We’ve known the ‘V’ performance variants of Cadillac’s compact ATS and midsize CTS have been in development for quite some time now. We assumed since the cars were being developed alongside one another they would make their debut at the same time, most likely at the North American International Auto Show in January. But Car and Driver has recently come out and said the ATS-V will break cover at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, while the CTS-V won’t make its debut until NAIAS.
The ATS-V will likely use a version of the 3.6-liter V6 found in the Vsport variants of the CTS and XTS, producing somewhere north of 420 horsepower and 430 lb-ft. An eight-speed automatic transmission should also be on offer, however it’s not clear if a manual option will also make an appearance, as the car’s current manual transmission isn’t up to the task of handling the V6’s power. Interestingly, C&D says the ATS-V was originally slated to receive the 7.0-liter LS7 V8 found in the C6 Corvette Z06 and Camaro Z/28, but the plan was axed by former CEO Dan Akerson.
As we’ve said before, the CTS-V will receive a version of the supercharged LT4 6.2-liter LT4 V8 introduced with the 2015 Corvette Z06 in Detroit this year. The engine will likely be slightly detuned from the 650 horsepower and 650 lb-ft it is producing in the Z06 to somewhere closer to 600 horsepower. The eight-speed 8L90E automatic transmission from the Z06 seems like the most likely transmission option for the car.
We’ve been looking forward to the reveal of the new ‘V’ twins all year, so hearing the ATS-V will break cover even earlier than expected is welcome news. If you can’t wait til their reveal, check out the spy shots of the two cars and see what you can make of them through the secret-concealing camouflage.
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