2014 Cadillac CTS Aims To Knock BMW Off As Leading Sports Sedan

The 2014 Cadillac CTS has a new look and a big goal — to take down BMW from its pedestal atop the sports sedan world.

Cadillac stretched its midsize CTS flagship vehicle, positioning it to take on cars like the BMW 5-Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class. The 2014 Cadillac CTS is based on the slightly smaller Cadillac ATS, but is five inches longer and has a more stylized look. The newest CTS also includes a turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 272 horsepower.

The car also comes with a re-engineered platform, which includes the first aluminum doors ever on a Cadillac.

The New York Daily News took the 2014 Cadillac CTS for a drive, comparing it to the 2014 BMW 528i. Auto reviewer Steve Siler found that the Cadillac CTS came out ahead on several fronts, including “swagger.”

Siler writes:

‘With its long, creased nose, bold grille, dramatic vertical LED lights and crisp, tailored body contours, the CTS is dressy and provocative, projecting exactly the sort of edginess that makes sport sedan customers notice. If there is a way to measure sedan ‘swagger,’ the Caddy wins, hands down.”

Siler also praises the Cadillac CTS for its ability to pack power while running a bit smaller than the BMW:

‘The 528i’s 240-horsepower and 255 lb.-ft. of torque is delivered in a calm, smooth fashion, which is both good and bad. While it’s never loud or raucous at any speed, it’s generally unexciting. The Caddy’s 272-hp and 295-lb.-ft. punch is accompanied by a snortier exhaust note, and it gets hauling down the road just fine, thank you. Credit the fact that the Caddy weighs about 3,600 lbs., or roughly 200 lbs. less than the BMW.”

The 2014 Cadillac CTS has a few drawbacks, auto reviewers note. Its $67,000 price tag is a bit on the high end for a four-cylinder luxury vehicle, and its gas economy is a bit on the lighter side, with an EPA rating of 19 mpg city, 28 highway and 22 combined.