents
·
Caramel with Jet Black accents
·
Light Platinum with Jet Black accents
Infotainment
features include Cadillac’s new CUE system with or without navigation. Other
features of note include Bluetooth, keyless access with a push-button start.
For the more tech savvy among us, a reconfigurable 5.7-inch instrument panel is used in place of a regular analog unit and optional full color heads-up display makes this one classy compact.
A seven-speaker
Bose ® sound system comes standard on all but the base model.
Safety
The Cadillac ATS
is one of the most technologically advanced compact sedans on the market. One of the newest and notable features is
Cadillac’s crash avoidance system, which can stop the car at low speeds without
any input from the driver to prevent collisions.
Standard are
8-air bags with 10 optional. The Cadillac ATS also features safety belt
pretensions and load limiters. StabiliTrak electronic stability control system
is also standard.
Other optional safety features include:
·
Full Speed Range Adaptive Cruise Control
·
Intelligent Brake Assist
·
Forward Collision Alert
·
Lane Departure Warning
·
Side Blind Zone Alert
·
Rear Vision Camera With Dynamic
Guidelines
·
Hill Hold/Start Assist (Standard, manual
transmission)
The Verdict
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| The Cadillac ATS rear view |
The ATS has, in
my opinion, what it takes to beat the 3-series. The ATS is better looking, more
powerful on paper and a tiny bit cheaper to run as it take regular over the
BMW’s premium.
The ATS proves
the only way to travel is Cadillac style.
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