End of the Line: Cadillac Introduces 2019 V-Series Pedestal Editions

Matthew Guy
by Matthew Guy

GM’s snazziest brand may have vacated the Big Apple in a New York minute, but that doesn’t mean they’re taking a break on research and development. It’s been 15 years since the marque appended the consonant “V” onto trunklids of its fastest sedans, so the company is rolling out a new trim to mark the occasion.

The 2019 ATS-V and CTS-V will be endowed with a limited run of these Pedestal Editions. While Pedestal may not have the same gravitas as Talisman, these new whips do a dandy job of cranking the wick to eleven.

Car spotters take note: these cars will be slathered in an all-new exterior color called Bronze Sand Metallic, accented with black chrome trim and grille. Those V-Series light-alloy wheels look the business, from behind which peek a set of red Brembo-branded brake calipers. Its front lip, rear spoiler, and a couple of other exterior items are hewn from carbon fiber.

GM added more than just a few strips of leather to the interior of these Pedestal cars, choosing to bolt a pair of Recaro seats to give both driver and front-seat passenger a pedestal of their own (hey, I’m at an age where I am allowed to make Dad jokes). The bronze theme continues inside, with that hue threaded through the dash and door trim.

Taking a page from Corvette’s playbook, a fully-integrated Performance Data Recorder video-data system is on board, complete with driver analysis software that can tell you just how much of a bus ride you could’ve taken to that last apex. A rear-camera mirror appears only on the CTS-V, presumably thanks to the lack of hardware for such a device on its little brother.

Cadillac built the first V in 2004 using the CTS and its “Art & Science” styling, a look that was quite remarkable at the time. Looking ahead, Cadillac says it will release a CT6-V sedan sometime in 2019. That car will allegedly make somewhere in the neighborhood of 550 horsepower thanks to the Blackwing twin-turbo V8.

In total, 300 Pedestal Editions will be built for a trio of markets – America, Canada, and the Middle East. Company reps say final allocation for each region is unclear right now. Prepare to shell out $77,090 for the ATS-V and $102,590 CTS-V Pedestal Editions. That sum will also next buyers two days worth of classes and instruction at Cadillac’s V-Performance Academy in Spring Mountain.

[Image: General Motors]

Matthew Guy
Matthew Guy

Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.

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  • Flipper35 Flipper35 on Oct 26, 2018

    The CTS-V is the only model from that brand I would be interested in. That said, if I were given one of these the first thing I would do is a vinyl wrap and some not black/dark wheels.

  • Pb35 Pb35 on Oct 26, 2018

    My CTS-V is 6 weeks old now and not even broken in yet. The LT4 has a 1500 mi break-in period. It feels luxurious and quiet when I want it to be and a crazy, grin inducing beast when the road is wide open. I skipped the carbon fiber package as the rear spoiler looks tacked on and out of place and does little to nothing to improve performance. Besides that, I like to fly under the radar (as much as possible at least). Is the interior worthy of a 100k car? Probably not but I paid 79k for mine and I like it just fine. As for these special editions, meh. That color is horrible and I like a nice brown. Maybe it'll be better in person. They should have made it a nice dark green IMO. I was never a fan of black wheels either but these look great (when they're clean at least) against my white V, on this brown (er, bronze) not so much. They're actually a dark charcoal though it's hard to tell from the pics. I've never been much of a GM fan but I needed something to replace my totaled SS and I like the Caddy better than another Charger (I had 2). They got this one right.

  • CoastieLenn No idea why, but nothing about a 4Runner excites me post-2004. To me, they're peak "try-hard", even above the Wrangler and Gladiator.
  • AZFelix A well earned anniversary.Can they also attend to the Mach-E?
  • Jalop1991 The intermediate shaft and right front driveshaft may not be fully engaged due to suspected improper assembly by the supplier. Over time, partial engagement can cause damage to the intermediate shaft splines. Damaged shaft splines may result in unintended vehicle movement while in Park if the parking brake is not engagedGee, my Chrysler van automatically engages the parking brake when we put it in Park. Do you mean to tell me that the idjits at Kia, and the idjit buyers, couldn't figure out wanting this in THEIR MOST EXPENSIVE VEHICLE????
  • Dukeisduke I've been waiting to see if they were going to do something special for the 60th Anniversary. I was four years old when the Mustang was introduced. I can remember that one of our neighbors bought a '65 coupe (they were all titled as '65 models, even the '64-1/2 cars), and it's the first one I can remember seeing. In the '90s I knew an older gentleman that owned a '64-1/2 model coupe with the 260 V8.
  • SCE to AUX "...the complete Mustang model lineup to peruse"Will the fake Mustang show up, too?
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