CTS-V for DD use?

My uncle has always been a bit of a performance car nut, but has largely transitioned to grand touring-type cars due to long road trips and increasing age. About 10 years ago (give or take) they upgraded their tired old Lexus LS400(?) to a CTS-V in dark red.

He's developed a nasty illness recently, and she isn't real comfortable driving the V in slick conditions, so they've upgraded again to a Benz 4motion something-or-other. I'd quasi-jokingly told them to keep me in mind when they decided to sell the Caddy, and sure as E36 M3, he came by the other day and offered it.

Book says its about a $12k value, he wants $9k from family. Well taken care of, but will be pretty high mileage, I'm assuming 200k range. He's having the driveshaft replaced after the center support developed a vibration, but once that's done I'll give it a test drive.

I've been dailying an R53 Mini S, just ticked over 110k. I like having a sporty car that isn't so perfect I'm scared to use it. Plenty of power for its weight, pretty fair handling, not too demanding on maintenance (so far). I can't afford to have both, so I'd fix some of the nagging issues with the Mini and try to get $4 or 5k out of it and call the V an upgrade.

Would I hate that change? Anybody use a V as a daily?

The V is a better car. 

If you enjoy the Mini S, you may not like it at all. 

It’s like saying “I love my shifter kart. Anyone think I will hate driving a freight train?”

I have been shopping for a V on and off. Just because I want to own a Chevy V8 for once in my life. Impala SS 94-95 I can't find. Around here I have seen two 180-220K miles, both are one owner. Both asking 8700-$12,000. Neither are moving at all, and have been on sale for a while.

I have had LS400, LS430, LS430, LS460, LS460L, LS600hL. So I know the game. I just want something different. :)

I think you SHOULD DO IT!

In reply to SVreX :

I asked for the shifter kart/freight train analogy, so that's fair. When you liken the V to a freight train, do you mean it is going to want to go like a hell in a straight line but isn't going to turn worth a damn?

What about the V makes it a "better car"? Build quality, presumably (luxury sedan priorities vs hot hatch priorities)?

I'd jump on it myself.

There have been one or two people here on the board who've owned CTS-Vs; the search function sucks, but maybe you can find some previous discussions about those cars that will be relevant. 

In reply to JohnInKansas :

I think they turn fine. Heck, one just won the GRM Challenge autox!

But they don’t toss. That’s what a mini does.  It’s twice the size, and twice the weight. Completely different driving experience. 

I think you will get in the car and be overwhelmed by how great it is. The power, the luxury. You will find it dominates the open highway, and wonder where it’s been all your life. 

Until the first day you drive it in traffic...

There is traffic in Kansas? hah! 

Talk to the Hong Noors. Poopshovel has a couple. 

But I am not sure he’d enjoy a MINI. 

Better car...

The V was the top of the line product from a premier luxury car manufacturer. Everything about it is done well, from bumper to bumper. Quality of build, fit and finish, luxury, power, ergonomics, sound deadening, suspension, driver experience. 

I love the R53. But it was literally a marketing experiment cobbled together out of the spare parts bin. 

My choice for a daily?  The MINI. No hate here. 

They are totally different driving experiences, and people who love one probably are not thrilled with the other. 

In reply to JohnInKansas :

What year?

Also: HOLY CRAP DUDE! I'm a DICK for not thanking you before now for the upgraded Disco vinyl!!!!!

SVreX said:

Better car...

The V was the top of the line product from a premier luxury car manufacturer. Everything about it is done well, from bumper to bumper. Quality of build, fit and finish, luxury, power, ergonomics, sound deadening, suspension, driver experience. 

I love the CTS-V, but this is a bit of an oversimplification. Assuming we are talking first gen here, I don't know that I would have called anything from GM in the mid-naughts "premier", Cadillac or not. Power, yes, suspension, probably. But those first-gen CTSs had kinda crap interiors with a weird blob in the center console and plastic buttons that lost their finish way too quickly. If you can live with that stuff, you can get a heck of a performance bargain for your money. But there's a reason that the E39 M5, with similar specs and performance, has held it's value so much better.

I love the R53. But it was literally a marketing experiment cobbled together out of the spare parts bin. 

The BMW parts bin, though. Not the Chevy one. 

Tom_Spangler said:

The BMW parts bin, though. Not the Chevy one. 

Given the choice I know which one I'm taking

I DD a 05 CTS-V.

As long as it is good condition it would be an excellent steed. Caveat is it is GM product that has strange issues. Tom got it right in his post.

The diff is fine if doesn't wheelhop. The soft drivetrain mounts contribute to this. Burnouts are the number one cause of diff destruction. Accelerating in 6th gear is also a no-no due to a design issue on T56. Always downshift to 5th gear. Remember it is a nearly 4k lbs car with 400 torques.

Issues with electronics popup like wipers running continuously (replace control box), blend door motors losing their minds (easy replace for two, dash out for the other), airbag sensor alert (reseat the connector or replace the seat bottom ($600ish), and oil temp alarms (poor grounding issues). All of these are [mostly] easily DIYable.

I cannot state this enough . . . Stick with factory mounts. The aftermarket has some good mounting solutions. Once you start, you have to do ALL of them. The stiffer mounts create a disconnection in the chassis. It will feel like a floppy noodle until you replace them all. After replacement, there WILL be increased NVH and new fuses in the drivetrain will pop-up (remember the diff).

I'm going back to all factory mounts later this year.

With all that . . . I love it as a DD.

What specifically do you want to know?

In reply to Tom_Spangler :

That’s fair. 

Have you owned an R53?  They are a quirky riot, but I can’t say they are a “good car”. 

I didn’t  intend to offer GM any kudos.

First gen CTS-Vs are a riot to drive, I love them.  Yes, very different experience from driving a Mini (also a lot of fun), it really just depends on what you're looking for.

Have you driven the CTS-V yet?  Do you like it?

I know next to nothing about the car. Pretty sure based on my recollections of when they bought it that it must be a Gen 1, maybe an early Gen 2. Pretty sure its an auto, as I don't think she wanted anything to do with a clutch at her age. Haven't gone and driven it yet, will as soon as he has it back from the shop for driveshaft replacement.

Stike_Zero, I don't know what I need to know. Sounds like (as with most any reliable stock car) the name of the game is don't try to make it something it isn't unless you want to increase the amount of time you spend fixing problems.

I think the answer is that I need to go drive it and see if it is a car I could live with unmodified, or if its going to be a slippery slope.

SVreX said:

In reply to Tom_Spangler :

That’s fair. 

Have you owned an R53?  They are a quirky riot, but I can’t say they are a “good car”. 

I didn’t  intend to offer GM any kudos.

I have not, but I've heard plenty of horror stories about them, as well. I still feel like mid-00s GM build quality is less than mid-00s BMW build quality, though.

Just to be clear, we're talking about a V1 car, not the supercharged V2? Yes? 

V1 was manual only, so if it's auto it's a v2. 

Mileage doesn't scare me so I'd jump on it at 9k.  I'd have to think about it for a v1, considering that's c5 territory now, especially if your willing to go auto or vert.

In reply to JohnInKansas :

Bingo!!

If it's auto, it would be a V2. All V1 cars are T56 equipped. That price range you gave points to V1.

I've driven an extremely nice dark red 1g CTS-V 6spd. It looked so good I HAD to drive it even though I wasn't really shopping for a CTS-V. Well, i drove it and went right back to not shopping for a CTS-V.  I think they're ok. They're pretty unique, fairly fast, good looking. They're also kind of expensive for a 15+ y/o GM product that looks and feels like a 15+ y/o GM product when you sit down in it. 9k is getting close to cheap enough in my opinion if it's in good shape. By other people's standards it might be a smoking deal. I just don't love a 1g CTS all that much more for it being fast. I can think of a couple different ATS's I'd rather have for the same money it would take me to get a decent 1g CTS-V. 

The 2G is significantly different to me in that it feels fast ALL the time (boooost). The 2g car doesn't feel as cheap as the 1g car does. I still have some issues with its interior. Very subjective. It's a lot closer to being a 'very nice car' but not normally closer to being a better value with what they go for. But for 9k?? If it's a 2g THAT'S a smoking deal. 

This question will be answered when you drive it. 

In reply to mazdeuce - Seth:

I'm not sure. I wasn't mentally prepared to ask him a bunch of questions, so I'm working off of about what year I think they got the car. I'm inclined to say V2, but I'm not confident. I remember it looked fast when it was parked, which fits the V2 styling better. And he said something about the "turbo" being serviced; he could easily have been confused in saying that. And I am pretty confident it is an auto, she's had two knee replacements and I don't think she could work a clutch comfortably.

2g's were supercharged. You're probably talking about a $9k 2g. In which case...

Yep . . . What Vigo said. V2 for $9k equal buy now.