2016 Cadillac ATS-V - Words of Encouragement

The Rider

Pam Alarcon had been around the custom vehicle scene for most of her life and has her pops to thank for it.  Her father was heavily into air cooled VWs in the past and has now moved into the ultra-cool Datsun restoration racket and has left his deep passion for cars on Pam to make her choices which led to her customizing this 2016 Cadillac ATS-V 6-speed. 

A local to the San Francisco car scene, Pam was active in attending all the Cars and Coffee events that she could and is a proud member of the Cadillac V Club in San Francisco.

In her downtime, she has taken the ATS-V to Sonoma Raceway, Thunder Hill Raceway Park, and Laguna Seca where she posted a 1:43 through the corkscrews and has her sights on 1:39.

Although her Caddy is a head tuner, she does not consider it a “show car” and has not entered it in any shows, but the opportunity is still there! Previous to getting into the Caddy game, her father’s influence got the best of her and Pam had a 20^th Anniversary Mk4 Volkswagen GTI that was midly modded but she wanted more, so she stepped up to the Cadillac. She wanted to build the ATS-V to be fun but fast and keep it as a reliable driver that she can step into at any time. Although the build on the Caddy is done for now, she has aspirations of building a track car. A mild endeavor really; if you consider a Viper ACR mild! Get it girl!

The Ride

In the engine bay, Pam added a cold air intake, cat-less downpipe, shoved in a custom Trifecta performance tune, and blow-off valves.

Yea, that is a short list but the ’16 came with such high hp numbers that not a lot had to be done! Outside, fans of the ATS-V will notice that Pam added the full carbon fiber package including a splitter, hood vent, diffuser, side skirt extensions, mirror covers, also added carbon fiber and Alcantara steering wheel.

She chose the carbon fiber trunk spoiler from Maverick Man Carbon a well as a set of LED license plate lamps. Pam loves the selection that MMC offers for the ATS-V, as not many other sources do. The pros over at Go Wraps installed most of the bolt-ons.

She then had OC Detailing slap on a clear bra and did a cquartz coating on the exterior paint along with the wheels and brake calipers, “For extra shiny-ness!” Her words not ours! Rubber meets the road in the form of 19x9.5 and 19x11 305Forged wheels wearing Michelin Sport Cup 255/35R19s in the front and 305/30R19s in the rear held on by spline-drive Monster Lug nuts.

For the track she uses the stock wheels with Bridgestone RE-71rs in 285/30R18 and 265/35R18s respectively.

As a female owner and racer, she has faced some negativity but stays positive by just beating her own personal best out on the track and looking for other ladies in the scene. “There are only a handful of female drivers when I go racing, and we need more to whoop them boys asses!” She wants to uplift any other females out there too. “Ladies, don’t be intimidated. We all start somewhere, and it’s all about the excitement on the track and seeing improvement in your skills and confidence.” Great stuff Pam, never lift!

Follow -> @damnpamm

Author -> Anthony Soos

Photographer -> Ryan Carauta

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