Now as some of you may, or may not know, before venturing into the automotive world, I spent a while in the family’s building business. My father believed in kids learning from the ground up, which I suppose could be looked upon as a plus when you’re dad owns the largest roofing company in South London!

However, after doing my time on the tools, I was finally placed in the company’s estimating department which meant swapping my grubby coveralls for a dapper 3-piece suit, and also allowed for a trade-up in transport. My sad looking work truck was replaced by a shiney, almost new, Mercedes-Benz C-Class station wagon.

Now that might sound a little OTT (Over-the-top) for a building company representative but a large-scale business needs to maintain a certain image. My father believed that the vehicle portrayed us as a successful company, whilst at the same time, being a wagon, it said that we were still thinking business.

The idea worked and is perhaps what gave me the liking for up-market wagons.

Now there are two companies which have pretty much dominated this area of the market, BMW and Mercedes, until now that is...Let me introduce you to the new 2010 Cadillac CTS AWD Sport wagon.

Now some may have expected me to compare this new GM to perhaps a Volvo, or possibly an Audi product, but no I’m going to place right it up there in the big league, where I feel it belongs.

For a start, the exterior styling truly makes it stand out in a crowd. In fact, I’d place it ahead of both the aforementioned German producers. GM has gone to great lengths to disguise the typical boxy station wagon form and succeeded in creating a vehicle which, even from the rear, doesn’t immediately shout “wagon”. However, when required, there’s a 58 cu.ft load carrying capacity available (With the 2^nd row seats down). It even has a useful under-floor compartment which is handy for hiding away valuables.

Stepping inside, reveals what has to be one of the best laid out interiors in the business. The main instrument panel has a sporty appearance and nicely flows into the overall dash layout. I also love the way GM has managed to hide its large Navigation display screen away until it’s actually needed. Who wants to constantly stare at a massive TV screen when you only occasionally require it? In the CTS, a simple push of a button allows the screen to rise from within the dash and then disappear almost completely when not in use.