shaggygrosser said:
I'm a bit biased since I own one, but what's not to like about the CTS styling? I just want a different point of view on this.
I like the looks of the CTS on the road, but not so much up close. The straight sides look rather truck-like. This is strange because I have an Avalanche and like the looks - but that's on a truck. The epitome of how a car should look is like my C5 Corvette, sculpted curves rather than hacked blocks. Somewhere I read a description of "slab sided" for the CTS and that probably is a close description.
On the interior, I don't like the look of the doors. Again, the same straight vertical lines. As for the instruments, thank goodness the clock has been replaced, but the speedo is too small and/or doesn't need to go to 160. (Except to handle the metric conversion.) People carp about the plastic and texture, but aside from the doors, I think it's OK. Then again, I like the vette's interior, too.
Today, I drove an '04 (base with the 3.6) for the first time and found it much improved over the '03. The 3.6 never seemed to have to work hard like the 3.2 did. I didn't like the ride quite as well as the '03 sport suspension, but it was still quite nice. I wish I could actually hear the engine idle - too silent. Maybe aftermarket exhaust would remedy that. Can you get the base with 3.6 and the sport suspension? GMbuypower doesn't show that combination of options but the brochure does.
It turns out that my son may be buying my Avalanche if he sells his current truck so I may have to find a new daily driver sooner rather than later. The CTS is on my all-GM short list which also includes the extended cab Silverado, and maybe the GTP or GTO. (I know, apples, oranges, and pears with those choices.)
