My boss wants to buy her husband a car for his 60th birthday. She wants sporty, he wants a Cadillac. What they ultimately want is sporty, comfortable, economic. Any suggestions?
Caddy makes a sporty model. But the issue is really between the two of them. She may want to stop by the Caddy dealer and see what they offer.
She should definitely get him what he wants if it is for his birthday, she can get the model that she prefers in the Caddy family, but it should def. be a cadilliac.
Cadillac makes one car that is sporty and comfortable, but no Cadillac is economic. The maintenance and repairs will be expensive, and Cadillac gas mileage is nothing to write home about.
Please keep in mind that gas mileage over the life of the car is only 1/3 of the total ownership cost; maintenance, repairs and depreciation (especially for Cadillac) are the major costs.
To be totally objective (forgetting “prestige”), at that price level and below there is a lot of choice. The most bang for the buck in sporty and economical is the Volkswagen GTI, a very fast and sporty machine giving good gas mileage. Also the Mazda 3 Sport, a great handling car with good mileage, low maintenace costs and good resale value. For some more money a 3 Series BMW is a great handling car with decent gas mileage and good resale value. Of those three, the BMW is the most comfrotable, but none will have the waterbed ride the husband may want.
However, reading between the lines I suspect the husband’s understanding of sporty has more to do with looks than with actual sporty handling and road holding. The terms “sporty” and “Cadillac” are normally not mentioned in the same breath!!
For great handling, ride, and sportiness , the Infinity G30 2 door coupe is probaly the best fit. Even the gas mileage is decent. A fellow down the street has one and the husband will turn heads at any country club. Lexus also has a 2 door coupe that competes directly with the Infiniti. The overall cost of ownership of both is less than a Cadillac, but still high compared to some of the econo-sporty types I mentioned.
I think the boss needs to ask some more questions, and her husband needs to drive some of the cars I mentioned. If he is hung up on Cadillacs, he may not be able to accept the fact that Cadillacs, like Jaguars are prestige cars from the PAST; there are many new and much better cars on the market today.
Whose birthday is it? If he wants Caddy, she should get him a Caddy.
If you want something sporty, comfortable, and economic, I reacommend a Mazda Miata, a Honda S2000, a Toyota Celica, or a Ford Mustang. These aren’t that economical, but I think these cars are each a good balance of all three of these traits.
Three 20 year olds???
Sorry someone had to do it.
If it is for HIS birthday, then why talk about sporty and what the wife wants. That is for HER birthday.
get a Caddy----most comments here are from the past or they have not driven a caddy in ages and are hanging on to their lack of information. Warranty better than any other vechicle mentioned because Caddy reliabilty outstanding and GM knows it. Tell her to rent a caddy cts for a week. the young 60 will be one happy birthday boy. That’s what I rent when need a vehicle for out of town visits.
Three 20 year olds???
And for HER 60th she’s going to want Three 20 year olds too…
And remember your Grammar School Math.
20 goes into 60 a lot more times then 60 goes into 20.
Warranty better than any other vechicle mentioned because Caddy reliabilty outstanding and GM knows it.
Caddy’s are made by GM…A GM V8 is a GM V8. Tell that to the HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of dissatisfied GM owners who filed a Class Action suit against GM for the problems with Intake Manifolds.
It will take some time before anyone convinces me a Cadillac is anywhere near as reliable as a Lexus, Acura, Toyota. They have certainly improved and are no longer dismal. The biggest improvement was in the JD Power Initial Quality survey. But that tells you exactly nothing about what happens later. The best car GM builds themselves is the Buick.
As a 60th birtday present I would appreciate something comfortable, fun to drive, reliable, and hassle-free to service. If it looks good, that would be a bonus. A Toyota, Lexus, Acura, or Infiniti would fit that category, but not a Cadillac.
I liked the Infinity and Lexus ideas since they meet all criteria. Or, how about a
Honda (conservative) S2000 2-seater (romantic) convertible (wild) with 6-speed manual gearbox (exercise)and 18" rims (crazy).
Check out a Cadillac CTS; available with three different suspension options and has standard rear drive. The base suspension is good at cornering and the ride is very good. EPA mileage with regular 87 octane gas is 17/26 with the direct injection V6 and automatic trans. It is also available with a manual trans (more sporty?). Price starts in the low 30s; made in Lansing, MI if you care.
Note that Cadillac’s CTS received Motor Trend’s Car of the Year award for 2008.
Another option is a Cadillac XLR with a V8; mileage is 15/24 price in the 70K area.
A big problem that I have with the many of the Japanese luxury cars is that their styling is too similar to a Camry or an Accord. They are invisible in traffic. A CTS or certainly an XLR will have exterior styling that will not let that happen.
Cadillac’s reliability is good now; can’t be any other way.
If you boss has that kind of money…it’s time YOU got a raise 
PS, Google Cadillac CTS Coupe. It won’t be available until 2009 if you can wait. It will definitely not be mistaken for a Camry/Accord!
The CTS is a the smallest Cadillac. It is between the BMW 3-series and 5-series in size. The magazine wags think it compares well to the 5-series in handling but not the 3-series. The XLR is basically a Corvette done up like a Benz SL. Then there’s the STS. It is larger but handles well for a larger car; it’s between the 5-series and 7-series in size. The STS-V is am absolute monster with a 469HP/439ft-lb engine for about $80,000. The XLR starts at $80,000 and is available as an XLR-V for $100,000. The XLR-V uses a 443HP/414ft-lb engine. They may also be available used, too.
BTW, no Cadillac is economical to drive. That’s not the crowd Cadillac wants to run in. They want to compete with MB, BMW, Infiniti, Jaguar, Maserati…
“sporty, comfortable, economic”
Pick any 2 of these 3 criteria, and you will have a much better chance of finding what you want.
There isn’t really anything “economic” about it but a Cadillac CTS-V is the ultimate answer.
I think these 2 people need to have a meeting of the minds because they’re nowhere near being on the same page; and if it’s going to be hubby’s car then why does her opinion matter? Unless hubby will be relegated to the old heap and wife drives the new sporty car that hubby does not like.
It semms to me that Craig has it nailed with the 2 out of 3 comment.
The folks who are saying “its his birthday so what he wants is all that matters” have not been married very long.
I suggest that they take a long test drive in a 5 series BMW or a nice Infinity, and they may both discover what they really want in a car. They will also get lower maintenance and better resale value. Of my relatives and co-workers who have owned Cadillacs in the past 20 years, all of them dumped them before they hit 100k miles and none of them bought a second Caddi.
Folks, the man is 60 years old and he’s always wanted a Cadillac. And his wife wants to get him something sporty. Clearly the marriage is good enough that she’d like to get him something he’s always wanted. Why are so many trying to suggest she get him something other than what he’s always wanted?
I’ve always wanted a 911 Targa or cabriole. They are horribly expensive and useless in winter, and not as reliable as a Toyota. If I had someone that cared enough for me to want to buy me one for my birthday, and someone posted about it, would you guys tell her to get something else for me?
She should get him a sporty Cadillac. It doesn’t matter what I’d prefer.