Cadillac Surprises Us With a CTS Coupe Concept

The day after I mused about a lack of surprises at the auto show in my article about the Audi R8 V12 TDI, GM managed to keep a concept vehicle introduction under wraps until the vehicle rolled onto the stage. That vehicle was the Cadillac CTS Coupe concept.

Clearly taking a page from the styling that was implemented to critical and consumer acclaim in the 2008 CTS sedan, but adding a far more aggressive rear end treatment, shortened trunk, and sloped backlight, the CTS Coupe stayed close enough to its roots so that everyone knew what it was, yet also clearly moved the the needle further.

The car looked great in person. Its styling appears to be more polarizing than the sedan’s. Nearly all of the negative comments I heard about the car concern its rear end treatment, which in terms of proportion appears to be closer to the look of a hatchback rather than a traditional Cadillac shape. My first impression of the car was that the rear backlight was too aggressive and the trunklid was too short, but I understand why they needed to do something different with it rather than making a two door version of the CTS sedan, which would have required very little creativity.

Inside, the concept builds upon the CTS sedan’s interior components, but with different, more exotic materials and a 2+2 layout rather than the traditional 2+3 layout of the sedan. The seats are covered with suede-like microfiber material with yellow ochre-colored inserts and yellow ochre trim throughout the rest of the interior.

The CTS Coupe is powered by GM’s 3.6 liter V6 but is capable of handling the 2.9 liter V6 turbodiesel that will be fitted to the CTS sedan for international customers. The diesel will deliver approximately 250 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque. It hasn’t been confirmed as a future engine choice in the US, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see it at some point.

GM made no commitment to whether the CTS Coupe will see production, but insiders have speculated that the car will see production, and the production version will look very similar to this concept.