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Battle for stylish performance: the new Cadillac CTS aims for the BMW 530i

Chief Executive, The, March, 2004 by William J. Holstein

Here's a battle shaping up. It used to be that the Cadillac CTS was benchmarked against the BMW 3 Series. But thanks to a new V6 engine and other refinements, it's not crazy to compare the CTS with BMW's new 530i.

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Which is just what I did, spending a week with each car. First, the caveats: the BMW is a 6-speed manual transmission while the Cadillac is an automatic. It has "faux" manual gears and a sports gear, which adds considerable spunk, but not as much spunk as the BMW seems to have from a standing position.

The BMW boasts 225 horsepower and what it does with those horsies is world-class exciting. The CTS commands 255 horsepower.

Then there's the issue of cost. The CTS starts out at $30,000 and change. When you add the sports package and navigational system, including XM satellite radio, the price of the vehicle I drove rose to $41,840. The 530i starts off at $44,900.

Now the sweeping conclusion: Dollar for dollar, the CTS offers more value and excitement than the 530i. The manual-shift BMW may be more fun at lower speeds, but Cadillac has developed a 3.6-liter engine that howls with pleasure as it nears the red line at about. oh, 80 mph. Hard to believe it's a Cadillac. Its navigational controls also are arguably better. BMW has improved upon its overly complex iDrive system by adding a "menu" button, which simplifies it somewhat, but only somewhat.

Memo to Munich (and Stuttgart): You guys have a competitive challenge on your hands. "The CTS has really improved," says Karl Brauer, editor in chief of Edmunds.com. "In many ways, it's the same as a BMW 5 Series or a Mercedes E class, but it prices closer to a 3 Series or C class."

The last word has to be about styling: The new 530i looks like most other BMWs on the road, with only modest variations. The CTS, however, stands out because of its creased front end. This is all about personal taste: Do you want to blend in or stand out? The edgier look certainly belongs to the CTS.

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