Dubai, United Arab Emirates- Having earned critical acclaim, industry awards and brisk sales, Cadillac CTS has moved into the vanguard of contemporary design. In doing so, Cadillac designers faced the question of what to do next. Their answer celebrates that design legacy with the exhilarating Cadillac CTS Coupe Concept, which premiered at the 2008 North American International Auto Show.
The CTS Coupe takes Cadillac's acclaimed Art and Science design language and adds more of both. More expressive, more technical and very personal, the CTS Coupe extends the dramatic design of its sedan predecessor with all-new sculpted bodywork aft of the front fenders.
"The CTS Coupe Concept is a dramatic design statement," said Ed Welburn, VP, GM Global Design. "We did not create it as the result of sifting through reams of market data, nor is its shape trimmed to suit the input collected at a consumer clinic - it is emotion on four wheels and the very essence of what defines Cadillac today."
Generated from the spark of the CTS design team's imagination, the CTS Coupe casts a profile unlike anything else on the road. Its fast-rake styling - it has the same wheelbase as the CTS, but an overall height that is approximately 51 mm lower and an overall length that is 51 mm shorter - blends with hand-sculpted bodywork that bulges around the wheels, giving the vehicle a ready-to-pounce stance that is dramatic, powerful and sleek.
"Just about every decade, Cadillac designs a breakthrough car that becomes synonymous with the brand's character of the period, such as the 1938 60 Special, the 1959 lineup, the 1975 Seville and the 2003 Sixteen Concept," said Clay Dean, Cadillac's global design director. "The CTS Coupe Concept is the next great design, carrying the baton from the Evoq Concept that ushered in the Art and Science era in 1999."
Among the CTS Coupe Concept's signature design cues are a number of elements that suggest the look of a carefully cut diamond - particularly at the rear. These elements are seen in everything from the chrome header above the rear license plate holder to the indents that comprise the basic form of the rear fascia.
The surfaces of CTS Coupe Concept are complex, inviting careful inspection. The rear fenders, for example, were sculpted by hand in the design studio until they provided a perfect, muscular form that wrapped tightly over the wheels. At the top, the rear fenders are beveled - owing to the diamond-cut theme - and become part of a horizontal plane that runs from the leading edge of the taillamps and merges into the roof.
A classic 2+2 interior environment enhances the CTS Coupe's personal feel. It shares the hand cut-and-sewn instrument panel and center console with the CTS, but features unique front and rear seats, a continuous console running between the front and rear seats, and custom door panels.
Custom-trimmed sport seats from Recaro are located in all four positions. They support the grand-touring nature of the car and are covered in rich, black and suede-like microfiber material, with yellow ochre-colored inserts. The yellow ochre color provides dramatic contrast with the black surrounding trim, but is a subdued hue consistent with the interior's overall feeling of refinement. Yellow ochre stitching also is used throughout, including the seats, instrument panel, shifter knob and more.
Like the sedan, the CTS Coupe Concept's interior is home to a host of technologies, including a premium Bose audio system, 40-gigabyte hard drive a satellite navigation system, which - like the CTS - features a screen that rises out of the center of the instrument panel.
The CTS Coupe, of course, ascertains the sedan's 3.6L V-6 engines, including the 323-horsepower Direct Injection power plant. The Coupe Concept also is designed for a new 2.9L turbo-diesel being developed for international markets. This new engine, tailored for use in the CTS, will deliver an estimated 250 horsepower and 550 Nm of torque.
A six-speed manual transmission backs the engine, sending torque to an independently sprung rear axle. The CTS Coupe's sport-tuned suspension gives it a slightly lower ride height than a production CTS - a look enhanced by the car's rakish shape and large, 20-inch front and 21-inch rear wheels.
-Ends-
Cadillac is the luxury vehicle division of General Motors. It was founded in 1902. With its bold design and advanced purposeful technology, Cadillac is quickly becoming a global brand offering vehicles with outstanding performance and distinctive design.
Global sales and market share have made consistent gains in recent years. Global sales and market share have made consistent gains in recent years. Cadillac today produces the XLR convertible luxury roadster, the SRX midsize luxury utility vehicle, the premium entry level BLS, the CTS luxury sedan, the STS performance luxury sedan, the DTS full-size luxury sedan, a line of supercharged performance V-Series models delivering a blistering acceleration of under 5 seconds from 0 - 100 kph, and the world's most powerful line-up of SUVs: the Escalade, Escalade ESV and Escalade EXT.
The Cadillac brand now competes in almost every segment of the luxury automotive market in the region, and its growth in recent years is testament to the growing preference of the brand among the region's consumers.
In the Middle East, the brand has benefited from a unique line up that puts Cadillac in almost every luxury segment. It has been an iconic presence in the Middle East region for over 80 years.
For more information:
Saada Hammad
Communications and Public Relations Manager
General Motors Middle East
Tel (+9714) 3143350
E-mail: saada.hammad@gm.com
© Press Release 2008
