Digestible Collectible: 2004 Cadillac CTS-V
The response to yesterday’s Digestible Collectible was perhaps the most one-sided I’ve seen since I started this series. It’s been made quite clear that an older BMW is not a good idea, even though I’d be likely to do my own work on the car.
Still, I love the idea of a performance car that I can use to haul the family through the week and head out for a long road trip or a track day on the weekend.
Sadly, my kids are getting too tall to ride in the back seat of a 911, and I doubt I could fit four mounted Hoosiers inside either.
Enter LSX-FTW.
I should know better than to even consider first year cars from the Big Three, but this 2004 Cadillac CTS-V looks remarkably clean and the Arizona location is appealing to an Ohioan who’s dealt with more than his fair share of body rot.
I’m told the weakest link on these early Caddies is the differential. It either isn’t up to the power that the engine can produce, or the suspension allows too much wheel hop, which introduces shock to the differential. In either case, both the factory and the always-inventive GM performance aftermarket has options to upgrade what’s there, or attempt to prevent damage to the existing bits. I wouldn’t call a rear-end failure catastrophic enough to turn me off a potential car, though I’d consider a 2006 or newer model with the upgraded diff from the factory if I had more cash in my pocket.
Personally, I love the “Art and Science” look of the CTS-V. Edgy (pun fully intended) and distinctive, the styling is a bit dated, but I think it will be appreciated for years. The interior isn’t as gorgeous as a newer Audi, but it’s serviceable, appears to be holding up well in this car at least.
I’m tempted. I’ve been driving the minivan for too long.
Some enthusiasts say they were born with gasoline in their veins. Chris Tonn, on the other hand, had rust flakes in his eyes nearly since birth. Living in salty Ohio and being hopelessly addicted to vintage British and Japanese steel will do that to you. His work has appeared in eBay Motors, Hagerty, The Truth About Cars, Reader's Digest, AutoGuide, Family Handyman, and Jalopnik. He is a member of the Midwest Automotive Media Association, and he's currently looking for the safety glasses he just set down somewhere.
More by Chris Tonn
Latest Car Reviews
Read moreLatest Product Reviews
Read moreRecent Comments
- SCE to AUX It's fun when liberal interests fight each other.
- Varezhka Suzuki Jimny, Toyota Century, and I know it technically just ended production but Honda e.
- CoastieLenn For those that care to read the details of the crash NOT included in this article but published elsewhere- this happened at nearly 10pm when the CRV was stopped in the center lane of travel, lights off, with the driver remaining in the car. Not only is it not known if Blue Cruise was being used, it would have been a nightmare for most alert human drivers to mitigate that driving the 70+mph speed limit on many sections of I-10 in Texas, much less an AV system.
- Jeff This is what I would want: Toyota has now released an affordable truck called the Toyota IMV 0. The newly developed vehicle made in Thailand comes with a rear-wheel drive and a gasoline 2.0-liter inline-four matched to a 5-speed manual transmission. NEW $10,000 Toyota Pickup Has Ford & GM Crapping ... YouTube · Tech Machine 8 minutes, 46 seconds Dec 26, 2023
- Jalop1991 At the same time, let's take these drivers off the road--at least the ones that haven't yet taken themselves off the road.I can guarantee, at no point was this guy or any of the dead Tesla-stans actually driving the car. They were staring at their phones, because, HEY, SELF DRIVING!!
Comments
Join the conversation
These cars are solid performance sedans if you're willing to accept a few compromises. The LS6/LS2 are solid engines with few shortcomings. The Tremec trans is good too. The rear end is a known issue though. The sigma chassis has good bones to work with. However, the 6 lug hubs will make extra wheels for racing or winter rubber a pricey venture. The interior can fit a family of four with reasonable comfort and the trunk isn't bad. Quality isn't that bad. The big problem is the stereo. It's dated and the way it's integrated into the car makes replacement challenging.
Perhaps in the South or out West you still have these Gen 1 Sigma Cateras but they are long gone in my neck of the woods. These ran the 2.8 LP1, 3.2 LA3, 3.6 LY7, as well as the 5.7 LS6 and 6.0 LS2. I can't recall how well the 2.8 worked out but the 3.2 was the Ellesmere Port 54 degree V6 which was a disaster in the Omega based Catera. So I'm gonna go with those were junk else we'd still see them. I'm not sure how the early 3.6 fared, but given the scarcity of these models today all three V6 options were probably not very good. The once in a blue moon I see a gen 1 Catera it is a CTS-V which despite any other problems at least has a reliable engine.