Test drive Cadillac CTS 2013 - NV sedan
Who will win?
What a stubborn car! The stabilization system has long been disabled, but my next attempt to perform a beautiful skid ended on a full -wheel drive Cadillac CTS4. Mocking me, the car stood calmly on the site, expecting what else I would come up with And it all started quite banal. From the American car, I did not expect much drive. However, the new Cadillac CTS4 turned out to be a bright car, and not only externally. This not only aroused in me the desire to get to know him better. The rear -wheel drive version was already on our test. Everyone liked the car: it was controlled quite in European, it was striking clearly, heated slightly, and also accelerated hurriciously, and slowed down, of course, as if dug. All these epithets were also applicable to the all -wheel drive version of CTS4. Theoretically, such a machine, ceteris paribus, should be conceded in excitement, because its mass increased due to additional systems that redistribute torque by about 100 kg.
But even with a appendage in the form of a centner CTS4 was very fast. Passport acceleration to hundreds occupies 6.7 s, which is less than that of the rear -wheel drive relative, by 0.4 s. You can live! The increased load on the front axle demanded that the engineers increase the rigidity of the suspension, which led to the installation of a thicker front stabilizer. Such a replacement in theory threatens insufficient rotation. However, in practice in ordinary operating modes, this is not felt. The most interesting part in CTS4 is, of course, all -wheel drive, which is sensitive to electronics. The all -wheel drive scheme is the same as on other models of the company, such as STS4 and SRX. If necessary, to the front or rear axle can be transmitted up to 100%torque, but in the usual movement mode, most of the power goes to the rear wheels 75%, but 25%is given forward. Therefore, the CTS4 has habits of the rear -wheel drive car. This fact was a reason for comparison with a purebred rear -wheel drive model CTS and caused its subsequent torment on the site.
Remembering how easily the monoprodic CTS was exhibited, it was interesting to do the same experiment with CTS4. Honestly, it looked like a duel, in which a sense of self -esteem would be a reward to the winner. Attempts followed one after another, but the car did not think to give up. If according to the rules, the Cadillac duel has already won or, figuratively, has repeatedly saved my life. But I did not want to let him go with victory, and even more so to realize my loss. Enlarged speed and more acute turns were launched, but the result remained the same four did not want to part with the asphalt and held on tenaciously for it. Electronics impartially threw the moment on the wheels with the best clutch, and they bite into the asphalt. There is nothing to do, I had to call for the help of our test pilots. Those, of course, put the car sideways and carried it out in force sliding. The counter -schedule helped.
But all these racing skills are reckless, if you look at the situation from the standpoint of the civil pilot. Such as me. It is unlikely that a sane driver who bought CTS4 will subject it to such tests and will find the point of separation of the axis, and even more so try to do it in winter. Or perform a counter -schedule before entering the turn. Well, the fact that the car has demonstrated is inspired by confidence in a joint safe existence. Which, perhaps, is the main thing.
Source: Motor magazine [October 2008]
