Jonathan Welsh at The Wall Street Journal is driving a Cadillac CTS-V  Wagon this week and has a short piece on it here:

Are Station Wagons Cool Again? – Driver’s Seat – WSJ.

The idea of a powerful, great handling station wagon strikes a lot of people as “having your cake and eating it too”.

All automobile designs are compromises:

• Want to go fast?  Get more power and/or less weight.
• Want to carry a lot of stuff?  Get more room (and so more weight) at the expense of better performance
• Want a car that handles great?  Get a tight suspension at the expense of a smooth ride; in some cases forego the better powerplant for better balance and lighter weight

So what does the Cadillac CTS-V Wagon offer?

• Huge power — it has a supercharged 6.2L V8 making 556hp.
• Great storage capacity / carrying capacity — it is a station wagon with the inherent easy to pack easy to pull out space
• Great handling — it has the V-Series magnetic suspension that makes for great handling AND smooth ride together at last

Where’s the compromise?  Well, cash, since the CTS-V Wagon costs over US$60K.  But if you can budget for an amazing vehicle, the Cadillac CTS-V Wagon has all the cards.  And among people who know cars, Respect.