The Cadillac CT6 was meant to signal a new era for Cadillac – a flagship sedan with a marvelous platform and the ability to best the world’s driving dynamics. Today, it’s on its way to the slaughterhouse.
A Cadillac spokesperson confirmed with Road and Track on Monday that the Cadillac CT6 will exit production next year, likely sometime in mid-2019. The GM Detroit-Hamtramck plant, one of the four facilities GM will shut down in the United States, builds the CT6 alongside the Chevrolet Volt, Impala, and Buick LaCrosse.
But, the CT6 won’t die before workers begin production of V8-powered models. Yes, Cadillac will still launch the 2019 CT6 with a detuned 4.2-liter “Blackwing” twin-turbo V8 engine and a thumping CT6-V with 550 horsepower. That will likely make the CT6-V and other V8-powered CT6 sedans real rarities in the future. Potentially, Cadillac may only build the car with the powertrain configuration for six months.
As for the 4.2-liter Blackwing V8 engine, it will stick around. The spokesperson confirmed the engine will still be hand-built at the GM Bowling Green, Kentucky, facility that churns out the Chevrolet Corvette. It’s unclear what vehicles the engine will go into next, but when the mill debuted, it was supposed to be exclusive to Cadillac. The next-gen Escalade and CT5-V seem to be likely contenders.
The CT6’s confirmed death puts all rumors about the full-size sedan moving to the GM Lansing Grand River plant to rest. Earlier this year, GM invested $175 million into the plant for Cadillac’s next sedans, the CT5 and CT4. For a short time, it was thought that production of the CT6 could also move to the plant. Now, it appears Cadillac will make do with just two sedans in its lineup, until the arrival of the rumored flagship.
What the end of CT6 production means for the stellar Omega platform, the result of a very costly investment, is also unclear. The CT6 was the only vehicle to utilize the architecture thus far. Its future is murky, however. GM’s future Vehicle Sets Strategy will consolidate architectures in the near future, and an official GM statement said that 75 percent of the automaker’s future vehicles will come from just five platforms by early next decade.
Oh, CT6, we hardly knew ye. And just as the sedan began to have some much-needed mojo, it was gone.
[toggle title=”2019 Cadillac CT6 Photos”] [nggallery id=715] [nggallery id=954] [/toggle]
Comments
Damn it’s like Cadillac is telling people not to buy it
If they didn’t kill it, were you planning to buy one?
I was planning on buying a used one when I retired in 7 years. Not anymore!
So no pretty much. 7 years might was well be 1000 years…….. but thanks for nothing.
I guarantee you, you will be able to buy one used in 7 years. If you can buy a McLaren MP4-12c on the used market, you’ll be able to buy a used CT6-V.
I have a 2016 and my lease is up in February…I getting a new one and may even go for the V…if the number is right I’ll buy it when that lease is over and hopefully it will be a collectible!
It’s way easier to build pickups. If GM was committed to cats they would stop trying to pawn off midsized cars as full sized. The only thing that is close to full size is the Dodge Challenger and a Silverado. Sad deal, but they are getting what they sowed.
Yes, as soon as I could afford one that was just above the base spec. 67000 isn’t a price tag to sneeze at.
So stupid decision OMG ((((
Best looking sedan on the market, first full size cadillac in decades. And gm just kill it with all investments made into new rwd platform. What now ? Rebadged chevy’s again?
Dear GM,
Please put any version of that V8 in the CT5 with AWD. I will 100% buy one. Also, I don’t care if it’s hand-assembled or not. If it puts out crazy power and can drive on snow, I’ll be first in line.
That V8 is literally the only proprietary tech that Caddy has now that turns my head from another Audi/BMW/MB.
I would much rather hear the whine of a supercharger over the whine of 2 turbos.
Sure. The CTS-V has a supercharger.
The CT6 will still be assembled and sold in China, which is really why it exists to begin with. Wealthy Chinese still like the big luxury sedans to be driven around in.
I’m guessing the new blackwing engine will find it’s way into future Corvettes?
CT6 is a typical GM story. It is in many ways an advanced product that is groundbreaking but it was launched with a glaring omission; no V-8 and only parts bin four and six cylinder engines. Were I in the market for a large luxury sedan, I would’ve went to BMW or Mercedes until GM could fill the product’s void under the hood. I want the whole package, not a half-baked attempt with a 2.0 Turbo from a Chevrolet.
For 2019, GM announces exactly what the car needed to make it a real contender. Finally, an exclusive twin turbo 4.2 L V-8. It’s the perfect engine which should transform the car, result in glowing reviews from the automotive press and most importantly increased sales. I likely would buy a CT6 with the Blackwing V8. Increased sales would mean the cars will be on the roads and in ‘the right garages’ as Johan liked to speak of. That increased presence will elevate Cadillac’s image and prestige and help drive sales across the line . CT6 would finally begin to pay dividends for the money GM spent to develop it.
Sadly, before the V-8 CT6 can even launch, GM has announced its death. No matter how good it might turn out to be, who will want to own a car they know will soon exit production. The thing is, GM will say there is no market for it and, to some extent, that’s true but the real problem is that there is no market and there will never be a market for underdeveloped, noncompetitive cars like the stuff GM keeps creating.
Despite all that CT6 was launched with great promise. The product represented (finally) a return to a large purpose-built RWD Cadillac on a platform that could spawn additional products that Cadillac’s lineup had been sorely lacking. As we saw with concepts like Escala and Elmiraj, the Omega platform gave Cadillac the opportunity to join the Tier 1 luxury car ranks. The new V-8 was another step in the process of returning Cadillac to it’s former glory. For the first time in a long time, there was a ray of light and hope that ‘The Standard of the World’ might again be a slogan Cadillac could wear with pride.
All of this is why it’s demise now is so bad. It isn’t just the death of a model, it is the death of hope – the loss of any hope that Cadillac will ever be a great carmaker again. Mary Barra says this is needed to focus on the future and then cites electric cars and driverless cars as that future for which GM must prepare. What is glaringly obvious is that she is canceling GM’s only driverless car, the CT6, and the company’s groundbreaking hybrid-electric Volt. She is literally contradicting herself and proving once again how utterly clueless and lost GM is.
This morning driving in to work, I saw numerous new Mercedes and BMW cars. I was paying more attention than normal and there was an especially sleek new BMW 7 Series and a flashy new Mercedes SL among them. Not everyone is buying SUVs and particularly in the luxury market where people have cars like others have shoes meaning different ones for different occasions. If the Germans can have vast options spanning from SUVs to sports cars, convertibles, and sedans, I just don’t get why GM had to cancel its sole large luxury sedan and the one product that seemed to signal there was hope for Cadillac.
GM does have a knack for killing promising vehicles before they can mature. It’s as if finance underfunds them to ensure they fail. There’s a long history: Pontiac Fiero, Pontiac Solstice, Cadillac ELR, Cadillac CT6, GM minivans, etc.
I’ll keep my ’09 CTS-V garaged for now. Who knows what other shoes will drop, but I have no plans to replace it with a pickup truck or SUV.
Add the Cadillac Allante’ to your list of half-baked products that died at the moment the shortcomings were addressed. In 1993, Cadillac finally got the Northstar under the hood of its two-seat roadster addressing a critical flaw and nearly doubling the horsepower the car had at launch. They then promptly killed it. Northstar-equipped Allantes were only built for an abbreviated final model year. They said there was no ‘business case’ for it. Meanwhile, Mercedes-Benz is still selling the SL roadster to affluent buyers across America and the globe 25 years later. In fact, Mercedes sells two roadsters in the United States; the SL and SLC. Further they sell an S-Class, E-Class, and C-Class cabriolet which can each seat four for top down motoring.
Good point!
They even made another go at it with the XLR, which was dinged for feeling like an overpriced Corvette. So instead of making improvements, they killed it.
and don’t get me wrong, I have no beef with the escalade, Tahoe, suburban and others, but replacing passenger cars was a bad move and it will have a total massive stain on gm forever.
GM does not understand luxury and what it takes to build a luxury brand. GM’s shortsightedness and long-term goals for Cadillac does not mix when it comes to them.
Yes lets spend billions developing a new V8 engine for an architecture that we also spent billions on and then spent even more to MCE for 2019 and then all of a sudden drop the entire program. Barra the bean counter is at her brilliance again!
GM seems to have a problem discerning their good eggs from bad eggs. Don’t know if it’s because they put out so many bad eggs or there’s a big disconnect between product planners and corporate. Other companies seem more adept at choosing promising products, placing their bets and standing behind them.
I guess if GM played poker, they wouldn’t know which cards to hold and would constantly fold.
There are rumors of a new sedan/coupe to replace the CT6. So the question is will it happen or not. Its really hard to tell. I’m thinking the 2019 Detroit auto show might be showing a lot of new product. Mainly Electric vehicles.
Why does Cadillac HAVE TWO full size luxury sedans in the first place? XTS and CT6??
The XTS was offered as a big FWD Cadillac sedan to replace the Deville/DTS and STS. The plan was that once the an Omega based car, the CT6 launched, the XTS was finished. What actually happened was…..the XTS sold well enough, even in China, that instead of eliminating it, it was given a re-fresh.
The fact that GM/Cadillac has basically no presence in the European market, where driver oriented RWD sedans are still relevant, puts them at an enormous disadvantage vs the Germans.
The XTS was also kept around for coach builders (stretch limo’s, hearse and livery service)
Now that’s a dying business. Lol
I knew Cadillac is done. Johan tried his best to bring Cadillac to true Tier One Luxury Status and GM wanted no part of it.
Unbelievable.
Such drastic measures! Couldn’t GM phase into new corporate plan? This new plan better work.
I am canadian and i own 2 cadillacs, a SRXa nd a cts.i love both of them but i can see cadillac dying even with excellent products, but americans only want foreign products ,good and bad, they are just not loyal ,funny the chinese love american cars. my point is americans feel they produce inferior products,but i thought they feel superior
GM is dead for me.
I have a theory… The CT6, which I love and lease currently, ends production here – stays in China for another year or so – and we do get a replacement. A perplacement that looks like the Escala and an ALL ELECTRIC drive – train! A real flagship product that competes directly with the Tesla Model S and the upcoming product from zee German’s. Allows GM to make money on the existing Omega platform – China, and will be able to sell alongside the new Electric (Escala) for a few years there.
I’m leasing another CT6 in February when my lease is up on my 2016 and hopefully, we will see an all electric Cadillac flagship in the near future.
This would be an acceptable conclusion to this folly.
What if the CT6 is dead and this is part of a plan to re-launch of the Omega platform in an even better looking format and with a “REAL NAME” that so many here have been crying for (because number and letters are “confusing”) would that make anyone happy?
Nah…probably not, Cadillac could re-launch the CT6 and the Fleetwood Brougham d’Elegance Talisman and all of sudden people here would get nostalgic for the ATS……
Like this car’s unique mixed-material architecture, I’ve always had “mixed” feelings about the CT6. I loved the great exterior styling, interior space, lightweight and decent driving dynamics, which set it apart quite nicely in the large luxury sedan segment. But I was never a fan of its somewhat lackluster interior design and materials, along with its powertrain options; besides the 3.0T, everything else was underwhelming!
But still, like others have pointed out, it’s sad to see the CT6 fall to the wayside after receiving such a comprehensive and meaningful update! GM had the opportunity to truly elevate this sedan, and it looked like they were gonna follow through with the recent updates! SMH….At this point, it’s difficult to be optimistic about the future of this company! The upcoming lineup seems to hold little interests, besides maybe the CT4 and CT5 sedans, which likely won’t be on the market long enough to truly establish themselves as legitimate luxury offerings!
I’ve got to say, I have the 3.0TT CT6 and it is just an awesome car. Certainly a step up from the 535i I turned in. The looks and drive are great and with a slightly pimped interior would be perfect. It’s sad to see a great product go prematurely. If there is an intention to bring it back in some form, GM should announce that now (if it’s really dead, which I doubt) to give hope to customers who have invested their hard earned money in their product amongst an array of other fine and comparably priced vehicles.
I think they are killing the current CT6 to replace it with a new model, which will be a truly E class car. It means a lil bit smaller.
CT5 will be a D segment car.
I really doubt that their big plans about the RWD XT7,XT8, CT7,CT8 and the VSS-R platform are banned. I think everything will be fine in terms of their plans.
And if they are killing the CT6 because of the reason I’ve mentioned above, then I’m really glad. I like the MCE version(front,rear). But the interior sucks. So really hope, they have decided to bring smth new.
This of course would be logical and hopefully true. If it’s the case GM should fanfare it.
Looks like the US auto industry is abandoning the car business…
I think they made the fundamental mistake of chasing BMW instead of Mercedes. Omega should have been a tallish, opulent sedan to compete with the S Class and even RR as a car for rich, middle-aged and older people to be seen in and exit without unfolding, IOW the small limo market. A crossover variant would then have been easy.
I don’t see a large EV flying in flyover country unless gas prices double.
Ralph,
The S class market has been decimated by the Tesla Model S which now owns 50% of that small niche. Why do you think the Germans are in full out panic mode due to Tesla? This gives you an idea of where this is going.
The writing may be on the wall for ICE luxo barges.
Doesn’t make any sense. All the money invested in a brand new platform with only one offering and you kill it after one production run!!!???
Perhaps they’ll recoup their investment in the Omega Platform as the CT6 will still be produced and sold in China. Or perhaps they’ll also import it into the states.
Otherwise, they really don’t want the marque to be considered a true luxury brand. Luxury marques need a placeholder in multiple categories to be taken seriously.
Sedans’ popularity in general is waning but as others retreat, what’s most confusing is that MB, BMW and Audi are continually offering, updating and introducing sedans and their four door coupe variants.
Gary,
What you dumb Americans don’t get is that Cadillac isn’t MB, BMW or Audi.
YOU CAN’T DO SWEET F&?% ALL WITH A 1% WORLD MARKET SHARE. The boat has sailed away long ago.
What happened to your master of corruption and deception who promised you that businesses would be stumbling over each other coming back to the US? The truth is that foreign investment has gone to zero since 2016 and you will never see another foreign car plant built in the US, ever. MB and BMW are making plans right now to move production away due to tariffs. That production will not come back.
This was the flagship car for Cadillac and GM. Nicest car they make. With the shift to suvs and trucks, the new Escalade will have to be the best in the stable.
Won’t miss this one-terrible name, confused status, bland styling, Chinese FUYAO Glass when its Made in America, narrow, coal-bin interior, no regular 3.6 V-6 with RWD (WHY THE F WAS THAT SO HARD??!!), crackpipe pricing, didn’t share platform with anyone, I wanted to like this car, but what a damn disappointment. And unless your name is Volvo, why the F would you offer a turbo-four in ANYTHING that’s supposed to be a flagship vehicle? Leave it to the compacts, and mid-sizers if you must…and that 3.6 V-6, can’t you get that in a Chevy or Buick anyway?
Pretty simple reasons my smart dog could realize why CT6 failed in the market.
At least the CT6 will still be produced in China.
Maybe the CT6 could still be moved to GM’s Lansing River plant, since they continue to build rear drive CTS, ATS and Camaro.
We do know that the new CT4 and CT5 should be out within a year, and a new Camaro should follow within two years.
I wonder how many shifts are currently operating at the Lansing River plant?
I ordered a 2019 CT6 just 6 weeks ago. Production is next week, should I stick with it or bale for a XT5? I’m not a SUV fan and the CTS/XTS didn’t give me the same feeling as the CT6.
I would stay with the CT6 though the XT5 will more than likely hold its value better.
GM/Cadillac should use Omega (Standard or LWB ) platform for Cadillac CUV’s (or tall wagons) that can compete with BMW X7/ Mercedes GLS/Porsche Cayenne, with a LWB model, have a new market for itself–an XXL Sport CUV . Use Alpha (Standard & LWB) platforms for Cadillac CUV’s to compete with X5/Macan/GLE & GLC. Only use 3.0TT or Blackwing engines with 10 spd AT. Escala-type styling and completely updated, best-in-class Tier 1 luxury interiors. Retain driving/handling characteristics of current Alpha/Omega vehicles. Continue building the XT series, but give the Sport RWD/AWD’s actual names similar to Escalade, as Lincoln is doing with its CUV/SUV’s. Thoroughly update Escalade to completely set it apart from Yukon Denali/ Navigator. That would allow Cadillac to cover all sectors of the Crossover market, hopefully giving them the sales and capital to convince GM brass to allow them to build truly class-leading cars again, as well as using the floor space from assembly plants that are scheduled to close. i can dream, can’t I?
Anyone noticed that apparently GM has walked back the cancellation of the CT6?
https://www.autonews.com/manufacturing/cadillac-ct6-isnt-dead-us