Possibly one of the most difficult things to do in the automotive world is make the market better accept an underappreciated car. Once the the nation makes up its mind, it's difficult to change. Automakers have tried all sorts of things to improve a car's fortunes, but not many succeed. Sometimes, though, they find the right solution and we all benefit, because we get a better car. The Cadillac XTS Vsport is one of those cars.
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The XTS has been a bit unloved since its launch, partly because it's a reminder of "Old GM" thinking, partly because it looks as though it's been in a cartoony crash where the car accordions and the front and rear are pushed into the middle. Underneath, though, it's actually a pretty good car. It's very quiet, it's very comfortable, it's very roomy and it even handles pretty well. It could be better, though, and that's where the Vsport comes in.
With two turbos and a retuned suspension, the XTS Vsport is the car the XTS should have been from the start. The standard XTS is, as one might assume from its size, a bit slow. It's not terrible, but it's not terribly quick, either. You've got to get your foot in it to find the power and work the engine hard. No one wants that. Give it some boost, though, and you get that effortless power that people expect from a luxury sedan.
In fact, you get a lot more than you realize. The XTS Vsport is still very quiet and very isolated inside, so more often than not I found myself surprised by the speedometer. I kept coming up on other cars and wondering why they were driving so slow, only to realize I'd been going much faster than I realized. There just isn't the sensation of speed you'd expect. This will seem outrageous, but the first car that comes to mind when I think of that behavior is a Bentley Continental. It's a similar experience.
This is due mostly to how the power comes on. The car is not tuned to be an AMG competitor or anything like that. Rather, it's still a smooth luxury sedan that just has a lot more power. You can feel a small surge as the turbos come in, but it's not a big wave of power that throws you back in the seat. It's a nice swell that gets you moving very quickly without making a big fuss of it. Best of all, it's there when you want it. Dig into the throttle just a bit more and passing that car ahead is effortless. No need to find a sport button (there isn't one), just touch and go.
If the upgraded powertrain in the Vsport does have a flaw, though, it's in the transmission. While it responds fairly quickly to your inputs, it's still a bit slow to get the actual shifting done. Moreover, it's not seamless like the best luxury car transmissions out there. There's still a noticeable bump as it changes gear. So there's still some tuning work left to be done here.
The other obvious difference in driving the Vsport model is that the ride is a little more firm. As a result, some of the larger expansion joints and other bumps that the XTS would normally filter out find their way into the cabin. It rides a bit more like a sport sedan, and part of me wishes I could toggle the suspension back to regular XTS when cruising down the highway while keeping the extra power. This thing is a fantastic long-distance cruiser. On the other hand, I do appreciate the tighter suspension when I round a corner. This car actually takes a turn pretty well. Body roll and other movements are very well-controlled given the weight in play and the grip is also surprising. The seats are clearly not designed for hard cornering, and as such, they can't keep up with the chassis, but if you brace yourself a bit you can actually have a bit of fun on a back road. The car is game if you are.
I won't argue that the XTS Vsport is now perfect or that it solves every problem with the standard XTS. There are a few kinks to work out in the transmission, and while I'm one of the few who likes CUE, Cadillac's infotainment offering, I admit it needs more development.
I will argue, though, that the XTS Vsport is a better car and one worthy of more than a second look. Cadillac has found the right combination of enhancements to make a compelling case for this car. Now if they could just make it look like that new CTS…
Were you one of those kids who taught themselves to identify cars at night by their headlights and taillights? I was. I was also one of those kids with a huge box of Hot Wheels and impressive collection of home-made Lego hot rods. I asked my parents for a Power Wheels Porsche 911 for Christmas for years, though the best I got was a pedal-powered tractor. I drove the wheels off it. I used to tell my friends I’d own a “slug bug” one day. When I was 15, my dad told me he would get me a car on the condition that I had to maintain it. He came back with a rough-around-the-edges 1967 Volkswagen Beetle he’d picked up for something like $600. I drove the wheels off that thing, too, even though it was only slightly faster than the tractor. When I got tired of chasing electrical gremlins (none of which were related to my bitchin’ self-installed stereo, thank you very much), I thought I’d move on to something more sensible. I bought a 1986 Pontiac Fiero GT and got my first speeding ticket in that car during the test drive. Not my first-ever ticket, mind you. That came behind the wheel of a Geo Metro hatchback I delivered pizza in during high school. I never planned to have this job. I was actually an aerospace engineering major in college, but calculus and I had a bad breakup. Considering how much better my English grades were than my calculus grades, I decided to stick to my strengths and write instead. When I made the switch, people kept asking me what I wanted to do with my life. I told them I’d like to write for a car magazine someday, not expecting it to actually happen. I figured I’d be in newspapers, maybe a magazine if I was lucky. Then this happened, which was slightly awkward because I grew up reading Car & Driver, but convenient since I don’t live in Michigan. Now I just try to make it through the day without adding any more names to the list of people who want to kill me and take my job.
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