Cadillac CTS II (Topic Ufficiale - 2006)

[TORRE]

posso capire l'assenza del telecomando...ma un pelo più carina (ma di poco eh) potevano anche farla....

[j]

da spanish.autoblog.com

[j]

We gave the original Cadillac CTS some slack after its debut at the Detroit auto show in 2002. Driving it didn't reveal it as much of a sport sedan and the interior was a disaster, but its exterior was the most original design to come out of Detroit in years. It actually looked like Cadillac was trying again.

With the second-generation 2008 Cadillac CTS debuting at this year's Detroit auto show, GM is aiming to compete in the entry-level sport sedan segment instead of merely existing in it. The midsize sedan has not only been cleaned up and smoothed out, GM added some real power under the hood and the kind of interior the Caddy should have had in the first place.

One displacement, two levels of power

Unlike the 2007 CTS, the "I'm in it for the looks" base model with the 2.8-liter V6 has been banished to fuel-conscious export markets, so all 2008 models in the U.S. get a proper 3.6-liter V6. The standard version is the same 258-horsepower motor used last year, although now you'll be able to pair it with a six-speed automatic. The standard transmission is still a six-speed manual and it gets a new short-throw shifter for '08.

Real news comes in the way of a high-output version of the same 3.6-liter V6. It uses direct injection to help deliver 300 hp and 270 pound-feet of torque. Those may be V8-like numbers, but given that four of its competitors already offer at least 300 horses, the CTS is just keeping up.

Both transmissions will be offered with the high-output engine, along with another new option for 2008 — all-wheel drive. Borrowed from the SRX crossover that shares its platform, the all-wheel-drive system in the CTS uses an active transfer case to send power to the front wheels when the rear wheels lose their grip. It won't help with the handling like Acura's Super-Handling All-Wheel Drive, but it helps the CTS stack up better against its peers. Rear-wheel drive will be standard.

Wider is better

Although the new CTS rides on the same basic chassis as before, it borrows a page from the Pontiac playbook by adding 1.8 inches of track width in front and 2 inches in back. The wheelbase remains the same while the car's length and height are both up an inch and a half.

The overall suspension design is unchanged, with aluminum upper and lower control arms up front, a multilink setup in back and coil-over shocks at each corner. A modified version of the strut tower brace from the CTS-V is now standard on all models. Cadillac says the brakes and steering system are all-new, but its reluctance to elaborate leads us to believe they aren't much different from the current setups.

Seventeen-inch aluminum wheels with all-season 235/55 tires are standard. An optional sport suspension adds 18-inch wheels with 235/50 Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tires with either V or Y speed ratings.

Edgy and elegant

Instead of abandoning the controversial but eye-catching design of the original CTS, Cadillac softened the edges a little and refined the details. The design of the grille was pulled straight from Cadillac's Sixteen concept car, while the wider body allows the side windows to angle in more. It's called "tumblehome" in designerspeak and it's one of the numerous areas that product chief Bob Lutz emphasized as he pushed through GM's latest new-car designs. Another of his areas of interest is a tight body-to-wheel relationship, and according to Cadillac this new CTS improves on that, too.

A richer, higher-quality interior was yet another priority on Cadillac's list of improvements for the '08 CTS. Starting from scratch, the designers gave this CTS a completely different look and feel compared to the current model. The large analog gauges are not only easier to read than before, they look a little more serious this time around. Case in point: The original CTS didn't even have a temperature gauge. The '08 model not only has one, it actually has numbers on it. Nice.

There's a noticeable upgrade in the materials used in the CTS cabin as well. Cadillac says the surfaces for the upper dashboard and door panels are now hand-cut and sewn, which allows for tighter fits and the use of French stitching. We don't know what makes Franco stitching so special, but the seams in the CTS do look pretty good. More attention to detail can be seen in the soft, white LEDs that light up the door pulls and footwells, a feature Audi uses to great effect in the A8.

It's about time

This is the CTS we all hoped for when the model debuted five years ago. It has a high-tech engine with as much power as anything in the class, a choice of top spec transmissions and a cabin that doesn't embarrass the rest of the package. With competitors like the Acura TL, BMW 3 Series and Infiniti G35, the 2008 Cadillac CTS needs all the help it can get, but when it goes on sale this fall it will no longer have to rely on its looks alone to compete.

x vedere il video: http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Features/articleId=119071?tid=edmunds.il.home.photopanel..2.*#5

[simonepietro]

un mio vecchio messaggio di qualche mese che riguardava l'introduzione dell'iniezione diretta sul 3.6 v6 GM

The 3.6-liter VVT DI. GM will apply a version of its 3.6-liter V-6 gasoline engine with direct injection and variable valve timing (VVT) technologies in the 2008 model year. The company will announce a specific vehicle target later this year.

The application of direct injection technology to the 3.6-liter VVT engine contributes greatly to a 15% increase in horsepower over the current levels that range from 240 hp to 267 hp; an 8% increase in torque, and up to a 3% improvement in brake-specific fuel consumption (BSFC). An approximate 25% reduction in cold-start hydrocarbon emissions is also achieved.

GM projects that by 2010 one out of every six GM vehicles in North America will be equipped with a direct injection engine.

Direct injection delivers precisely metered fuel directly to the combustion chamber, producing a cooling effect in the chamber. Cooling the incoming air charge enables a higher compression ratio (greater than 11.0:1 in the case of the 3.6), which also improves engine efficiency. Less fuel is required to produce the equivalent horsepower of a conventional port injection combustion system.

The 3.6-liter VVT with direct injection will be our highest specific output non-turbocharged V-6 engine, as well as one of the most fuel-efficient offerings in our high-feature family.

—Tim Cyrus, chief engineer for high feature V-6 and Northstar V-8 engines

The 3.6-liter is GM’s third engine with gasoline direct injection. The announcement of the 3.6L VVT V-6 with direct injection comes after the introduction of GM Powertrain’s Ecotec 2.0-liter four-cylinder Turbo engine with direct injection on the 2007 Saturn Sky Red Line and Pontiac Solstice GXP roadsters. GM has been delivering a naturally-aspirated Ecotec 2.2-liter direct injection engine on Opel models in Europe since 2004.

The fuel injectors in the gasoline direct injection system are located beneath the intake ports. The intake ports only transfer air, unlike port fuel injection, which flows air and fuel, thus increasing efficiency.

Direct injection requires higher fuel pressure than conventional fuel injected engines and an engine-driven high-pressure fuel pump is used to supply up to 1,740 psi (120 bar) of pressure.

The system regulates lower fuel pressure at idle—approximately 508 psi (35 bar) and higher pressure at wide-open throttle. The exhaust cam-driven high-pressure pump works in conjunction with a conventional fuel tank-mounted supply pump.

The 3.6-liter VVT DI is based on GM Powertrain’s 60-degree dual-overhead cam (DOHC) V-6 engine. The 3.6-liter V-6 VVT DI employs four-cam phasing to change the timing of valve operation as operating conditions such as rpm and engine load vary.

The result is linear delivery of torque, with near-peak levels over a broad rpm range, and high specific output (maximum horsepower per liter of displacement) without sacrificing overall engine response and driveability.

Cam phasing also reduces exhaust emissions by optimizing exhaust valve overlap and eliminating the need for a separate exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) system.

By closing the exhaust valves late at appropriate times, the cam phasers allow the engine to draw the desired amount of exhaust gas back into the combustion chamber, reducing unburned hydrocarbon emissions.

The return of exhaust gases also decreases peak temperatures, which contributes to the reduction of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions. In tandem with the 25% reduction in cold-start hydrocarbon emissions brought on by direct injection, the 3.6-liter VVT DI V-6 surpasses all emissions mandates, and does so without complex, weight-increasing emissions control systems such as EGR and air injection reaction (AIR).

tratto da GCC

[__P]

Se l'attuale non mi piace... devo dire che questa m'attizza assai...

[Regazzoni]

Se l'attuale non mi piace... devo dire che questa m'attizza assai...

Per me invece è il contrario.

Pur non dispiacendomi, la nuova la trovo più normale di quanto mi aspettavo e preferisco ancora la precedente.

[brothersfan]

beh devo dire che la sua linea rimane un po troppo massiccia.....pero globalmente è un 'ottima auto

[F . P i ë c h]

a parte il terzo stop a boomerang che non mi piace molto il resto lo trovo molto interessante...

[Cocoon]

a me la filosofia madeinusa con queste linee squadrate mi piace sempre di più, forse anch'ii sono malato..eh eh

Simonepietro fammi capire: sostanzialmente si tratta di un sistema simile al velvetronic della BMW ??

[simonepietro]

a me la filosofia madeinusa con queste linee squadrate mi piace sempre di più, forse anch'ii sono malato..eh eh

Simonepietro fammi capire: sostanzialmente si tratta di un sistema simile al velvetronic della BMW ??

no, si tratta semplicemente dell'introduzione dell'iniezione diretta sul 3.6 v6 H.F: Questa era già prevista in fase di progetto di questa famiglia di V6 e difatti il primo ad adottarla è stato il 3.2 v6 in versione per l'alfa romeo usando la propria tecnologia JTS di 2 generazione. Credo che invece su questo 3.6 v6 sarà simile all'iniezione diretta usata sul 2.000 ecotec turbo da 260cv montato sulle sorelle pontiac solistice gxp e opel GT , questa è denominata SIDI.