Cadillac announced today its return to the Sports Car Club of America World Challenge next year. GM’s luxury marque will field two teams in the GT class, both running cars based on the CTS-V Coupe. The AWC is North America’s top production-based race car series; Cadillac captured the manufacturer’s championship in the GT class in 2005 and 2007 and took the driver’s championship in 2005.

“Returning to racing in the SCCA World Challenge is a great way to demonstrate the performance and capability of the CTS-V Coupe,” Don Butler, vice president for Cadillac marketing, said in a statement. “The race cars in this series are production based, which allows us to validate our performance against the best of our competitors on the track, and not just the showroom.”

Johnny O’Connell, a three-time GT1 champion in the America Le Mans Series, and Andy Pilgrim, who won the 2005 SCCA World Challenge GT class in a Cadillac, will drive the cars. Cadillac is working with engineering firm Pratt & Miller, which specializes in motor racing, to develop them. Of course the cars will feature mods and equipment required for racing, but Cadillac wants to keep the cars as original as possible.

“The series will become a key test-bed for Cadillac,” Jim Campbell, GM vice president for Performance Vehicles and Motorsports, said in a statement. “We anticipate using what we learn on the racetrack to ensure the V-Series stays on the cutting-edge of performance.”

The cars’ performance remains to be seen, but we love the Mondrianesque livery.

Photo: General Motors. Vinnie Ciaravino, Greg Zeigler and Mike West (from left) building one of two Cadillac CTS-V race cars at Pratt & Miller.

Image: General Motors. Here’s what the car will look like when it hits the grid.

See Also:

• Open This Time Capsule of Classic Cars
• 10 Cars You Can Bet Will Be Classics
• 15 Cars We Really, Really Want to Drive

Authors: Chuck Squatriglia

to know more click here