Back in July, Reuters (very incorrectly) reported that only one model will replace the Cadillac XTS, CTS, and ATS sedans. One day after, GM Authority confirmed that there will be not one, but two models that will serve as successors to the ATS and CTS. That same Reuters report, however, had another interesting detail: a supposed price reduction for the Cadillac CT6.
Specifically, the report states that “New versions of the CT6 sedan will be offered to customers who want a larger car starting at $50,000.”
Our initial reaction would be to discount the statement as careless reporting, given the misinformation related to the the amount of models that will succeed the ATS and CTS. Come to think of it, the CT6’s base price of $53,795 for the 2017 model year in the United States is somewhat close to the $50,000 figure mentioned in the report. But what if Cadillac is, indeed, planning on decreasing the price of the CT6?
If Cadillac is really planning on dropping the price of the CT6, then we can see that happening in one of the following two ways:
- Cadillac decreases the starting price of the CT6 by $3,795 on the base 2.0T model, with other trim levels also seeing similar cuts.
- Cadillac launches a new trim level below the existing base 2.0T, thereby rearranging the model’s trim level structure and introducing a new and decontended model with a lower starting price than even the current base CT6 2.0T.
Timing
Assuming that the Reuters report is correct about Cadillac plan to decrease the CT6 starting price point, the timing of the change is worthy of discussion. We posit that such a change could go into effect roughly one year from now for the 2019 Cadillac CT6, when the full-size sedan is expected to deliver a midcycle refresh with styling similar to that of the Cadillac Escala Concept.
The timing would make sense given that Cadillac’s other full-size sedan, the XTS, will be discontinued within two years, and Cadillac might be thinking of ways to transition XTS owners into the CT6 around that time. As such, a $50,000 starting price point for the CT6 might be a good way to transition existing XTS owners into the CT6. For reference, the 2017 Cadillac XTS starts at $45,595 and is in for a refresh for the 2018 model year (see 2018 Cadillac XTS).
Sales
Cadillac CT6 sales have been notably healthy since the sedan’s launch in the spring of 2017, accounting for 9,169 deliveries in 2016 – its first year on the market. In the first seven months of 2017, the CT6 sales tallied 6,287 units, putting it on track for roughly 11,000 sales during the full calendar year.
Sales Results - USA - CT6
| Year | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 35 | 35 | 35 | 104 | |||||||||
| 2020 | 575 | 575 | 575 | 275 | 275 | 275 | 141 | 141 | 141 | 48 | 48 | 48 | 3,117 |
| 2019 | 729 | 729 | 729 | 621 | 621 | 621 | 542 | 542 | 542 | 759 | 759 | 759 | 7,951 |
| 2018 | 628 | 845 | 994 | 809 | 809 | 809 | 792 | 792 | 792 | 799 | 799 | 799 | 9,668 |
| 2017 | 634 | 802 | 968 | 978 | 1,001 | 1,014 | 890 | 856 | 985 | 796 | 777 | 841 | 10,542 |
| 2016 | 35 | 285 | 697 | 962 | 827 | 1,242 | 1,343 | 1,316 | 1,169 | 1,293 | 9,169 |
*** This manufacturer is now publishing only quarterly numbers for this market. Monthly figures may be averages.
Subjectively speaking, the results are positive for a few reasons, including that:
- The CT6 is recording sales gains in a sedan-down market as a result of customers choosing to buy crossovers at the expense of sedans
- The CT6 is the first Cadillac model to compete in the full-size prestige-luxury segment against such segment stalwarts as the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, BMW 7 Series, and Lexus LS. Hence, the CT6 does not have an established customer base but is instead selling to a new generation of Cadillac customers.
- The CT6 is competing internally for customers with the Cadillac XTS, the brand’s other full-size luxury sedan that currently undercuts the CT6’s price by roughly $8,000
Stay tuned as we learn more.
Comments
I say the report is wrong. Starting at $50,000 can mean $50K range which the car starts at $53K. I don’t see any reason why Cadillac needs to lower the price of the CT6 because the XTS is going to be discontinued in several years.
Majority of the XTS models people buy are Luxury – Premium Luxury starting at $49K – $56K with Platinum in the mix. The XTS base accounts maybe 1%. Those customers should not have a problem buying the CT6 2.0T/3.6NA Luxury – 3.0T Luxury which range at $58K – $64K.
I don’t see any lower base model than the standard 2.0T base CT6. Pricing of the CT6 is fine as is at $53K and Cadillac don’t need to dilute the image of the CT6 for price cutting. The CT6 will go upmarket in few years, so there is no reason to cut the pricing just to please the XTS crowd since the XTS is an expensive car and some of the trims can be optioned out to get near the price of the mid-level trims of the CT6 anyhow.
I agree entirely. Will try to clear up the statement this week with Cadillac.
Come on Alex , why is the reporting always that the CT6 competes in the same segment as the S-Class etc.
The Cadillac Touring 6 ” DOES NOT ” compete with that luxury car segment , I wish I could some way find the article where JDN changed the cars goal as the car not competing with those cars before the production even started . It was once the goal but that changed close to launch .
That doesn’t do the car any good to be compared that way .
If the CT6 will get a price cut I hope that there will be something in the look of the car that will differenciate the cheaper version apart from the higher end vehicle . Different grill , headlights and wheels for example .
I can’t help but think of Oldsmobile where you had the 98 and 88 . You could load up the 88 with options that were close in price to a cheap 98 but both had completely different visual differences but were basically the same car .
Like it or not, consumer’s are compare the car to the S Class, 7 Series and etc. More importantly, consumers are voting with their money which makes it a win, win for both the competitors and Cadillac where that was unlikely a decade ago.
CT6 is a nice car but has a large GM car look and feel to it. It isn’t in the same league as the German makes. Fit and feel of the CTS is more German -like, the CT6 less so. Add to that the 8L45 and 8L90 driveability issues and GM is on track to botch this one too. A plan to prove build quality and brand image could be to win the value buyers first because anyone who can afford a German make will probably still buy one. Lexus got Buick buyers with their compitive ES offering. CT6 needs to do the same.
The CT6 was what Mark could get the board to approve but not get all he wanted.
That is why this car sends such a mixed signal.
There was a lot of internal fighting on this car and it is what lead to Mary and Mark to bring in JDN and let him move the brand away from Detroit.
Not a bad car but one built like the old GM cars were with too many hands in the project.
Like JDN or not at least when his lines come out the will be the first Cadilkacs in a long time that are of on vision. I also hope he was not compromised in funding to get it right either. This alone should at least get the brand on page.
For too long we have had too many leaders and too much interfearance from GM.
Let’s hope the Board has seen the error of their ways and let JDN build a Cadillac that will elevate them to truly be the standard of the world. At least to truly compete with the BMW and Mercedes top tier. To truly be elevated to the standard of the would they need to be is what I consider Cadillacs’s true place Rolls Royce competition. Knowing that will most likely never happen I would just like to see them kick Mercede’s and BMW’s butt.
As a future XTS owner, I can say that I will never buy a CT6. Cadillac will force people to either look into Lincoln (which would mean lost business) or spend $5,000 more for the base model of another car (CT6). In sales money is money, it shouldn’t matter if it comes from a 95 year old African American, or a 19 year old Asian, and by discontinuing the XTS, Cadillac is further alienating itself from its loyal customer base and long standing image.
The (lack of) leadership over at Cadillac is so worried about the XTS tarnishing their image, but they don’t mind that the XT5 (Caddys best selling model) is built on a shared FWD platform as well. Nope, just because the XTS is portrayed as an “old person” car, it must go. MB sells work vans and one bad ass off-roader, but nobody who buys a MB seems to think its “too blue collar”.
I have driven both cars, and I can say that the XTS has a comfier ride, more interior room (especially in the trunk) and is a bit easier to get into. Until the CT6 can provide all of that, count this as a loss for Cadillac.
Your getting downvotes, as I’m sure I will too… but my dad bought a CT6.
he hates it. Its hard to get in and out of, and has a tiny baby trunk that barely fits his golf clubs. You can barely fit two full size adults in the back seat, leading us to drive 2 cars when we used to drive one…as the XTS is roomy.
He’s mid lease but has expressed interest in trading it in early to pick up an XTS because he liked the XTS a lot more.
The problem is, I’m half his age and I am not a big fan of the CT6. I LOVED it when it was announced and thought it was going to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. It wins all these awards and recognition, but it wasn’t even that sporty driving. I thought the sportiness was supposed to be its win over the XTS, but its frankly a bit lethargic. When I drove it, the transmission was slow to respond and it drove like a large sedan, not a sports sedan. It cried at me for trying to drive it with the 3.6L. I’m sure the Turbo is better, but its got to be the worst transmission on any car I’ve ever driven. even in manual mode I could probably tie my shoes faster than it would up or down shift, which is sad because I loved my CTS.
I’d buy the XTS over the CT6 if I was shopping for one.
Did your dad test driven the CT6 before buying it? That is strange to me that your dad hated the car after he bought it.
CT6 has healthy sales so why cut the price when the CTS replacement could accomplish the goal of capturing XTS sales?
Then again, given CT6 fails to reflect the ethos of NEW Cadillac, maybe it should be an XTS Amero boat replacement.
Luxury requires a solid sedan strategy. Cadillac nonetheless needs one livery limo capable sedan. FWD works best so I hopooe that the XTS hardpoints have flex.
It’s quite a stretch to call CT6 sales “healthy”. They couldn’t even sell 900 units (in the US) in July. If sales pick up strongly in the second half of the year (as usually happens), they’ll “maybe” sell a total of 15-16k units in the US for the calendar year. This should actually be the strongest calendar year for the CT6, since it’s the first full one. So the CT6 is on track to have the lowest first full year sales on any Cadillac sedan since WWII – and that’s “healthy”?
Sure the Cadillac cheerleaders will say these numbers are great for the “class” and then compare to more expensive, more prestigious cars against which it doesn’t really compete. The reality is that Cadillac’s two previous “flagship” sedans sold a lot more in their first full years – the DTS sold over 58,000 (US sales) in its first full calendar year, and the XTS sold over 32,000 (first full calendar year, USA). It’s not surprising that Cadillac may be considering cutting the price of the CT6; thus far in 2017 (through 7 months) they’ve sold only 6,287 CT6 units in the USA.
Cadillac is “not” considering cutting the pricing of the CT6. If you look at the CTS for example, they altered the pricing from Luxury & Premium trims and adjust the options and features to make the car more attractive. Base price stayed the same on CTS. It is possible they can do that w/ the CT6 but not w/ the base price in the future. There is no where to go underneath $53K w/ a 2.0T base.
My 2016 XTS fully loaded (every option except Platinum) AWD, twin turbo, mag shocks, thin tires. I had the ’14 and this one gets 10% better mileage. This car has max torque from just above idle to redline. Cornering is better than my CTS from 2009, and power is as well, Terrific trunk and rear seat, all leather seating, Alcantera and flat wood trim. It’s the best full size sedan I have ever driven. Hope the CT6 can be even better if properly equipped.
So far, extra $10k for CT6-for what?
Cadillac’s reported upcoming sedan lineup make zero sense. The CT5 will be a 3/C/A4/XE/Giulia size car which is fine, but that means that for sure the CT6 will be the midsize model.
The CT6 in no way shape or form should be a 5/E/A6/XF/GS competitor. Way too big for that segment. So is Cadillac going back to offering bigger cars in the segment for a lot less money?
If so, that strategy will never work in Europe at all. So basically Cadillac is admitting they have given up on the idea of making Cadillac a truly global Luxury car brand. Too bad they gave up so quickly.
Is it giving up? or recognizing the Europe isn’t worth the investment?
focusing on china and other asian growth markets, and ignoring high-rivalry regions such as europe isn’t awful logic.
You are very confused, are you? The CT5 will be similar to the CTS second gen. w/ pricing matching the junior executive models that will match the interior volume and dimension like the mid-level executive models.
You already answered your own question about the CT6, so I won’t explain it. The CT6 is doing the exact same thing like the the second gen. CTS. and upcoming CT5.
Bottom line here is that if Cadillac is planning on dropping the price further on the CT6 then they need a CT7 or 8 to sit at the top. Zach is right, the CT6 barley competes with the German flagship even in its top Platinum form. Look at the 19 Audi A8, the CT6 is leagues below that and the S class, in size, options, engines, etc. To make matters worse Cadillac is now going to dilute any prestige aura the Ct6 dose have with a lower price and that lovely 4 banger dose not help the case.
Don’t get me wrong, I will own a CT6 here in the next year or so because I love its style and looks and I am a Cadillac fan. But I am also not delusional in thinking that a CT6 hangs with a S-class, A8 or 7 series. This is why GM’s awful upper management needs to get a CT8 or a much more upper class version of the CT6 with a different name approved.
I always looked away from the Germans and their cars but after seeing the mess Cadillac has been in, i started researching all the flagships from Audi and MB. I mean honestly there is no comparison at least on the flagship front.
We just have to wait until the refresh since JDN have his input on the car. He also has stated that there will be higher end versions of this car for the current cycle, meaning a V8, maybe a LWB and a V-Sport or V Series. Possibly a coupe and maybe convertible of this car.
The refresh ’19 CT6 should give us a better understanding if this car will be closer to flagship caliber or not which I will call it a flagship at this moment. The CT8 is not needed at this moment if the refresh going to get higher versions in the future, a possible LWB w/ enhanced technology and luxury trimmings. Also, the CT8 may not be a traditional large 4 door luxury sedan Cadillac had stated in the past. It could be entirely something different, maybe as a halo.
There are some features that the CT6 has that the German flagships does not have currently.
What will be the resale value of the CT6 in the next few years? People who will buy this car will see the value drop like a lead balloon. GM/ Cadillac should cut their losses and make back as much money as they can. That stated, cut out the base models and make one model and make it a real deal. IMHP I would buy it at the right price. Thanks.