It has been nearly six decades since Cadillac and General Motors won the very first Motor Trend Car of the Year award in 1949. Over those decades, the Cadillac brand has been the pinnacle of luxury and status among American cars. Hollywood used them in movies. Mary Kay paints them pink and gives them to their top sales directors as an award for their achievements. Elvis had a whole fleet of them. Yet, in recent years, American made luxury has been overshadowed by the European status symbols like BMW and Mercedes. Well, watch out! Americans don’t like to lose, and Cadillac is making a strong come back. The new 2008 CTS sedan beat out 17 other worthy contenders, including the Audi A5 and Honda Accord, to earn the 2008 Motor Trend Car of the Year award.

The midsize CTS certainly has what it takes to compete with the leading luxury sport sedans from Europe and Japan. This newly redesigned model has edgier styling, higher quality materials, a roomier interior, capable handling and more zip than ever before. The 2008 Cadillac CTS is available with one of two V6 engines. The base 3.6-liter V6 generates 258 hp and 252 pound-feet of torque, while the upgraded 3.6-liter direct injection (DI) V6 puts out a more competitive 304 hp and 273 lb-ft of torque. Performance tests conducted by Motor Trend showed a 0-60-mph time of 6.5 seconds, which is comparable to the BMW 330i.

Every CTS comes standard with 17-inch wheels, leatherette seating, an eight-way power driver seat, dual-zone automatic climate control and a CD/MP3 player with an iPod interface and satellite radio. The basic Seating Package adds leather trim and heated front seats, while the Luxury packages add a six-CD changer, rain-sensing wipers, heated/ventilated seats, rear park assist and keyless ignition. The Premium package offers a 40GB hard drive-based navigation system with a slick, pop-up display and real-time traffic, a premium Bose surround-sound audio system, sunroof, wood trim and LED interior lighting. For driving enthusiasts, the CTS offers two tempting performance packages that include 18-inch wheels, a limited-slip rear differential, performance cooling, adaptive xenon headlights, a high-performance suspension, tires and bigger brakes.

The CTS sports all of the latest and greatest safety equipment, including antilock brakes, traction & stability control, front-seat side airbags, full-length side curtain airbags and GM’s famous OnStar emergency communications system.

This definitely isn’t your granddaddy’s Cadillac. GM’s efforts to eradicate the “old man” image extend beyond the car’s design and into a marketing campaign that appeals to both men and women. One of my favorite Cadillac commercials touches on a topic that I discussed previously – that girls like to have fun, too. The commercial features a beautiful, professionally-dressed, 40 year old woman (played by actress Kate Walsh of Grey’s Anatomy) driving a Crystal Red CTS. She is clearly a confident, successful business woman who is spending her hard-earned cash on herself, enjoying life, and making no apologies for it. She says that when deciding what luxury car to buy, the question is not whether it has swanky features and innovative technologies. She says, “the question is… when you turn your car on, does it return the favor”. Then, she floors it.

A girl after my own heart.