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NickD
NickD UberDork
3/21/19 2:15 p.m.

GM unveiled their new sedan that is replacing both the ATS and CTS, called the CT5 under their new stolen-from-Infiniti naming convention. Gotta say, it's a pretty handsome car. Front end has a Mazda-like grille but in mesh, much cleaner and less fussy than the old CTS and ATS styling. The C-pillars that look like they were cribbed from the Maxima are a little funky, but overall not bad. It rides on a variant of the much-lauded Alpha-chassis. Engine options are either the 276hp 2.0T or the 400+hp twin-turbo 3.0L V6, so its packing heat. And both of those engines have been tuned to add a fair bit of horsepower. No manual option, but at least it uses the excellent joint Ford/GM 10-speed automatic. No word on if there is a V-variant in the works.

Rumor is that there is a smaller CT4 sedan in the works as well. Kinda odd that after GM's statement about how GM is moving towards more crossovers and more EVs and that Cadillac will be the EV brand, they announce that they are making two new gas-powered sedans. Guess that's GM for you.

G_Body_Man
G_Body_Man UltraDork
3/21/19 4:17 p.m.

That giant slab of black plastic on each side irks me for some reason.

dculberson
dculberson UltimaDork
3/21/19 4:42 p.m.

They look nice, but are less identifiably a Cadillac than previous generations. I miss the distinctive Cadillac Arts & Sciences styling.

STM317
STM317 SuperDork
3/21/19 4:44 p.m.

In reply to G_Body_Man :

Nothing about the rear Windows/C pillar looks premium. The window itself is split, with what looks like a fairly large piece of trim (maybe it will be less obvious in reality), and then that plastic filler that really should be glass. Plus the little tail they tacked on for no reason at all isn't going to age well.

Its not bad looking overall, just some little things that could be tweaked. Personally, I like the current gen CTS better.

Gearheadotaku
Gearheadotaku UltimaDork
3/21/19 9:34 p.m.

The C-pillar is odd, but otherwise it looks nice. GM wants to Keep Caddy sedans as a halo of sort to compete with  Audi/BMW/ Merc .  Hope they make a coupe too. A V-series in the future is a safe bet.

Run_Away
Run_Away Dork
3/21/19 9:45 p.m.

Heh, I took one look at that C pillar and said "that's from a Maxima"!

 

It's a little too miss-matched how styling elements are thrown together. Kind of like how a Kia Stinger is.

Feedyurhed
Feedyurhed SuperDork
3/22/19 5:48 a.m.

Styling looks a little odd. A little too generic. Or something.

poopshovel again
poopshovel again MegaDork
3/22/19 5:55 a.m.
dculberson said:

They look nice, but are less identifiably a Cadillac than previous generations. I miss the distinctive Cadillac Arts & Sciences styling.

Agreed!

mazdeuce - Seth
mazdeuce - Seth Mod Squad
3/22/19 5:56 a.m.

That whole c-pillar split rear window thing is a mess. I would bet even money the initial drawings had a single piece of glass and it looked cool. The problem being that you can't roll down the cool window. By the time they made it work for production it looked like this. GM in particular has a design flow problem where their concepts get butchered. 

Furious_E
Furious_E UltraDork
3/22/19 6:43 a.m.

I actually don't think that's a bad looking car at all, which is not something I'd say of most new vehicles. 

Strike_Zero
Strike_Zero UltraDork
3/22/19 7:23 a.m.

Love the front end styling on this. I absolutely adore the the Alpha platform. Out ATS is quite the handler. I hope Cadillac does make a mistake like the 1st gen; 5 series size at 3 series price. Here's hoping the CT4 and CT5 are "right" sized.

NickD
NickD UberDork
3/22/19 8:06 a.m.

Styling aside, either engine option with the 10-speed auto in the Alpha chassis should make this a pretty spicy meatball

ebonyandivory
ebonyandivory PowerDork
3/22/19 8:54 a.m.
dculberson said:

They look nice, but are less identifiably a Cadillac than previous generations. I miss the distinctive Cadillac Arts & Sciences styling.

This new one looks like it came BEFORE the first generation (2004+) rather than the latest iteration.

 

GTwannaB
GTwannaB HalfDork
3/22/19 11:26 p.m.

They need to lose that badge. It is so dated and I would never ever want to look at it on my steering wheel. Maybe an outline of the crest, but the whole crest just is old as dirt. And smells like mothballs.

Ransom
Ransom PowerDork
3/22/19 11:32 p.m.

In reply to GTwannaB :

I was wondering whether that was related to Mercedes' recent giant emblems and BMW's overgrown grilles on the latest 3-series. Like I read something (here?) about other markets wanting that "I'm driving a ______" statement.

Woody
Woody MegaDork
3/23/19 7:46 a.m.
dculberson said:

They look nice, but are less identifiably a Cadillac than previous generations. I miss the distinctive Cadillac Arts & Sciences styling.

I absolutely hated the distinctive Cadillac Arts & Sciences styling, but to each, his own. I think they are finally getting around to building good looking cars again.

TJL
TJL Reader
3/23/19 10:08 a.m.

After having a 2019 “cadillac” xt5 or something like that last week as a rental, im far less excited about the brand. It seemed like a OK appliance but then you realize its a fancy model. Had a little over 1k miles on it and it rode terrible, handled squirrelly(passing in a turn on the interstate made it feel like i was going to loose control), all the annoying nanny features like stop/start which you apparently cannot turn off on that model year and everything you do gets you binging and bonging dingers that are way too loud and unnecessary. The seat will vibrate your BH if it senses the car in front of you slowing, even though you are already on the brakes. The shifter was terrible. Tons of electrical techy features which require much more work and focus(taking your focus off the road) than basic normal knobs and buttons.It did not even idle smooth. Had it been some bare bones fleet chevy i wouldnt have cared as much. In general it was a thoroughly frustrating and annoying vehicle. 

And yeah styling wise, from a not so great distance it looks like every other rolling bubble SUV out there. 

kevlarcorolla
kevlarcorolla Dork
3/24/19 7:29 a.m.

In reply to NickD :

Who makes the v6 twin turbo?

irish44j
irish44j MegaDork
3/24/19 6:27 p.m.

Looks nice, don't really get the name change. Seems about as sensible as Infinity going from G37 to Q60. 

Knurled.
Knurled. MegaDork
3/24/19 6:36 p.m.
kevlarcorolla said:

In reply to NickD :

Who makes the v6 twin turbo?

That's the ATS-V engine and I think CTS-V as well.

 

 

Knurled.
Knurled. MegaDork
3/24/19 6:41 p.m.
irish44j said:

Looks nice, don't really get the name change. Seems about as sensible as Infinity going from G37 to Q60. 

I'd like it more if they'd just call the damn thing the Skyline.  Or maybe the Cefiro.

 

I never made the Q60=G-series connection until your post.  And here I'd been wasting my annoyance at how Nissan was doing the same "numbers inflation" game that BMW has been doing with their 128/328/528 2.0l models.

Tony Sestito
Tony Sestito PowerDork
3/24/19 6:48 p.m.

Looks ok up front and from the rear, but that C-pillar is awful. Man, that's bad. They tried to make something "distinctive" (while ripping off the Maxima) and just bungled it up. I'll reserve full judgment until I see one on the road At least they are making a sedan! 

kevlarcorolla
kevlarcorolla Dork
3/24/19 8:49 p.m.

In reply to Knurled. :

 Hadn't heard of gm making a 3 litre tt,wondered if they bummed it from infinity maybe.

 

Knurled.
Knurled. MegaDork
3/24/19 9:20 p.m.
kevlarcorolla said:

In reply to Knurled. :

 Hadn't heard of gm making a 3 litre tt,wondered if they bummed it from infinity maybe.

 

Believe it or not, 3 liters is a common displacement for a six cylinder and many manufacturers are turbocharging them...  wink

 

It's another version of the "High Feature", not a VG30.

kevlarcorolla
kevlarcorolla Dork
3/24/19 9:35 p.m.

In reply to Knurled. :

Sure,and just as many auto makers share drivetrains/platforms hence the simple question.

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