It’s likely to sell reasonably well in its biggest market, China, but I’m having a hard time seeing the new Cadillac XT5 find a lot of traction in the US, where the sedan market just keeps on shrinking. But here it is, Cadillac’s latest entry in a class that has seen some huge changes in the past year or so.
I couldn’t readily find a chart that covers the full year 2018, as the M3 had a huge surge at the end of the year. Since that’s not likely to be sustainable, this part year chart probably paints a more realistic picture.
Update: Here’s a full 2018 MY chart that Eric left in the comments, so I’ve substituted it instead.
Take a good look, as you might well not see many of these on the streets.
Power comes a standard 2.0-liter, four-cylinder turbo engine or optional 3.0-liter, twin-turbo V-6 engine, both mated to a 10-speed transmission. And like the new XT6 large crossover, the CT5 will feature Cadillac new badging convention that identifies powertrains based on their torque rating in newton-meters.
Somewhat surprisingly, a smaller CT4 is also coming this fall. Cadillac needs more sedans! Both new cars will be built in Lansing, Mich. The CT5 is based on GM’s Alpha platform, which debuted with the ATS. The CT4 is expected be on that platform as well.
Meanwhile mercedes announced that it will build its new $200,000 Maybach at its plant in Alabama. Based on the new third-generation GLS unibody platform, the Maybach will be the most expensive passenger car built in America.
In case you’re Rip van Winkle, luxury SUVs are where it’s at with the younger rich set. Every luxury brand has one or is jumping in, and this Maybach is positioned to take over some of the role the blinged-out G Class has played.
This interior shot is of the Maybach concept, so if the production version is not quite the same, don’t blame me. It reminds me of the ultra-top end British cars of the day, like the Phantom. And a tea set; Stephanie would love it, although this looks to be for green tea; she likes black tea with lots of milk. Is there a fridge on board? If not, it’s a deal breaker for us.
Hopefully the finished Mercedes product doesn’t end up looking like this! This is beyond garish.
I saw that grille and thought it was a Buick, not in a good way.
Big money and good taste are rarely found together.
My first thought was Buick as well. Just imagine the “That’s not a Buick” commercial you could come up with for it.
Grille looks Buick. Body looks like a generic Lincoln CUV.
But those wheels are lovely.
Garish is how it plays for the target market. The amount of all-white 63 G-wagens in my part of town speaks to that. Oh, and then there’s the black 63 G-wagen with gold trim.
Jared and Ivanka Edition option.
Wow, if the interior DOES wind up looking like that I’m going to be blaming somebody!
What does that mean? Blaming them for what?
Apparently, the rich have much different tastes than the people on this site. What we see as garish and over the top, they see as desirable. While I understand that any design is subjective in its attractiveness, the Maybach interior is just another modern interpretation of minimalism overlaid on excess. This is not a car that will have a child seat installed, or go off-roading, or have groceries heaped in the rear. This is more in line with a private jet than a car, and that is the intended demographic for such a car. This takes you and your friend to your waiting private jet, not the kids to soccer practice.
This Maybach is what takes the kids to get pictures taken near a soccer field posing with a ball they’ve never kicked to submit with their college application to USC or Stanford or wherever…Or at least Aunt Becky’s kids, anyway. /s
The Caddy is DOA. Who do they think they are kidding thinking that this will bring the fight to MB, BMW, Audi? Their existing models aren’t even on the chart above. Those three (MB, Audi, BMW) are currently worrying about Tesla taking the fight and going home with it, Cadillac is at least two steps behind now. Chasing those that are themselves chasing someone else. Cadillac has little desirability left in the US market, and certainly not for sedans.
Yeah I get it’s meant more for China, but they are slowing down their purchasing of ICE’s as well, right? GM, get on the ball and develop more electrics, if not for this market right here, then for the Chinese, your most important market. Developing ANY new car these days without engineering in some sort of electrification capability seems very short-sighted.
I get the impression Cadillac seems to be coming out with the right product for five years ago. Like a general who is always fighting the last battle…
“The rich are different from you and me”.—F. Scott Fitzgerald.
True Then, True Today.
And Ernest Hemingway allegedly replied:
“Yes, they have more money.”
My immediate reaction to the lead pic on this piece: “Citroën C6”.
My second reaction: “Wouldn’t I really rather have a Citroën C6?”.
Mine was Jaguar XE.
Rather have a Jag, TBH.
Mine was Chevy Cruze, because that’s precisely what the back half of this Caddy looks like.
In case you’re still looking for it, here is the equivalent chart for the full 2018 model year — this shows the top 16 cars in the Small & Midsize Luxury Car segments for US sales.
Source is http://www.goodcarbadcar.net
Thanks! I’ve just swapped it out for this one.
It’s interesting that the top-selling Cadillac sedan here on this chart (the only one that made it on the chart by apparently pulling some sales forward toward the end of the year) is the one that is FWD and the one they’ve been talking about killing off for years. Also the one that is/was generally panned by most “reviewers” for various offences. Maybe Cadillac should focus more on front wheel drive, longer, narrower, and slightly taller sedans instead of the “handling feel”.
I don’t personally dislike really any of the current Cadillacs, they all have their place as well as their pros (and cons, like all cars) but they just are not competing against whom Cadillac likes to think of as their competition. The CT6 is being cancelled, how is a smaller version of it more likely to succeed?
Maybe Cadillac should have noticed that, too. If your best selling sedan is the XTS, make more of those. The dismal sales of the CTS and ATS showed that even a good copy of a BMW is not going to sell well here or abroad. The XTS was cheap and easy to produce, as the platform was shared with other GM cars, and it fit the needs of the demographic buying them.
A football player does not necessarily make a good baseball player. Stick to your talents.
Sounds like a battle between product planners and market analysts.
I think the strength of XTS is the livery, limousine, and hearse service with heavy duty mechanism and extra bolts on the wheel hubs for heavier weight. XTS is designed specifically for those businesses in mind from the start.
The XTS hearse is one of the most beautiful I’ve seen as compared to many hearses built in Europe off Mercedes-Benz E-Class and others that didn’t look overall harmonious.
https://www.gmfleet.com/cadillac/professional-vehicles.html
As does the lwb 8-passenger sedans and limousine versions of the 1948-50 ‘pregnant elephant’ Packards. They are much better proportioned on a longer wheelbase.
According to GMinsidenews and GM Authority the CT6 sedan is not being canceled. The XTS and ATS are the ones going along with the Lacrosse, Impala, Volt, Cruze which stopped production a few weeks ago and of course the Buick Cascada and Chevy Sonic. The Impala is going to stay on a bit longer and have a 2020 model year but that will be it’s last.
Eric, is the chart supposed to read ATS and not XTS?
No that’s the correct figure for XTS. ATS was around 11k or so for the year.
William, in case you’re curious, here is the full sales list — showing all models in the small and midsize luxury classes (US 2018 sales):
“Take a good look, as you might well not see many of these on the streets.”
GM’s new motto, to supplement the newton-meters naming convention?
In any case, good advice. The new Buick Regal, especially the GS, seemed to offer nice styling and features. It would also match beautifully with my GS hats. However, I’ve never seen even one on the road. Is the fact that it is manufactured through GM’s agreement with different company on another continent a concern? That’s even more of a stretch than the recently departed Chevrolet SS.
I honestly believe that due to the production agreement and ownership change there is even less profit in the Regal/TourX than GM originally anticipated. I had hoped that every Buick dealer would get at least ONE Regal GS. It seems based on my AutoTrader and Cars.com searches that maybe 1/2 of Buick dealers were even allotted a GS to sell.
My local Buick dealer seems to be doing ok with FWD Sportbacks and seems to sell one or two a month (which is good for a sedan) but has been sitting on 2 TourXs since the start of each of the last 2 model years.
I honestly hope that there is another generation of Regal as a joint Malibu/Regal production here in the USA. I hope the wagon survives.
FYI I’ve seen more commercials for the new BMW X7 than for Buick Regal in the past 2 years.
“My local Buick dealer seems to be doing ok with FWD Sportbacks and seems to sell one or two a month…” Hatchbacks make great cars. Maybe they’re more popular in the US than automakers think.
there is even less profit in the Regal/TourX than GM originally anticipated.
I doubt “profit” even enters into the equation with that car. Unless a certain volume is attained, the fixed costs of marketing, parts, certification and other costs make profits impossible, unless you’re talking exotic-car prices.
True the Regal was probably a “make work” program for that plant as originally planned
I was once told by a senior Chrysler executive that unless the platform sells 250,000 units annually, it’s not profitable.
The Maybach’s side windows seem to have come straight off the Rover 75.
Maybe they found some old stock in a disused warehouse?
Perhaps a job lot off Roewe (China).
Ironic that Tesla has dropped their badging based on battery capacity in kWh, as Caddy is adding the torque badging.
What is a Plood? 🙂
It’s a flood of power….
Past-participle of Plaut
ha!
Lol! Although “plood” is a often used contraction for plastic wood, along with “plastiwood.”
“I’ve got it! We can make and sell Buicks! We’ll sell a million of ’em!”
This isn’t a Buick.
God that Maybach is ugly as sin. I’m generally mixed when it comes to the ultra luxury market getting into SUVs, even though I understand why they do it, but the execution is what convinces me most. I find the Bentley Bentayga gross, I actually like the Rolls Royce Cullinan, and this Maybach is just, just no.
Sorry I’m not talking about the Cadillac, I didn’t even realize there was one in this article.
Is it just me or does the new Cadillac design language look a lot like Nissan/Infiniti?
The rich indeed have awful taste if that Maybach is representative. Welcome back brougham epoch!
+1 Same immediate reaction on both points.
Nissan was my first reaction too.
Looks like a Nissan Maxima. The blacked out plastic rear window looks lifted from the last gen Camry. If Toyota did it must be good right? Although I doubt the typically Caddy buyer wants a car that looks like a mish mash of Camry/Maxima parts
We have then building the ct5 the cts’s replacement and the new ct4 ats’s replacement will be coming soon the development in engineering for these cars have already been done you might as well sell what you can and recoup what you can. I for one am glad Cadillac are still going to build sedans.
I just noticed too the entire pane of rear side glass on the Cadillac is fake!
Cheap. Lazy. GM. Crap.
Hey at least (part of, admittedly) the rear side window rolls down. That’s progress, right?
I noticed that too. Pure crap. Reminds me of this beauty with its fake rear quarter window.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Camry#/media/File:2017_Toyota_Camry_(ASV50R)_RZ_sedan_(2018-02-21)_02.jpg
Yep, that time Toyota imitated GM
Looks TOO much like a Saturn Ion from the windshield back. Wake up Cadillac, and die right.
And that reminded me of a 1953-’54 Chev 4 door sedan, with the fake rear quarter windows.
Yeah, it’s another squirrely GM C-pillar treatment, looks terrible.
CT5 rear quarter profile looks like 1997-2005 Chevy Malibu with fake “glass” panel added. Pathetic.
I……….kinda………………….like……………….the Maybach!! in a world where all cars look a like……………..this is quite refreshing. but not for $200.000
Meh.
Why pay Big Bucks for a new Cadillac, that still looks too much like a Toyota Camry, that will be a bargain 3 years from now when coming off a lease?
If I won either one of these cars in a contest I would ask for the money instead or sell the car immediately. The Cadillac is so common looking that few will pay any kind of premium for it. And you sure wouldn’t buy the brand based on quality/reliability reports or prestige value. All that needs to be said about the other vehicle is in the comments above.
I can’t decide which one I think is worse: the wretched, cheap-looking Cadillac or the shockingly tasteless Maybach.
The Maybach is just as shockingly tasteless and as vulgar as a Kim Kardashian selfie.
That ?Cadillac? looks like a Chrysler 200. where are the cars like the 1956 Caddy. When I was a kid, when a 1956 62 Sedan rolled up, you were looking at a presence! This thing is barely a step up from the Cimarron.
Some don’t understand why we are picking on the Cadillac.
WE remember classically beautiful Cadillacs, we remember garish Cadillacs… This is just a “meh” Cadillac.
In all fairness, this must be the hardest time yet to design a prestige vehicle. What visual and tactile cues does the buyer want? What will the non-buyer recognise and aspire to? How far can you go before inviting ridicule? Glad I’m not the one tasked with finding the answer.
+1 Designing prestige vehicle now has to be the most difficult job in the industry.
Cover up the front and taillights and tell me what make this CT5 is. Another anonymous Cadillac on par with their other failed models in the last thirty years.
In fairness, there are no premium brands, there are only brands that convey prestige. Really, there is a difference in materials used, and in some fit and finish, but overall, most interiors are more similar than dissimilar. They all carry a basic layout, they all have similar features, almost all have the same controls, same electronic windows, locks, adjustment to seats, some infotainment, and a steering wheel. Some seats are more plush, some are more ergonomic, and some have nicer surfaces to touch, but they are functionally the same.
The price of the lowest cost model is not that much more than the highest cost model in any segment. Luxury brands charge more, but you rarely get more than a higher grade leather or bigger touchscreen in exchange. Yes, you can tell the difference in a Mitsubishi Mirage and a Rolls Royce Wraith, but when comparing similar models, can you really tell much difference in the interior of a Camry and a Mercedes C? That is why it is so hard to tell what to aspire towards. The lower end has gotten so much better, and the higher end has nowhere left to go.
It may not have been a race to the top, but the delta between the worst and best is very, very small. It has become commoditized, but with a fairly high standard.
50 years ago, one would have got kicked out of the bar for making a statement that a VW was more opulent than a Cadillac. Today, VW has, or had models such as the Phaeton that far outclassed what Cadillac offers.
In browsing feedback on various sites for the Cadillac, I’ve seen it compared to a Nissan Versa, 2005 Saturn Ion and the latest Honda Accord…and I can’t disagree with any of those opinions. What a mess.
Did they really think this was an “upscale” look with a fake side window and giant chrome nipple? Placed side by side with the Honda, the Accord looks like the luxury car. I will be surprised if it sells more than the cancelled CTS.
Oh, and Cadillac, when replacing something called the CTS with the CT5, especially when using a very angular font for the badging, don’t be shocked when people can’t tell the names apart.
Unless I’m missing something, the Cadillac CT5 is an epic, epic, epic design fail. Its C-pillar reminds me of a 90s Saturn or Chrysler 2000. Just awful.
+1
I like what Cadillac was trying to do with the C-pillar treatment. They just, still, aren’t trying hard enough. A cheater panel is bad enough on a Cruze.
It needs landau bars.
++1
I’m a bit concerned as it looks quite a bit stubbier than the third-gen CTS and they should have just given it a hatchback. That C-pillar treatment is different, too. However, I’ll reserve judgement until I see in person. I don’t recall being completely bowled over by the 3G CTS or CT6 in pictures but in person they ended up being extraordinarily well-proportioned.
I just hope Cadillac didn’t fall into the C-Class Coupe trap — trying to give the proportions of an extremely long, graceful vehicle (Escala concept, S-Class coupe) to a much shorter body.
Curious to see the interior. The outgoing ATS and CTS interiors were genuinely quite nice – I’d put them above their equivalent Lexuses, if below equivalent Mercedes models – and the XT4 interior looks nice in person (and not to belabour the point but is probably nicer than a Lexus UX inside, a car which has rock-hard plastic for the entire surface of its rear door panels even though the front door panels are of lovely quality)
Y’all may find Mercedes interiors tacky nowadays but in terms of material quality, they’re the ones to beat.
The sales graph is very interesting. The Tesla Model 3 is eating its competition for lunch. Clearly, buyers want electric cars and VAG, Daimler and BMW have a lot of catching up to do.
I was quite stunned by the Tesla’s domination too. Selling almost as many as the next three models combined is a huge margin. We don’t see that in Australia. Admittedly I’m in a little country town, but even when visiting the cities I’ve only seen two Teslas.
That Cadillac makes a Malibu look truly world cass and impressive in comparison. Perhaps they should call it catera.
On the Cad, GM resolved the design issue of squaring off a back door better, nearly 30 years ago. If they must do this again, the correct approach would be to issue a US/China spec Lotus Carlton with Cadillac badge. It wouldn’t look like a Nissan…
The Benz looks like an internet prankster overlaid a Maybach greenhouse on some kind of Rolls-Royce body with, yes, a Buick grill.
Sweet! Now my 2010 Sebring looks like a Caddy! It’s got 166K, but now I’m keeping it!
The DLO fail on the Cadillac is horrible. It reminds me of the triangles that “hide” the rear door handles on the Nissan Juke and Honda HR-V. I detest those door handles, but at least they give the triangles some semblance of purpose. Here, they’re just a cheap, lazy substitute for a quarter window. Not exactly the “Standard of the World”.
The roof, c pillar, and fake window are all horrible. But, nothing a dealer installed faux convertible roof couldn’t fix !!!
How the mighty have fallen.
Uhh….regarding those sales numbers on Tesla, 140K versus 54K for the next in line…
Seriously?
Sorry guys, but my bullshit meter just went off scale on that one. Everyone here believes this information released by Tesla without any doubt? There are so many examples of Musk/Tesla misleading, lying and manipulating facts in the past, everyone should consider info coming from them with a big grain of salt.
Wow, still amazed no one has questioned this info…
That is one disappointing bland looking Japanese Cadillac that features Infinity styling on the side and a rear window treatment pulled right from the current Accord. It’s pretty sad when your 30k Malibu’s and Regal hatches look far better than something that will probably cost well into the 50-60k range.
Oh and the Maybach is a disaster!