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Recently, veteran General Motors engineer and racer John Heinricy, executive director of GM performance car programs, took a bone-stock 2009 Cadillac CTS-V around the famous Nürburgring circuit in seven minutes, fifty-nine and thirty-two one hundredths seconds, making it the fastest production sedan ever to have lapped the ’Ring circuit. The company had to wait to make the announcement until the car could be shipped back to Detroit and demonstrated to the media at the GM Milford Proving Grounds.

Heinricy said the car was run on stock Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tires at the standard inflation pressure of 32 psi, and that the car—weighing about 4300 pounds—was heavier than stock due to the inclusion of a roll bar, driving seats, five-point harnesses, and a fire extinguisher in the cockpit. He said the vehicle, an automatic left in Drive the entire lap, became airborne in several places around the track, and hit a top speed of 175 miles per hour at redline (6200 rpm) in fifth gear, averaging well more than 90 mph all the way around the circuit.

The production 2009 CTS-V will have a larger grille for more cooling air flow, a power dome hood to accommodate the supercharger, and the usual V markings inside and out. It will be powered by a supercharged 6.2-liter GM small-block engine now rated at 556 horsepower at 6100 rpm and 551 pound-feet at 3800 rpm—numbers that are higher than previous estimates. Transmission choices include a new short-throw Tremec 6060 six-speed manual or a new 6L90 six-speed automatic with paddle shifters. With the manual, the rear-end ratio will be 3.73:1, and with the automatic, 3.23:1. The former will have an unrestricted top speed of 191 mph, the latter, 175 mph. Cadillac says the CTS-V will run 0-60 in 3.9 seconds, complete the quarter-mile in twelve seconds at 118 mph, and push well into the 0.9-g range on a skidpad.

The chassis of the CTS-V has been upgraded substantially compared to the previous version. A second-generation version of GM’s Magnetic Ride Control, using magnetic rheological shock absorbers, is standard equipment.

MRC uses a combination of electric current, magnets, and a special fluid with precisely sized and shaped iron particles in each shock absorber body. GM-developed algorithms in the control electronics create the fastest-acting suspension in the world, capable of reading the road every millisecond, with each of the four corners operating independently in combination with StabiliTrak yaw control, traction control, steering angle, brake pressure, and other inputs.

The MRC 2.0 system has two modes, Touring and Sport, which have the same algorithms but different calibrations. With a new type of magnetic fluid and a new piston shape inside the shock, the soft setting can be softer and the firm setting firmer.

The suspension acts on Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tires, 285/35R-19 rear and 255/40R-19 front, on alloy wheels, with Brembo 380-millimeter six-piston front brakes and 373-mm four-piston rear brakes, about an inch larger on each end than the last generation CTS-V brakes.

The entire rear axle and differential assembly has been upgraded to handle the additional torque. The driveshaft has a larger outside diameter and thicker wall, the limited-slip differential housing is made of cast iron and has offset mounts, and the half shafts are different sizes (fifty-five millimeters left and thirty-five millimeters right) to counteract the forces that create axle hop. It’s all mounted on a huge steel subframe to isolate it from the rest of the car.

The CTS-V will go on sale at the end of September, at an estimated price of $65,000, with a full range of options including navigation, a huge new sunroof, a Performance Traction Management system, and Recaro front bucket seats. GM plans to export the car to Europe, the Middle East, and Asia for the first time.

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Magazine Issue: Winding Road Issue 36