By Mark Kleis
Thursday, Dec 22nd, 2011 @ 4:29 am

Just one week ago Leftlane brought you confirmation of both a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder base engine and a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder for the upcoming 2013 Cadillac ATS, today we have confirmation for the third of four expected engines for this new sedan.

Leftlane brought you a picture of a leaked spec sheet months ago that showed three engines: a 270 horsepower 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder, a 330 horsepower 3.6-liter V6 and a 470 horsepower V8 for the range-topping ATS-V performance model. Since then GM has confirmed the turbo four, and now a 3.6-liter V6, which happens to match the recently announced uprated figures for the 2013 Camaro V6′s 3.6-liter engine and the previously leaked spec sheet in the gallery above.

Known and expected powertrain details
GM confirmed a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine as the base powerplant, an engine that will be shared with the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu . It is expected that the final power figures will fall in the 190 to 200 realm. This engine will give the ATS a low entry price point, along with optimal fuel economy, but be short on power compared to its German and Japanese rivals.

Next up will be the 2.0T, as Cadillac refers to it, loaded with technology such as: a direct-injection twin-cam, four valves per cylinder, continuously variable valve timing, twin-scroll turbocharger with air-to-air intercooler, forged-steel crankshaft with modular balance shaft system and a two-stage variable-displacement oil pump with jet-spray piston cooling.

Worth noting, the 2.0T produces 90 percent of its peak 260 lb-ft of torque anywhere between 1,500 and 5,800 rpms – meaning the ATS will have torque on-demand, any time. Horsepower comes in at an aforementioned 270 ponies.

Third in the hierarchical tree will be the naturally aspirated 3.6-liter V6 confirmed in the article above, which will deliver 330 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque.

The final engine is not officially confirmed, but you can count on a V8 for the range-topping ATS-V. The leaked spec sheet suggested 470 horsepower and 438 lb-ft of torque.

What else is new?
In addition to confirming yet another engine, Cadillac also confirmed a second-generation of the Cadillac Magnetic Ride Control suspension system, something the Detroit-automaker recently put to task at the Nürburgring North Loop.

(More after video)

“No other facility in the world is like this. You can accomplish more here in one lap around the ring than you can on dozens of tracks in the U.S.,†said Dave Mikels, energy and powertrain integration engineer. Mikels and his colleagues on the ATS team are Nürburgring-certified performance test drivers.

“There are places where you’re airborne, and then there are valleys where you’re in full compression. There are off-camber, on-camber turns. There’s no other place in the world where you can test for all of that, except here.â€

What we know so far
Cadillac has released the second full length video in a series entitled “The Journey” documenting the development and testing of the brand’s upcoming BMW 3-Series rival, the ATS.

Whereas chapter one emphasized testing on the Nurburgring in addition to the “low mass” of the ATS, chapter two documents the work done on Germany’s autobahn to refine the nitty-gritty details of the car’s handling characteristics in real-world driving.

Lead development engineer Chris Berube narrates much of the video, touching on the “unique opportunity of the all new-architecture” of the ATS and describing the hand-picked team of experienced engineers and certified test drivers involved in the project. As with chapter one, not much of the car’s exterior is revealed save for the XTS-like front grille, though the cabin definitely looks to feature Cadillac’s new CUE touch-screen infotainment system.

Have a look at the video below to get a peek at the ATS ahead of its expected introduction at the Detroit show in January.

The new ATS sedan will slot beneath the CTS in the Cadillac lineup, taking on vehicles like the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

The ATS’ design is clearly inspired by the CTS sedan, highlighted by crisp lines and bulging wheel arches. An up-swept character line is visible near the car’s rocker panel with large wheels giving the car a planted look.

Up front, though, it appears as though the ATS was influenced by the XTS Concept. Unlike the CTS’ headlights, the ATS’s appear to flow more into the car’s fenders, giving a more swept-back look. XTS-like fog light opens also look to be a part of the ATS’s front-end treatment.

The ATS’ will ride on an all-new RWD-AWD architecture dubbed Alpha. Although GM CEO Dan Akerson labeled the architecture as Cadillac-specific, it is believed the Alpha platform will underpin the next-generation Chevrolet Camaro as well as a sporty sedan wearing the bowtie badge.

Like the larger CTS, the ATS will be available in sedan, coupe and wagon body styles, although the Euro-rival will also be available as a convertible.

Currently, production of the ATS sedan is slated to start in July of 2012, followed by the coupe in July of 2013. All ATS models will be assembled at the automaker’s Lansing, Michigan, assembly plant. Expect pricing to start in the mid-to-upper-$20,000 range.

Check out the original video of the ATS hitting the ‘ring below.

References
1.’2014 Cadillac ATS…’ view

Related Articles

left
right
0 Comment
  

LeftLane

Login

  • LeftLane

    Copyright © 2005 - 2012 Left lane News.
    All rights reserved.