2003 Cadillac CTS
large luxury car / 4-door sedan
Moderate overlap front: original test
Tested vehicle: 2003 Cadillac CTS 4-door
Rating applies to 2003-07 models built after September 2002
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.
| Evaluation criteria | Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall evaluation | |
| Structure and safety cage | |
| Driver injury measures | |
| Head/neck | |
| Chest | |
| Leg/foot, left | |
| Leg/foot, right | |
| Driver restraints and dummy kinematics | |
Technical measurements for this test
Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side
| Evaluation criteria | Measurement |
|---|---|
| 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
| Evaluation criteria | Measurement |
|---|---|
| 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 |
Tested vehicle: 2003 Cadillac CTS 4-door
Rating applies to 2003 models built before October 2002
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.
| Evaluation criteria | Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall evaluation | |
| Structure and safety cage | |
| Driver injury measures | |
| Head/neck | |
| Chest | |
| Leg/foot, left | |
| Leg/foot, right | |
| Driver restraints and dummy kinematics | |
Technical measurements for this test
Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side
| Evaluation criteria | Measurement |
|---|---|
| Test ID | CEF0209 |
| Footwell intrusion | |
| Footrest (cm) | 7 |
| Left (cm) | 11 |
| Center (cm) | 13 |
| Right (cm) | 11 |
| Brake pedal (cm) | 10 |
| Instrument panel rearward movement | |
| Left (cm) | 0 |
| Right (cm) | 1 |
| Steering column movement | |
| Upward (cm) | 3 |
| Rearward (cm) | -1 |
| A-pillar rearward movement (cm) | 1 |
Driver injury measures
| Evaluation criteria | Measurement |
|---|---|
| Test ID | CEF0209 |
| Head | |
| HIC-15 | 687 |
| Peak gs at hard contact | 104 |
| Neck | |
| Tension (kN) | 0.0 |
| Extension bending moment (Nm) | 30 |
| Maximum Nij | 0.45 |
| Chest maximum compression (mm) | 28 |
| Legs | |
| Femur force - left (kN) | 3.9 |
| Femur force - right (kN) | 2.0 |
| Knee displacement - left (mm) | 0 |
| Knee displacement - right (mm) | 0 |
| Maximum tibia index - left | 0.50 |
| Maximum tibia index - right | 1.02 |
| Tibia axial force - left (kN) | 2.1 |
| Tibia axial force - right (kN) | 3.4 |
| Foot acceleration (g) | |
| Left | 72 |
| Right | 64 |
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 |
About the head restraint & seat test
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.