2005 Cadillac CTS-v, Chrysler 300C SRT8, Pontiac GTO Handling & Chassis Review

The 1960s-era musclecars were stirring on straightaways, too, but when the road curved they mostly handed over all steering control to Newton's first law of motion ("an object moving in a straight line tends to remain in a straight line until it crashes into a McDonald's billboard"). Not so these three. In fact, as we discovered during a full day of flogging through the mountain switchbacks in the Sequoia National Forest north of Los Angeles, when the road goes twisty, these power players shine their brightest.

The 2005 GTO retains the supple chassis response of the 2004 edition, rolling into corners, taking a secure set (max grip is 0.85 g), and ultimately understeering as it nears the limit. At times, we almost wished for a tad more firmness, but a performance coupe with such ride civility is no bad thing. Neither is so much performance and finesse for a base price of around $33K (final prices had not been set at presstime).

The SRT8 will surprise you. It's big, and on tight mountain two-lanes it feels it, but once you accept that this beefy Chrysler isn't going to turn in with the quickness or neutrality of a Lotus, hang on--the SRT8 can really hustle. Max grip is a stupendous 0.88 g, the Brembos are always there to rein in corner-to-corner sprints, and the Hemi makes speed so effortlessly it almost feels lazy. It isn't. It loves to rev, and it's matched to a five-speed automatic so adept at choosing (and holding) the right gear you almost don't need to bother with the AutoStick. Oh, there's one more surprise: This American-style AMG Mercedes starts at only $39,995 (and, no, that's not an unassembled IKEA edition). It'll be interesting to see which is quicker: the SRT8 itself or the way the 5000 or so examples slated for 2005 fly off dealer lots.

Before we headed into the mountains with the CTS-v, test driver Walton came back from the track grinning like he'd just been given free access to the Playboy Channel. "Whoever designed that chassis really knows what the hell they're doing." It took us about, oh, one fast sweeper to agree. The Caddy's turn-in is scalpel-sharp, the front end bites hard, and, just as the car is beginning to push, a squeeze on the throttle brings the rear end out ever so gently and the nose back in line. Few sport sedans--or sports cars, for that matter--are so beautifully balanced and neutral.