Cadillac is taking the crossover SUV market head-on with its SRX. Its striking body lines are totally “Cadillac”  - combine that with an aggressive stance, ample power and more comfort than you can shake a stick at – and you have the winning ticket.

I must admit, I historically haven’t been the biggest fan of Cadillac’s assertive body lines – they are rather polarizing in that folks seem to either really like them or they’re turned off completely. After driving this car a week, which included a 6hr round-trip to Oregon, it’s a vehicle I could totally see myself owning some day – and no, that doesn’t mean I’m getting old just because I like a “Caddy”.

The handsome interior in our test vehicle sported the gray leather seats and partial leather-wrapped (with simulated wood-grain) steering wheel. Once the doors are shut is where the magic that the wizards of Cadillac begins to take place – the silence of the cabin is only broken by the feint noises of its LCD screen up/down server motor, the quiet heater blower motor and that’s about it, until you lay into the gas pedal.

That’s where it’s 3.6-Liter V6 kicks into gear and feeds the 6-speed automatic transmission that shifts super smoothly – its 308hp feels “right” but the 265lb-ft of torque, somehow, feels as if it should be more in a vehicle of this class and weight. I especially appreciated the beautifully-tuned “growl” from the engine – it’s a beautiful thing.

Since this is the Premium edition, it included the outboard heated seats, heated steering wheel as well as the DVD entertainment system with rear monitors as well as a wireless remote control. The 10 speakers are from Bose and I really wish they weren’t – if you’ve been reading my articles on cars for awhile now, you’ll know that I’m not the biggest fan of their lackluster fidelity and the speakers in the SRX suffer the same fate, unfortunately. That’s not to say they’re horrible, but Cadillac could have picked much better-sounding solutions from Harmon/Kardon, Rockford Fosgate or Infinity.

Along with DVD playback, there’s support for bluetooth, mp3/wma-encoded compact discs, SiriusXM satellite radio, USB and a 40GB hard drive that allows you to “rip” your songs onto it.

The main centerpoint of driver feedback comes in the way of a pop-up LCD screen that has the on-board navigation, entertainment system as well as displays certain modes for things like climate control and other useful details about the vehicle. When you put the car into reverse, the screen automatically pops up in order for the driver to see the rear-view camera.

Rear passengers also get their own controls for climate as well as audio/video input jacks as well.

Rear cargo room is very ample for most situations where you need room for luggage and daytime shopping trips – if it’s not enough, you can fold the rear seats down flat.

I enjoyed the way this vehicle handled and its exceptional ride quality – steering is nice, tight and “in the pocket” and the ride is supportive and subtle enough to be exceptionally comfortable, even on long-distance trips. At an MSRP of roughly $46k, I know it’s a pricier SUV but its one that I feel really does an admirable job of catering to the “old guard” Caddy lovers as well as being modern enough to attract a slightly younger drmographic.

If you’re at all in the market for a SUV of the mid-40′s to low-50′s then I’d highly encourage you to check out the SRX – I firmly believe it has what it takes to compete well with any other in its respective price range.

If this vehicle was a bottle of wine – to me – it’d be liken to a Washington State Syrah – made well, priced competitive but has the balls to compete with among the best of what the rest of the world has to offer.