2004 Cadillac CTS

large luxury car / 4-door sedan

2004 Cadillac CTS 4-door sedan
2003 Cadillac CTS shown

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Moderate overlap front: original test
Head restraints & seats

Other available safety features

  • Standard daytime running lights

Key

  • G
    Good
  • A
    Acceptable
  • M
    Marginal
  • P
    Poor
  • Superior
  • Advanced
  • Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2003-07 models built after September 2002

Tested vehicle: 2003 Cadillac CTS 4-door

The Cadillac CTS was introduced in the 2003 model year as a replacement for the Cadillac Catera.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has evaluated the crashworthiness of the CTS in two 40 mph frontal offset crash tests into deformable barriers. In the first test, the airbag deployed too late for optimal head protection. This led Cadillac to modify the airbag crash sensors on models produced after September 2002 (note: information about when a specific vehicle was manufactured is on the certification label typically affixed to the car on or near the driver door). The Institute tested a second CTS with the modified sensors, and the airbag inflated earlier.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Action shot taken during the second of two frontal offset crash tests.

The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the second crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained well.

Loading of the head into the airbag is shown in this photo taken during the second test.

Dummies' knees and/or shins routinely hit and often damage the areas under the dashboard. These areas are smoothly contoured in the CTS.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID CEF0221
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm) 8
Left (cm) 12
Center (cm) 16
Right (cm) 8
Brake pedal (cm) 8
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm) 1
Right (cm) 2
Steering column movement
Upward (cm) 3
Rearward (cm) -1
A-pillar rearward movement (cm) 1

Driver injury measures

Test ID CEF0221
Head
HIC-15 232
Peak gs at hard contact negligible
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.2
Extension bending moment (Nm) 15
Maximum Nij 0.37
Chest maximum compression (mm) 33
Legs
Femur force - left (kN) 4.5
Femur force - right (kN) 2.2
Knee displacement - left (mm) 0
Knee displacement - right (mm) 0
Maximum tibia index - left 0.31
Maximum tibia index - right 0.63
Tibia axial force - left (kN) 1.9
Tibia axial force - right (kN) 2.2
Foot acceleration (g)
Left 76
Right 65

How the moderate overlap front test is conducted

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Seats without adjustable lumbar

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry
Technical measurements for this test
Seat type Seats without adjustable lumbar
Geometry
Backset (mm) 82
Distance below top of head (mm) 58
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail Fail
Max T1 acceleration (g) 10.5
Head contact time (ms) 100
Force rating 3
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N) 351
Max neck tension (N) 1,148

How the head restraint & seat test is conducted
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.

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