Cadillac Seville sedan boosts sophisticated vehicle controls
Bob Plunkett
Date Posted: 5/10/2005
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MONTEFONTAINE, France -- Perimeter embankments for a high-speed oval test track at the vast CERAM automotive performance facility in suburbs north of Paris rise nine stories above a flat and wooded landscape, so high that the outside lap of this three-lane roadbed pitches at an extreme angle almost perpendicular to the horizon.
For a vehicle to slip laterally up that graduated slope and run in the outer high lane requires excessive speed so the physics of centrifugal force will push the car into the pavement and pin it to the track.
The car we used to climb that wall in tests at Montefontaine was at first blush an unlikely contender for speed tests on an oval track: It was a Cadillac.
A prototype of the revised Seville STS, Cadillac's mid-size sedan reworked for 2000 issues with refinements for powertrain and suspension, hurled down the CERAM track in excess of 130 mph, the speed necessary to stick the car perpendicularly in the outside lane.
Slip the steering wheel an inch to the left and you'll fall down the slope, or to the right an inch and you'll sail off the lip of the track into French air space. Hold it even and the Seville tracks true and straight on the oval alley like a slot car locked into the groove.
It runs smoothly and quietly at such excessive speed, the big NorthStar V8 engine humming yet not seeming to work too hard, as an independent suspension married to 16-inch aluminum wheels and Z-rated rubber transcends any track irregularities and stifles pavement noise.
On an auxiliary course entwined around the embanked oval, our tester Seville also demonstrated it could handle tricky decreasing-radius and off-camber curves at lesser speeds while keeping all tires rooted to the road.
A pothole section with washboard pavement wrinkles allowed the suspension to flutter in a dance that absorbed vertical wheel trauma without disturbing riders on firm seats in a refined cabin.
Through all of these tests, the new Seville felt athletic and quick with tight and precise mechanical movements. It revealed a sophisticated poise which seemed more akin of European sports touring cars than big American luxury labels like Cadillac.
But this Seville represents the harbinger of a new era at Cadillac that promises cutting-edge designs and high-tech automotive performances.
The Seville name traces back in Cadillac history to a coupe issue of the sporty rear-wheel-drive Eldorado of 1956. A downsized sedan in 1976 built as an import-fighter next bore the Seville badge, and generational revisions in 1986 reoriented the drive system with power applied to wheels in front. By 1992 it became an active touring sedan, eventually receiving the impressive NorthStar powertrain and computer-controlled electronic systems like Cadillac's StabiliTrak chassis control system, which can correct potentially disruptive skid movements automatically without requiring a driver's skill to assist manually.
Then radical changes occurred with the Seville platform in 1998 so Cadillac could compete on a global scale with a new Seville design that pared the car in length for export editions to less than five meters, or 196.5 inches. Despite the downsizing, Seville's wheelbase actually increased in length by 1.2 inches as its track, the distance between wheel sets, grew by almost two inches.
The longer and broader chassis which resulted from these expansions set up a more stable platform best exhibited by the car's improved agility while in motion. Further, new aluminum components of the four-wheel independent suspension minimized mass, while a switch in the rear suspension format from a short-long arm arrangement to a multi-link design resulted in a platform which negated tendencies to dive or dip when braking or accelerating.
Cadillac also added a myriad of electronic sensors to modulate body movements. These sensors -- measuring wheel and steering positions, even powertrain output -- link to microprocessors that check and control components like a continuously variable road sensing suspension, which automatically changes damping rates for each wheel's shock absorber to block body motion and smooth the ride quality.
Sensors also work with Seville's anti-lock brakes, traction control and the standard StabiliTrak yaw control.
New 2000 editions of Seville contain an enhanced version of StabiliTrak which integrates controls for the continuously-variable road-sensing suspension system.
This merger of the two computerized systems results in an additional layer of vehicle control during potentially dangerous car movements, such as lateral slippage, and it even compensates for assertive yet inappropriate steering effort by a driver -- all to pull the car back in line on a safe forward trajectory.
Safety equipment for the Seville of 2000 extends to new sensors for the passenger-side frontal air bag which prevent deployment of the device when a child sits up front or the seat is not occupied.
In addition, new optional gear related to safety includes a navigation system mounted in the dash and Cadillac's Ultrasonic Rear Parking Assist device, which checks behind the car by using four ultrasonic sensors mounted in the back fascia to locate an object behind the car and determine its proximity to the bumper. When an object is detected, chimes sound and light-emitting diodes flash as warnings to the driver and these alarms increase in frequency as the car nears the object.
Two versions of Seville extend with the new models.
The Seville Luxury Sedan (SLS) provides elaborate luxury comforts but sets suspension and steering mechanisms to generate a plush ride quality.
The Seville Touring Sedan (STS) tweaks all hardware to create a more lively platform geared for an enthusiast type of driver who enjoys quick cornering maneuvers and faster throttle action.
Powertrains for the two Seville editions draw from improvements to Cadillac's NorthStar 4.6-liter V8, now rigged to operate on regular-grade unleaded fuel without sacrificing performance. A new design for cylinder heads, new pistons, a reconfigured combustion chamber to improve firing, new coil-on-plug ignition system, and a center-feed intake manifold -- all of these engine modifications point to smoother and quieter operation with decreased emissions and improved efficiency.
The engine, teamed to a four-speed automatic transaxle, produces 275 hp in the SLS but 300 hp for STS.
Seville's interior shows a curvy dash with accents in high-gloss Zebrano wood and leather seat upholstery. Plush front buckets offer interior mechanisms which automatically adapt surface contours to fit the individual's backside.
Pricing for the Seville editions of 2000 commences around $44,000 for the SLS and $49,000 for a STS.
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| 2000 CADILLAC SEVILLE VEHICLE SPECIFICATIONS |
| Description: |
Mid-size luxury sedan
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| Model Options: |
Mid-size luxury sedan
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| Wheelbase: |
112.2 inches
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| Overall Length: |
201.0 inches
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| Engine Size: |
DOHC 4.6-L V8
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| Transmission: |
Auto/4
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| Drive: |
Front
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| Braking: |
Power 4-disc/ABS/TCS/
StabiliTrak
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| Airbags: |
2 (front) + 2 (side)
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| Gas Mileage: |
17/26 mpg
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| MSRP Price: |
$ 44,000 to $ 52,000 |
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