General Motors introduces the 2008 CTS Sport-Sedan by Cadillac

General Motors Western Region Manager Susan Docherty, and Lund Cadillac Let Two for the Road USA take it for a spin.

When we had GM’s Manager of the Western Region Susan Docherty on our radio show recently, she was so enthusiastic about the 2008 iteration of the CTS that we decided to ask our friends at Lund Cadillac in Phoenix if we could take one out for a spin to see what all the excitement was all about.

Bill Says:
I have to say that the CTS has always been a bit of an enigma to me because at first blush I really liked the car, but there was something that didn’t quite sit right we me and I really couldn’t put my finger on it, until now. The design changes while subtle have a serious impact aesthetically. The car seems to have, for lack of a better word, bulked up and now sports a much more aggressive stance with bulging, muscular fender flares made possible by a 62-inch wide track, the widest in its class, giving the CTS a much lower more assertive stance.

The previous model seemed not only taller, but narrower, and that was what had been nagging at me. This car has stunning lines that flow beautifully back to the short rear deck-lid that give the CTS a beautiful profile and its fully functional chrome air inlets on the front fender’s let you know in no uncertain terms, that this is a serious performer.

Unfortunately the CTS-V performance car won’t be available for quite some time but when I got behind the wheel of our loaner and settled into the beautiful interior, I was really surprised at the response to my right foot. The surprise was due to the response from all-new, 3.6 liter Direct Injection V6 with Variable Valve Timing engine that propels the CTS from 0-60 in under 6 seconds. That’s the type of performance that will get anyone’s attention and it certainly got mine. Mated to a new 6-speed Hydra-Matic transmission, the shifts in CTS are seamless yet crisp and if you so desire, you can use Driver Shift Control mode for smooth clutchless.

There is an awful lot to talk about with the new CTS but I’m going to have to wait until we have one in the press fleet rotation to really get into what this car is all about. Suffice it to say, if you’re looking for a really nifty sports-sedan, the 2008 CTS has taken a quantum leap and I for one am very impressed with it, and I’m betting you will be too.

The base price on the car is just over $32,000 but with the performance package and other options, the one we drove came in just over $42,000. However, for what you get, there’s no doubt that Cadillac has kicked it up a notch with this car, and it will be very interesting to see how it impacts the Infiniti M-series, the BMW 5-series and the C-Class. I’m betting that I’m not the only one that will be surprised by the 2008 Cadillac CTS.

Cathy Says:
The new 2008 CTS is a beautiful, sporty sedan that has enough sex appeal for both a man and women to agree on the purchase. I personally would choose a black exterior and light beige interior for my signature CTS, despite the upkeep. I am glad to see the faux-mini-spoiler on the 2007 is missing off the new ’08.

The cabin of the redesigned Cadillac is significantly improved over its predecessor. It now has a come-hither-look and feel about it that gently welcomes your derriere into the soft leather seats. The materials used inside are high in quality and the detail of wood and alloy remind you of some of the top luxury imports that begin with the letter “L”.

There’s a new telescoping steering column, giving the driver quite a bit of belly room, along with a thinner front seatback; allowing the rear passengers more leg room. The navigation system (which is optional) has a unique leather over-hang, like the large brim of a baseball cap. It might be there for show or to cut any glare that might cause difficulty in viewing.

The CTS is complete with a 40GB hard drive along with the premium Bose surround sound audio system. It has all the up to date hookups for iPod interface and other technology toys I know nothing about. For instance you can set your AM/FM and satellite radio to be rewound, paused and resumed in a TiVo-like manner. Great! I can’t figure out how to do in on my TV, but leave it to Cadillac to have it in the CTS.

It’s not all about the interior look; I did get to drive the powerful sport sedan once I forced Bill out of the driver’s seat. Besides the quick start at the lights and hugging the corners, I found it doing a sort of quick step up a desert hill. I felt like goldilocks in the three bear’s story; sitting in all three chairs till finally she sat in the one that was “just right.” I felt at home, I could locate the controls easily and the icons were a good size. I was impressed with how the A/C chilled the cabin immediately and including vents that were positioned perfectly.

Even if you were to purchase an entry level CTS, you would have more than you expected and for under $33,000. Cadillac has created a luxury sport sedan both inside and out. This baby lives up to its Cadillac heritage.

It was plain to see that the CTS had female influence; so hats off to Susan Docherty of General Motors, who I’m sure had some input.

For more reviews visit http://www.twofortheroadusa.com/.

YouTube - Off road with the 2008 Toyota Land Cruiser

Cathy and I have been test-driving for the manufacturers for nearly 15 years and reporting on them on radio, in print as well as videos. We have the opportunity to travel and get first looks and drives for new product to report on.

So, when Toyota invited us to Big Sky Montana, we were excited about the opportunity we had to spend some serious off-road time in the brand new
2008 Toyota Land Cruiser.

I was amazed at the capabilities offered by this very cool SUV. Check out this video and let us know
what you think.
YouTube - Off road with the 2008 Toyota Land Cruiser

MARIO ANDRETTI ON TWO FOR THE ROAD RADIO SHOW

Thursday, October 13th 2007
KKNT 960AM Phoenix, Arizona
Autograph Signing at Community Tire
October l7-18 2007

TWO FOR THE ROAD USA

PHOENIX AUTOMOTIVE JOURNALISTS CAN HELP YOU CAPTURE THE BOOMER MARKET

See why Manufacturers and Dealers are looking to these two
automotive journalists to seduce their over 50 market.

Go to, http://www.ebroadcastmedia.com/ for sample video.

Chrysler Visits Phoenix Automotive Press Association

September l8, 2007 – Hermosa Inn – Scottsdale, AZ. Cathy D's take on the all new Jeep Liberty.

Scott Brown, from Chrysler Corporation of the Southwest region, invited 15 top Phoenix press writers to preview three new products from Chrysler. The Town and Country Mini Van ( a movie theater on wheels without a popcorn maker), Dodge Dakota Truck (for the day to day truck lover and urban cowboy) and the 2008 Jeep Liberty (giving a whole new meaning to topless). All three models have some distinct changes in power, appearance and technology, but I was most excited about the 2008 Jeep Liberty.
Over the years my family has had two Jeep Wranglers and two Jeep Cherokees; none of which had any female input for the purchase. We’re not big off road people but before SUV’s became as common as reality shows, it gave me an elevated feeling in traffic and the men in my family felt rugged, cool and able to relate to a scene from the TV show MASH.
The 3.7 liter V-6 (210 horsepower/237 lb-ft torque) hasn’t changed along with its two transmissions but the rest is new and exciting and priced well. Jeep Liberty, no longer Jeep’s entry level model, has a longer wheelbase, width and overall length. It has kind of a Jeep Commander looking style with a little Wrangler-ness butt; less the rear-mounted spare tire on the outside of the cargo door. The spare now stores under the load floor where I would have liked it from the get go.
Okay, here is the cool part… the cloth, roman shade look roof (Sky Slider) opens from front to rear to give that open road look one might imagine on a safari. Chrysler has constructed this jeep continue to appeal to jeep lovers and then added some extras like stain resistant seats, center-stack infotainment, navigation system with MP3 capabilities, touch screen 20 gig hard drive and all the other technology that consumers want in a vehicle along with an off-road experience they can journal.
It is easy to see how you would take this one off road in the mountains or around town for food shopping or transporting kids. I think Chrysler/Jeep has taken the best of all their Jeep models, added a totally open roof, and priced it to make affordable for a younger buyer. The 2008 Jeep Liberty starts at $20,990 for the 4X2 and goes upward from there. The Sky Slider is an optional $1,200.00 but makes the new model attention-grabbing and makes star gazing possible without getting out of your vehicle.

Is Jeep thinking outside the box or did they just make the ’08 jeep look like a box?

In photo
Chrysler VP Steve Bartoli, Mark Kudla/Dodge Dakota, Kim Adams House/Jeep Liberty Bill Zervakos and Cathy Droz, Two for the Road USA in front of the New 2008 Jeep Liberty.

Size really does Matter!!

Okay, this isn’t going to be as titillating as you may have thought the subject matter was, but the truth is, there’s been a lot of ink lately about the Insurance Institute’s recent announcement that there are more traffic fatalities when a small car is involved in an accident than there are when large cars or SUV’s are. Now if that isn’t a case of stating the obvious I don’t know what is. The statistics I’ve seen show a ratio of about two to one between SUV’s and cars, and to that end, here are some thoughts I have about that.

My wife and I have always been fans of roadsters and over the last 30 odd years we’ve always owned a small two-seater of one kind of another. We’ve been asked countless times about driving a small car and the dangers we face because of the overabundance of huge SUV’s on the highway today.

Both of us are what I call aggressive defensive drivers, and by that I mean, if at all possible we do not stay behind vehicles we can’t see around, and we never stay in anyone’s blind spot and more importantly, because we drive cars that have a degree of performance, we have the ability to move quickly to avoid dangers on the road. I have to add that there is not any statistical data that I’m aware of the validates my claim of maneuverability keeping smaller cars out of harms way, but non-the-less, I know that I feel better about my odds of staying out of trouble with the quickness and agility of smaller cars.

Okay all that said it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that the law of physics is immutable and therefore cannot be denied. So clearly we understand that if there is a collision between a 6000 pound Hummer and my wife’s Z4, the BMW will lose. Yes, smaller cars are indeed more dangerous but my question is, how big is big enough?

A Taurus will likely be safer than a Honda Civic in a collision, as will a Crown Victoria in a collision with the same Taurus, and the same goes for a GMC Denali if it collides with the Crown Vic and on and on. So, it begs the question. How big is big enough? Life is full of risks so what are the issues to take into consideration to help abate this ever growing problem caused by consumers wanting to drive smaller more fuel efficient cars.

The issue is that small cars are here to stay now, and with the Smart car coming to America, there will be even more deaths because no matter how well a vehicle meets safety standards, the aforementioned law of physics holds sway. I recently read that GM is cutting production at six plants that build pickups and SUV’s because of falling sales so it will be interesting to see how the balance of size shifts over the next few years.

The absolute truth of the matter is that each of us is responsible for how safely or unsafely we drive. Unfortunately people in big cars and SUV’s sometimes appear to throw their weight around which causes problems, and sometimes people in smaller cars try to squeeze in where there simply isn’t room because they think they can. We all have to remember that size does in fact matter when it comes to our vehicles.

Your thoughts? visit http://www.twofortheroadusa.com and let us know.

How many people will have to die???

I find it hard to believe that less then a month after hearing about the five young girls killed in New York because the driver was texting while driving, we hear about two more people killed here in Phoenix because allegedly a young lady was texting while driving. Even more disheartening is the fact that we just dedicated an entire radio show to the problem of driving while texting.

Now I know that everyone doesn't listen to the show, but I'm sure you get my drift. There simply isn't enough outcry about this ever growing problem. Clearly it's always a tragedy when anyone dies in a car accident, but when someone dies because another driver was texting is virtually criminal.

It begs the age old question of whether or not there should be stronger limits on teenage driving because of the distractions presented to them with today's hi-tech information systems in cars, as well as the multi-tasking that teens seem to need to do. I have to be quick to point out that I am well aware of the fact that many adults use their blackberry's while driving, dial phone numbers and so on. But the truth is, teens are much more likely to have a problem with it than more experienced drivers.

Another part of the equation is how docile cars are today. I'm sure there are quite of few of us old enough to remember when steering components were linked together by rods and bushings that wore out, making it necessary to move the steering wheel all the time to keep the car in our lane. Today's cars are so well built that they appear to be able to drive themselves and in fact, some almost do. Key word being "almost." Maybe if all vehicles were required to have a lane departure warning system like some high end cars do, who know, maybe the seven people now dead would in fact still be with us.

So, the question is, who is accountable, and what can each of us do to make driving on today's very crowded highways, with vehicles traveling at a pretty high rate speed, safer. I know that I worked with my sons for two to three years teaching them "about" driving as well as driving. I know there are no guarantees, but there has to be a way to cut down on the senseless tragedy of people dieing because someone can't wait to text a friend instead of calling, which in and of itself is dangerous.

Let us hear from you. You can reach us at http://www.twofortheroadusa.com/