Cadillac ATS - the third model of the new technical concept of General Motors

Apparently, the giant automotive industry General Motors groped for a gold mine and introduced the third model of the new technical concept - Cadillac ATS. Rear-wheel drive car with turbocharged engine, "winged" tail lights and a lot of electronics will be a serious competition in its segment.

Successful start

Rear-wheel drive Cadillac CTS with a classic layout fell to the taste of the American consumer. Thanks to this, he established himself in the premium segment. In addition, instead of the generally accepted American atmospheric engines , petrol turbocharged engines are installed on the car. How did all this good take root on the compact Cadillac ATS? The feedback from the owners suggests that the developers coped with this task perfectly.

Development of a new model

During the creation of the new sedan Cadillac engineers had to solve a difficult task: to get as close to the controllability of the BMW 3-Series, without losing the previous merits of the brand. If we take into account that the advantages of the car were its comfort and extreme smoothness of the course, one can understand the complexity of this task, as, in fact, these points contradicted each other. Despite this, Cadillac engineers coped.

Cadillac ATS is built on a new base of GM, called Alpha, which has no specific predecessors. A similar design was used in the Zeta and Kappa platforms. The main difference of Alpha is its reduced size. Despite this, it gives an opportunity to build on its basis a car with a rear or four-wheel drive.

Cadillac ATS Design

The photo of the new model confirms the successful work of designers: in the external appearance, such important family features were preserved, but seriousness and even sportiness of the car became apparent. With all this, the design of the model is very discreet, within the corporate style. Classic radiator grille with a large emblem, narrow headlights with vertically placed LEDs of navigation lights: everything emphasizes the dimensions of the car. It should be noted that the usual design contours are smoothed out to attract potential buyers from Europe who prefer BMW.

Dimensions

ATS is difficult to call dimensional. The wheelbase is 2776 mm, the length is 4644 mm and the height is 1422 mm do not allow this. From cars of his class he has an extended wheelbase. This was done for the comfort of rear-row passengers.

Suspension

With the suspension of the developers did not experiment: the Cadillac ATS, it is standard. In front of the "MacPherson" with aluminum racks and a stretcher, and behind - an independent five-link suspension on a cast subframe.

Salon

In the salon there is the same "corporate design", but, despite the idea of observing the classical style, it was noticeably changed. Compared to previous models of Cadillac in the ATS, everything is done more accurately. In general, the interior looks more luxurious and qualitative. In places where the BMW driver usually sees expensive plastic, the Cadillac ATS driver will admire the skin.

Following the traditions of American automakers, the new Cadillac offers the buyer several options for interior design, from coloring and ending with the type of wood.

Cadillac ATS: specifications

For the 2012 version, the automaker offers 3 petrol engines, the choice of which is determined by the equipment of the car and the type of drive.

The base version of Cadillac is equipped with a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine with a capacity of 202 liters. With., Working together with a 6-speed automatic box. Such engines are installed on the Chevrolet Malibu sedan .

The second engine is a 272-hp 2-liter turbo engine, working together with a 6-speed manual gearbox. "Mechanics" is put on one level with "automatic", which once again emphasizes the sporting character of the car. Both engines represent a new generation of Ecotec. They will be used on other GM models.

The third unit is a 321-strong V6 with a volume of 3.6 liters. It is considered a bonus. This engine will find its buyer among the fans of powerful cars. It is installed only on all-wheel drive models and works in conjunction with the automatic transmission.

The engines, naturally, of different masses, and the weighting along the axles of the car, respectively, are different. If the Cadillac Coupe ATS is equipped with a turbo engine, then it is equivalent - 50/50. For other power units - 51/49.

Packages

The car is available in 4 trim levels: Base, Performance, Premium and Luxury. They differ not only in their technical characteristics and additional options, but also in suspension components.

In the base configuration, the FE3 suspension is provided. In addition, it installs 18-inch wheels and magnetorheological shock absorbers operating in two modes: Sprots and Touring. The tires use a different width: 227 and 247. The differential is mechanical, with automatic locking.

Among the additional equipment of more expensive bundles, there should be satellite navigation, as well as Bose sound from the Premium version. Adaptive cruise control, intersection of road marking, maintaining a safe distance and an emergency braking function will also be welcome. If desired, even the basic equipment can be equipped with all this "good", of course, for extra money.

On the road

Cadillac ATS behaves superbly on the road. Even with a 2-liter turbocharged engine, the car moves brightly and dynamically. Especially for this engine, a six-speed automatic was reconfigured. The developers changed the gear ratios and reconfigured the switching algorithm. All changes allowed the car to come as close as possible to the Bavarian "treshka".

Part of the excellent handling is affected by the ZF steering rack with variable pitch and electric power. The steering wheel spins with effortless effort. A small turn of the steering wheel to the side - and the car is on the next lane, a small gas - and in 2-3 seconds you overtake low-speed transport. The engine in combination with the transmission works perfectly.