Cadillac STS Pace Car

Photo: Cadillac/GM

The STS will begin its summer May 6 with a trip across the country. Piloted by two General Motors chassis engineers, John Barrick and Ed Piatek, the STS will start at the Gingerman Raceway in South Haven, Mich., and loop down to Atlanta, up to the Carolinas, Virginia, Connecticut, New York, Indiana and back to Michigan in about a week. Part of the trip is competing at eight racetracks along the way.

"It's going to be an exciting challenge. The STS will be racing with BMW, Mercedes and Audi, as well as some others. With the enhancements we made to the STS, such as the extra 50 hp, 18" wheels and larger brake rotors and calipers, we have great product to compete," said Taylor.

Barrick and his partner Piatek are One Lap rookies, but both have extensive driving experience - Barrick with two national Kart Racing championships under his belt.

The 2000 Michelin One Lap of America has over 100 official entrants in a variety of vehicle categories. The 2000 Seville STS, an actual Le Mans pace car prototype, is entered in the luxury sedan/wagon class with about eight others. Driving nearly 24-hours a day, participants are judged by their time trials on each of the racetracks throughout the course. No support crews are allowed and the original tires must endure the 4,200-mile trek.

For Le Mans on June 15-18, Cadillac will showcase its STSi pace car. The STS gains significant enhancements to its Northstar System's powertrain and chassis control system for the 2000 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race.

The STSi pace car will benefit from a modified high-output Northstar that will deliver an extra 50 horsepower - to total 350 hp. StabiliTrak 2.0, which is standard on all Seville models, also receives an extensive software upgrade with algorithms specially written for high performance driving and handling. On July 4, the Seville STS will participate in "Race to the Clouds" at the 78th annual Pikes Peak Hill Climb in Colorado Springs.

The STS receives minor adjustments to the electronics in its V8 Northstar engine, 300 hp, 295 ft-lbs of torque, a full safety roll cage and fire suppression system. The reengineered 32-valve, port fuel-injected engine is quieter, cleaner and more efficient, resulting in better performance for the STS on the one-way 12.42-mile gravel highway stint.

(May 5, 2000)