New CTS Leaked!

[Throckmorton]

Looks like a camry with a fatter front and rear end...

Also MOAR LEDs. I think they could squeze a couple dozen more around the wheel wells.

You know the CTS looked like that long before the Camry right?

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

You know the CTS looked like that long before the Camry right?

That photo just makes me realize how massive of a leap the current CTS was for Cadillac. I wish a couple of the styling details carried forward to the 2014 model. Like the crease around the greenhouse blending into fender vent.

 

[z1ggy]

I dig this current versions of the CTS. When is the V getting an upgrade?

 

[TheAdvocate]

You know the CTS looked like that long before the Camry right?

Yes, I was aware of the CTS before this iteration. My friend has one.

The thing is, he's right - it looks nothing like a Camry. Yes, in profile, in the same color, there are some superficial similarities, but from any other angle there is essentially no resemblance. I don't think even the most casual, untrained observer would confuse the two on the road.

Wow, I think I should mark down what I believe is the first time I have ever disagreed with anything you have posted. In profile, it is nearly identical, with a bit more bloat. It isn't just the colors - it's the pillar shapes, chrome trim, etc.

My point wasn't to denigrate the car (well, except for the LED bukkake - that's a little ridiculous). My reaction to it is similar to the one you posted earlier in the thread. I am happy that US car companies are making viable products. It just doesn't push my buttons from a styling perspective. However, the interior, in particular, is good.

But the fanboy fawning over such subtle and IMHO forced styling queues... I just find that humrous. It's not evolutionary. It's just a veneer over the homogeny in the market. This isn't the golden days of whimsical superfluous styling. It's the year you pump up the hood and bumpers of a pedestrian Camry and barf LED lights all over it and crown the "achievement".

 

[Pulsar]

Looks awesome! Well done, GM!!
If I was in the market, I'd buy this over a 5 series or E class

I guess I need the definition of 'leaked' explained to me.

I always thought it meant that something got out that wasn't supposed to. Yet these appear to be professionally staged photos.

So perhaps we should say "Professional photos released by car company but called 'leaks' to generate more hits for a car that looks like it ran face first into a wall".

 

[Throckmorton]

Yes, I was aware of the CTS before this iteration. My friend has one.



Wow, I think I should mark down what I believe is the first time I have ever disagreed with anything you have posted. In profile, it is nearly identical, with a bit more bloat. It isn't just the colors - it's the pillar shapes, chrome trim, etc.

My point wasn't to denigrate the car (well, except for the LED bukkake - that's a little ridiculous). My reaction to it is similar to the one you posted earlier in the thread. I am happy that US car companies are making viable products. It just doesn't push my buttons from a styling perspective. However, the interior, in particular, is good.

But the fanboy fawning over such subtle and IMHO forced styling queues... I just find that humrous. It's not evolutionary. It's just a veneer over the homogeny in the market. This isn't the golden days of whimsical superfluous styling. It's the year you pump up the hood and bumpers of a pedestrian Camry and barf LED lights all over it and crown the "achievement".

If you don't pay attention to detail, or don't care about design, sure. But the Cadillac has perfect proportions AND clean styling, which no one else does. BMW has nice RWD proportions but ridiculous baroque styling. Audi has clean styling but FWD proportions with gigantic overhang and severe front weight bias. Mercedes are just ugly.

 

[foghorn67]

It made you that uncomfortable huh? Too funny.

Umm, no. I'm uncomfortable about you on the road. Apparently, you're blind.

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

But the fanboy fawning over such subtle and IMHO forced styling queues... I just find that humrous. It's not evolutionary. It's just a veneer over the homogeny in the market. This isn't the golden days of whimsical superfluous styling. It's the year you pump up the hood and bumpers of a pedestrian Camry and barf LED lights all over it and crown the "achievement".

If you wanted to say the silhouette was very similar to the E-class, I'd listen to that argument. Hell, if you wanted to say it was vaguely similar to the Infiniti M45 like ElFenix suggested upthread, I'd even listen to that argument.

All you did was pick a side profile of a random car and call them identical. The greenhouse is different. The hood and trunk lines are different. You could have picked any dark gray car and done the same comparison.

So in reality you are either blind, stupid, or just trolling. And at this point I wouldn't rule out any of them.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Wow, I think I should mark down what I believe is the first time I have ever disagreed with anything you have posted. In profile, it is nearly identical, with a bit more bloat. It isn't just the colors - it's the pillar shapes, chrome trim, etc.

Let me show you what I meant when I said nobody would confuse these cars on the road:

vs.

vs.

vs.

My point is that while there are similarities in profile, as a whole the cars look nothing alike. I am not particularly a fan of either (I think the last few generations of Camries look like something that congealed on the road rather than something styled on purpose), but they really don't look alike in any event.

 

[TheAdvocate]

The only thing that really sets it apart is the front grill. The cars being made nowadays are all shaped in wind tunnels so they pretty much all look the same in dimension and basic shape. Heck, I like the Audi A4, but it looks disturbingly like a Honda accord from a side profile for much the same reasons. And that's exactly what the US automakers are aiming for - not to be different - they want to mimic the best sellers in the industry. It's to the point where everyone is making their generic 4 door sedan, coupe, truck, etc and unless you really invest your time, it's hard to even notice or care about whether this one has chrome on that arch or not.

Gone are the heydays of significant styiling risks - this isn't the 50's when you'd get the kind of significant "just because" styling... maybe if it's just easier if I show you. Here are some past examples of major styling departures that were worth the exaggerated reactions...

I could go on for a while but you get the point. Which isn't to say that I like every major chance that a car manufacturer has taken, but those were major departures worthy of the "oh my" reactions. Also, I used the newer gull wing mercedes in case anyone thinks Im stuck on old cars - I'm not. I like the new ones just as much.

The CTS is a good car, but it's pretty much just another bland 4 door sedan at least in shape and form, when you get right down to it. They tried to spiff it up some, but it's boring. Even a Fiat 500 is more interesting (more likely to trigger a reaction, good or bad).

Cars have lost their art in favor of homogeny from a profit and economy/performance standpoint.. the art is largely gone. Same as in pop art (music, TV, etc) which is more formulaic than groundbreaking or adventurous (with notable exceptions).

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Um, remove the wing and the RoadRunner looks just like my brother's old Chevelle or neighbors GTO (Tempest). Or are you going to tell me they were all hugely different? Cars of a generation are going to look similar. It's been that way since the Model T. The cars that stand out are the ones that do the details better than everyone else.

Funny you mention the 500 considering its a remake of the classic Fiat which itself was a copy of the Mini Cooper.

I'm gonna go with stupid with a splash of trolling for flavor...

 

[nerp]

That roadrunner with the wing was simply to let them use the hemi in nascar that year. Had to sell a few in dealerships to let that bad boy loose on the track. That and the chargers were unbeatable. It had nothing to do with styling.