Though it's a fairly sophisticated audio system, by aftermarket standards it's rudimentary, save for the fact that you can play different format discs. There aren't many adjustments you can make to the audio, beyond bass, mid, and treble. In 5.1 mode you can select the usual EQ options. I will say the car seems tuned well for surround and less optimally for stereo. The music staged low when listening in 2-channel. Switching the EQ settings (normal, driver, rear, centerpoint) didn't help to improve the sound quality. Centerpoint gives the sound more breadth but doesn't raise the soundstage. Overall, the surround sound mode is definitely more pleasurable; and after going through much of my demo discs I settled on listening to surround sound tracks the rest of the week I had the CTS.
You can also listen to music saved on to the 40-gig hard drive. Insert a disc and hit the record button and the system will store the music, exactly as you would with the Eclipse Jukebox feature found in their aftermarket double-DIN source units. Or you can listen to XM Satellite for some content change of pace.
The CTS is ergonomically sound. The steering wheel controls have cruise control on the left while the right side is reserved for audio functions. You have a button there as well for voice commands. Plus, on the ergonomic side, the buttons on the center stack are thoughtfully placed. You have three sections of controls that divide the different functions, making for an intuitive layout.
Ultimately it's the new exterior design combined with the follow-through of the design into the interior, including with the nav/entertainment package, that will win over new fans of luxury vehicles. Car performance is important, but it's the overall quality and comfort that a luxury buyer wants. And the CTS fits the bill; moreover, it's the kind of car that befits a superpower. It clearly belongs in that discussion when people argue about great automobiles. The CTS has stealthily moved up on the competition, giving the Cadillac name back some of the cachet it embodied in decades past.
Ratings: Audio: 7 Navigation: 9Having the opportunity to interview with John Manoogian, director of exterior design at Cadillac, I had to ask him when the CTS Coupe Concept would go into production. He said he couldn't say, but continued, "If you take a good look at the concept, I think you'll be able to put two and two together." So there you go, a very conclusive sounding yet non-definitive answer. Meanwhile, I know a few people that will be saving their money for a contribution to their local Cadillac dealership. Our thanks to Cadillac's design guru for taking the time to talk with us about the CTS, automotive design, and cars (as well as the car business) in general. -Ben Oh
CA&E: Are your influences pretty much all automotive or do you look to a lot of non-automotive things to find, you know, design cues?
John Manoogian: I subscribe, believe it or not, to about 50 or 60 different magazines. Plus I buy another 10 or 20 a month. Whatever I can get my hands on, I'm reading. And it ranges all the way from cooking magazines and travel magazines to aircraft magazines, to all the car magazines-the tuner stuff, the European stuff, the domestic stuff, hot rods, all the dub stuff. I mean it's just all over the map because I love automobiles and how they relate to our culture. Like with Car Audio magazine. It's amazing how all those things, if you look closely at it, all have sort of a relationship between what we do and how cars relate to people and in our culture because I'm, I'm a real strong advocate of "you are what you drive." And I think our car or truck makes a statement about who we are and what we're doing.
CA&E: Oh, absolutely. Working at a big OE like GM, what about consumer or market research, does that play in at all into how you design things?