Cadillac chief reveals plans for ATS variants including a convertible and a wagon

By Peter Braun January 15, 2014

Cadillac is going all in on its BMW fighting ATS. We were already treated to the new ATS Coupe at the Detroit Auto Show this week, but Cadillac chief Bob Ferguson says that Cadillac is just getting started.

In an interview with Automotive News, Ferguson said that Cadillac plans on branching out and producing more versions of the ATS, including potentially a convertible and a wagon.

Apparently a wagon was planned right from the start of the ATS development cycle, but GM wanted to wait and see how the launch of the ATS sedan did before it committed itself to production.

Following the warm reception of the ATS, particularly in regards to its sporty handling and modern and powerful engine options, Cadillac now wants to make the most of what it has. Ferguson said explained, “You’ve made the investment. You’ve built a brand within a brand, if you have a winner you should exploit that.”

I for one agree. The ATS is probably the best expression of Cadillac’s new direction. Not only does it have excellent performance, like a lot of Cadillacs in the last few years, it has a modern and special look and feel right down to the resculpted Caddy emblem.

Ferguson did caution that Cadillac plans on staying focused, producing fewer but better cars than its German competitors.

While it isn’t yet clear that there will be a convertible or wagon, Ferguson did confirm that there will be a performance oriented ATS-V. That is a particularly exciting prospect because Cadillac could go a lot of different directions with that car, potentially even shoehorning its new 4.5-liter V8 into the car for some real German thrashing power.

Personally, I hope that we see an ATS-V wagon. I absolutely loved the soon to be discontinued CTS-V wagon. But with prices around $70,000, it was always a bit of a dream car. An ATS-V sport wagon really would be the only car you needed. So here’s hoping that Bob Ferguson comes through for us car lovers.

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Peter is a freelance contributor to Digital Trends and almost a lawyer. He has loved thinking, writing and talking about cars…

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