GM Prices Cadillac ATS From $33,990, Undercutting BMW 3-Series

Easily one of the most-anticipated new products in GM’s portfolio is the soon-to-be-released Cadillac ATS. Designed from the ground-up as a BMW fighter, the Cadillac ATS promises performance and prestige, and GM hopes it can capture some younger buyers who have never before considered a Cadillac.

GM has finally announced pricing information on the 2013 Cadillac ATS, and the Bimmer-fighter starts at $33,990. That undercuts the ATS’s main competition, the base BMW 3-series, by $910. But the real question seems to be will buyers respond to Cadillac’s attempts to fight the Germans with the Germans’ own tactics?

The 2013 Cadillac ATS gets a base 200 horsepower 2.5 liter naturally-aspirated 4-cylinder engine at the base price. Stepping up to the 2.0 liter, 270 horsepower turbo four-banger will cost you at least $35,775, and opting for the top-of-the-line 312 horsepower 3.6 liter V6 will empty your wallets of at least $42,090.

Cadillac doesn’t really have the best history when it comes to smaller luxury cars (see Cimarron, Catera), but GM has also never invested as much into making a Cadillac model into a true luxury performer, and it could be a look at the very future of GM performance cars to come.

So, can GM beat “ze Germans” at their own game? Will undercutting the BMW 3-Series by almost a grand make a difference? The ATS has a mighty steep mountain to climb, but we think it has the right tools to make the ascension. Do you?