A compact Cadillac to beat the Bimmers

General Motors engineers were given a clean sheet to develop the 2013 ATS, Cadillac's all-new compact (and light) sport sedan aimed squarely at the 3 Series benchmark.

Benchmarks don't come any more resilient than BMW's 3 Series. The icon that created the luxury-compact sport sedan segment in 1976 continues to define it six product generations later. Beating the “Bimmer” at its own game is tough indeed, and has generally proven elusive to those who have tried-their efforts coming up short by varying degrees due to lack of focus, resources, or overall commitment.

For this reason, the 2013 Cadillac ATS deserves the industry's attention. General Motors engineers are confident the ATS not only cracks the Munich code on how to execute a best-in-class compact performance sedan, but actually sets new standards in key areas. While the market will ultimately decide if GM indeed hit the mark (and public perceptions don't change overnight), AEI's experience in various early production ATS's on the street and track showed their driving dynamics to be at least as crisp, nimble, and responsive as the 3 Series while holding a definite edge in driving comfort.