Supercharged six-speed-stick Sport Wagon travels in fast company, kicks sand in Sports GT grilles and leaps buildings in a single bound!
If the Fantastic Four needed a Super Hero people mover, Cadillac’s V-Series Sport Wagon would be the obvious choice. Actually, it would be the only choice. It’s the only production station wagon in the world that thinks it’s a Supercar. And, with an MSRP of $63,000 and an as tested price of some $71,000, it’s the least expensive as well. Think about it: 0 to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds, mid-to-high 12s at 110-115 mph on the drag strip and an electronically-limited 190 mph top speed. In the hands of a competent driver, this V-Wagon will generate 0.90 gs on the skid pad. This is one freakin’ fast station wagon! Oops, Sport Wagon.
High-performance station wagons are hot because since the gas shortages of the early 1970s followed by environmental pressures, they've joined endangered species like the Dodo bird. Then came Minivans, SUVs and now Crossovers. However, station wagons, even those with rear-wheel-drive, still have appeal. Wagons with maximum power, like the CTS-V, above, have maximum appeal.
As soon as Chevrolet had a modern V8 in 1955, you could order station wagons with the hottest V8s available. Two-door Nomad wagons built between 1955 and 1957 delivered head-turning style plus performance. Other carmakers, Ford, Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth, Oldsmobile and Pontiac, offered their biggest V8 options in station wagons. Cadillac never had the opportunity as they were never in that market. During the 1960s and 1970s, select Cadillac dealers sold new four-door Fleetwood and two-door Eldorado station wagons produced by customizers or aftermarket “converters.”
Specialty shops that built Cadillac station wagons in the U.S. followed in the footsteps of European coachbuilders who, since the 1920s, created Estate Wagons or “Shooting Brakes.” It all started with wagon-converted four-door luxury cars, often built on factory-supplied rolling chassis. Modern era European Shooting Brakes tend to be reconfigured high-performance sport coupes and two-door sedans.
The Cadillac V-Wagon, left, is America’s world-class performance station wagon. Powered by a 376-inch (6.2 liter) LS-Series small-block packaged with a positive displacement, intercooled Eaton supercharger, below, right, its 9.0-to-1 Corvette-family engine generates 556 horsepower at 6,100 rpm and an mind-numbing 551 foot pounds of torque at 3,800 rpm. Max torque, which is what really matters, comes in at a very usable 3,800 rpm.
Transmission choices include a smooth shifting six-speed Tremec TR6060 manual or six-speed 6L90 paddle-shifted automatic. The Tremec is a no-cost option and was in our white tester. With its 3.73 limited-slip rear you can cruise at 60 mph (feels like it’s idling!) and get decent but not great fuel economy. It is possible to get close to the EPA rating of 14 mpg City and 19 mpg Highway and exceed 19 mpg using cruise control on the highway. But the temptation to power shift the Tremec and tickle the limiter is great considering this vehicle’s performance potential. Under those conditions it really hauls, slurping Premium at an alarming rate. When it comes to serious high-performance, there is no free lunch!
Torque is channeled to a high-performance rear featuring a limited-slip differential within a cast-iron housing for greater thermal management, and asymmetrical half-shafts to smoothly manage the supercharged engine’s incredible torque. The unique design includes alternately sized half-shafts that also help dynamically balance the oscillation of torque from side to side, effectively eliminating wheel hop.
The 2011 V-Series Sport Wagon with its carryover sharp sheer forms and crispness inspired by military stealth aircraft, is a rolling showcase for Cadillac’s Art & Science styling. New for 2011 are more aggressive frontal styling and a domed aluminum hood. Art & Science styling appeared first on the Evoq Concept, revealed at the 1999 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. It morphed into the production XLR.
“Rakish, muscular, and stable are descriptors which leapt into my consciousness when first viewing the Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon.” That’s what Woodstock, VT sculptor and car guy, Rob Murphy said when he worked with me testing a V6-powered model last year.
Cadillac has done an outstanding job designing the interior space of the Sport Wagon. Front and rear seating is spacious and you’re surrounded by quality hand-stitched leather accents, Sapele wood and full-power leather Recaro seats. Pop the power lift gate and you have access to a beautifully detailed stowage area, replete with secure storage bin and, with the rear (pass-thru) seat folded, 58 cubic feet of cargo volume. With the rear seat up, there’s approximately 25 cubic feet available. Slick tracks along each side of the cargo floor with vinyl-coated adjustable tie-down anchors are functional as well as attractive.
Performance is really what the V-Series Sport Wagon is all about. Magnetic Ride Control, precise ZF Servotronic power rack and pinion steering, StabiliTrak electronic stability control, traction control, big Brembo brakes, limited-slip differential and 19-inch alloy wheels with Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 tires, contribute to making Cadillac’s RWD beast of burden handle and perform like a sport sedan. The accent is on BEAST!
Once fully acclimated to the V-Wagon’s drivetrain, the temptation was to go out looking for unsuspecting hotshoes. Serious car guys are aware of V-Series Cadillac sedans and coupes that tend to perform like Corvettes. We found that few paid much attention to the badging on our white V-Wagon, thinking that it was just another oversize Crossover. Big mistake. We had little trouble inhaling some very expensive high-performance coupes – imported and domestic and embarrassing their owners!
Much of the good stuff that’s been proven on the V sedan and coupe has been transplanted into the Sport Wagon. There’s a new rear brace for stiffening the body/platform that works with the active dampers and a one-mm-thinner rear anti-roll bar.
For tossing around a V-Wagon on a road course, above, Laguna Seca, on the skid pad and even on the drag strip, the six-speed Tremec is the shifter of choice. If I were optioning a V-Wagon for everyday driving, the excellent six-speed automatic with paddle shifters would be my choice.
The supercharged LS engine has so much torque that I found myself shifting from First to Third to Sixth when driving around town. And in traffic it felt just too big and heavy to merit a manual. Regardless of shifter choice, the V-Series Wagon is the ultimate high-performance people mover, imported or domestic. And, at any price!
For more information about the Standard Of The (Performance) World, please visit, http://www.cadillac.com/