because one of these three is not like the others. As you might expect, the two Germans are right on top of each other. Any power advantage the AMG has over the M3 is mitigated by lard. The 425-horsepower, 406-lb-ft of torque, 3.0-liter, twin-turbo inline-six BMW weighs only 3,498 pounds, whereas the 503-horse, 516 lb-ft of twist C63 pushes down on the scales with 3,936 pounds. As such, both cars hit 0-60 mph in 4 seconds flat. The AMG manages to just pip the M3 in the quarter mile, 12.2 seconds at 119.5 mph versus 12.3 at 118.1 mph. The Caddy? Well, friends, the 3,788-pound ATS-V with its 464-hp, 445-lb-ft of torque, twin-turbo, 3.6-liter V-6 hits 60 mph in a remarkable 3.7 seconds. That’s as quick as a Corvette Stingray (though the first C7 Z51 we ever tested took 3.9 seconds) and quicker than a Camaro Z/28 (4.0 seconds). The American speed demon wins the quarter-mile battle, too, doing so in 12.1 seconds at 116.2 mph. Note the trap speed, as the Caddy is out of breath at the end of the race.
The ATS-V also stops in a hurry. With nothing but steel rotors, the ATS-V goes from 60 mph to zero in just 99 feet. That’s equal to a Ferrari 458 Italia, though the Corvette Stingray does it in 95 feet. As for the two Germans? The AMG with its $5,450 carbon-ceramic front brakes (rears are steel) requires 101 feet from 60 mph, and the M3 with its $8,150 full carbon-ceramic brake package needs 104 feet. As you can see, in a straight line, America wins. But when you start turning the wheel … USA still comes out on top. The Cadillac dusted the competition, running around our figure-eight course in 23.7 seconds, whereas the two Germans both required 24.1 seconds. To illustrate just how phenomenally all three cars handle, that Corvette Stingray needs 23.5 seconds to lap the figure eight, while a Porsche 911 Carrera 4S requires 23.9. Ferrari 458 Italia? 23.6 seconds, all of which should give you a clear illustration of how ludicrous the Caddy’s handling prowess is. The conclusion from our test team is that if performance is all you care about, buy the Cadillac. However—and I sound like a broken record here—numbers only tell one part of the story.
[There’s one final hunk of data I’d like to toss at you. We happily let Pobst run all three cars around Willow Springs International Raceway’s 2.42-mile circuit (the big track, aka Big Willow), and here are the results, in descending order: BMW M3 1:32.51, C63 1:31.52, Caddy ATS-V 1:31.43. The ATS-V and the C63 are both a second quicker than the M3, and the Cadillac beats the Mercedes by nine hundredths of a second. Also note that whatever advantage the Cadillac had over the C63 in our normal testing was nearly neutralized on the track. Likewise, where the BMW and Mercedes were virtually tied at the drag-strip, on the racetrack the C63 is measurably better. Pobst liked the BMW the least (snappy at the limit) and felt like he was 5 seconds per lap faster in the Mercedes than in the ATS-V. He was shocked to learn he was quicker in the Caddy. But we’re talking less than a tenth.
Three pages of good reading. Hard to include the Benz at a $10k to $15k premium in the comparison, but everyone likes a 3 horse race.
