It’s a great time to be an auto enthusiast, especially if you are fan of the Big Three Automakers in Detroit. After the rough and tumultuous period endured by them proceeding the Recession, they have finally gotten their act together, none more so than General Motors and their Cadillac division.

The biggest benefit of the restructuring is that Cadillac has finally found its identity. Rather than build luxury boats or blinged out SUVs, they have focused their efforts on GM’s Alpha platform, which adorns what is arguably Cadillac’s halo car, the ATS-V.

The car is the first true contender against Europe’s best, specifically the BMW M3 and the Mercedes-Benz C63. Not only does it have the performance to beat the German’s at their own game, it has the refinement and build quality you’d expect from a car at this price point.

So what do you get for the money? For starters, a brand new twin-turbo charged motor that puts out 464hp motor that is willing to propel the ATS-V in 4 seconds. More importantly all that twist can be channeled through an optional manual transmission. While it’s straight line acceleration is phenomenal, it’s in the twists and turns that the ATS-V shines, thanks to its superb balance and magnetic dampers (Thank the Corvette and Camaro parts bin for that).

Inside, you’ll find a cabin that is well laid out and seats that provide ample bolster support, without being overly racy (think RS4 seats).

When we get one in the fleet, we’ll perform a thorough review of it. Until then, we’d like to get your feedback on the ATS-V and what it means for Cadillac.