2012 Cadillac CTS Coupe Reviews, Pricing & Specs

Entering its second year, Cadillac's entry-level luxury CTS Coupe gets 12 more hp, a revised grille and a few new options and features for...

Entering its second year, Cadillac's entry-level luxury CTS Coupe gets 12 more hp, a revised grille and a few new options and features for 2012. Active front head restraints are now standard alongside Bluetooth connectivity, while a blind-spot warning system and heated steering wheel join the available options. None of these stem from driver feedback, however, and as a group, drivers would like to see better visibility, more elbow room and a stronger driving character.

Although reviewers give the CTS Coupe a piece of their mind on its lack of rear space, rip-roaring performance and outward visibility, drivers would rather live with those quirks if fixing them meant changing anything about this looker's style. Inside and out, the CTS Coupe is an exemplary display of Cadillac's knack for designing luxury on wheels. From its leanly muscular and blemish-free shell to its sinfully sexy executive interior, the CTS Coupe is a work of art made for the appreciation of it, rather than a need for speed.

Squint your eyes and a fuzzy CTS Coupe could pass for a famous fastback, but all 318 hp and 275 lb-ft of torque from its 3.6-liter V6 can't bring this behemoth to 60 mph in less than 6 seconds. It comes close, but frankly with a rating of 18 mpg city/27 highway, 6.5 seconds is close enough. Like that famous fastback, rear-wheel drive is the norm, and all-wheel drive is available, but the automatic transmission reaffirms this beauty's 6 speeds of sedate driving in the standard mode. For a bit more thrill and gas consumption, Sport and Manual modes offer more pickup but no improvement to agility.

For 2012 the CTS Coupe is available in Base, Performance and Premium flavors, differentiated by their features and available options. Despite what the names may suggest, none of the trims are tuned differently than the others—the suspension and driving dynamics have the very same stiff and bulky feel across the board. The Summer Tire Performance package available for the Performance and Premium trims offers 19-inch wheels, summer tires, a sportier suspension, upgraded brakes, a performance cooling system, a different grille and paddle shifters, and drivers comment that it doesn't make the ride unbearably harsh, but it also doesn't improve the driving dynamics very much.

Nevertheless, Cadillac's 2012 CTS Coupe comes well-appointed even in Base form, which features heated mirrors, rear parking sensors, keyless ignition/entry, 8-way powered front seats, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, OnStar and an 8-speaker Bose sound system with CD player and satellite radio. Cadillac does not offer any options for this trim level.

Moving up to the Performance adds features like adaptive xenon headlights, a blind-spot warning system, rear-view camera, remote ignition, driver seat memory, heated front seats and a 10-speaker Bose surround-sound system with CD/DVD player, digital music storage and iPod/USB connectivity. The long options list available for the Performance is standard for the Premium, and as such the Premium is offered with very few options but a fully-loaded features list, including everything from automatic wipers to a genius navigation system and added security.