We made it, you guys. Happy New Year! To kick off 2021, I wanted to take a positive look forward and share with you the car I’m most excited to see (and hopefully drive) in the next twelve months. Not only that, but I’d also love to hear from you in the comments below as to which car you’re most excited about. Whether you’re in the market, or you’re just hyped up that a certain car is hitting the streets after months or sometimes years of anticipation. I was excited to see the new Mk8 Golf GTI launch in Europe, for example, even though it’s not over here in the U.S. just yet.
I’m a huge hot hatch fan, and fortunately we are slated to see a few either actually launch or at least debut for the U.S. market as a 2022 launch. The GTI should make its way here later this year, and the next-gen Honda Civic Type R should reveal itself — we may even see whatever hot hatch Toyota is supposedly hiding from us. The fact that we’re not getting the GR Yaris is a bummer, so I am looking forward to a GR Corolla for U.S. consumption to cheer me up.
There are so many cars to be stoked about, including the new Bronco, Jeep Grand Wagoneer, a new V8 and hybrid Wrangler, (possibly) the Nissan 400Z, and a slew of electric cars, if that’s your thing.
But which one am I the most excited about? I fell on something a bit out of left field…
The car I’m dying to drive is…a Cadillac?
Go ahead, call me weird, but I am dying for GM to actually make this a reality. Look, the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing provides a proper, hot-blooded follow-up to the old CTS-V, and it will be one of the last sport sedans with a manual transmission. As I get older, I also feel some weird desire for more practical cars, and at least having something with four-doors helps me justify buying one as a daily driver. Not that I could feasibly afford this car if it does in fact debut this year. But yes — more than the Bronco, more than the 400Z, this is what I’m dying to see come to fruition.
For me, this car reaches deeper than, “Oh, it’s going to be stupid fast”. Sure, the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing will probably give the BMW M5 and Dodge Charger Hellcat a run for their money. Word has it GM will fit a supercharged 6.2-liter V8 under the hood, just like the old CTS-V. Sadly, I was hoping for the 4.2-liter twin-turbo Blackwing V8 that Cadillac super-duper definitely spent millions developing for the CT6-V, but apparently that’s not happening.
If GM has the stones to develop the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing (and the CT4-V Blackwing with a powerhouse V6, for that matter) and give it a manual transmission just for enthusiasts’ sake, I’m excited. There’s no business case for the automaker to do that — hence why it still has the 10-speed automatic option. Modern automatics are faster, more efficient and more comfortable for a daily driver than any manual, but I’m still thankful at least a few manufacturers are catering to us weirdos who actually want to row their own gears.
We’ll just have to wait and see how many body parts I have to sacrifice to afford one.
