2007 Cadillac XLR in Albuquerque

The XLR-V is Cadillac's most expensive model to date, costing some $23,000 more than the next priciest Cadillac, the STS-V, and it's a huge risk for a division still in the midst of mustering a credible threat to the European luxury marques. But the focus cannot be on whether or not a $100,000 Caddy should exist-since one indisputably now does-but rather on whether it lives up to the lofty expectations created by its six-figure sticker price.

Ponying up all that dough secures the speediest Cadillac ever, thanks to a powerful, 443-hp, supercharged V-8, which accelerates the XLR-V from 0 to 60 mph in a claimed 4.6 seconds-an improvement of 1.2 seconds over the base XLR and just a tick behind the recently discontinued Mercedes-Benz SL55 AMG. In order to handle the higher pressures and temperatures produced by the Roots-style blower, Cadillac engineers had to substantially revise the base car's powerplant, a task that included decreasing displacement from 4.6 liters to 4.4 liters and adding beefier components, including a new block and heavy-duty pistons. It's nearly the same setup found in the STS-V, but there the Northstar pumps out 469 hp due to freer-breathing intake and exhaust plumbing that won't fit in the XLR-V, which requires a prominent hood bulge simply to make room for the supercharger.

Nearly as impressive is the Magnetic Ride Control, which processes wheel and road data once every millisecond. It's been upgraded for V-spec duty to include two settings. The default setting is a more comfort-oriented program-identical to the sole setting on the base car-that goes too soft before shoring up the supports, but the second mode, a sportier calibration chosen by tipping the gear lever into the manu-matic slot, keeps the car flat on initial turn-in and nicely balanced during aggressive cornering.... Read full article