If we’re all honest with each other, Cadillac going hit for hit with A-list brands from Europe in terms of vehicle size and price has been fairly unrewarding as it was perhaps expected to be. While there’s no denying the likability of either the Cadillac ATS or Cadillac CTS, there seemed to be far too many market headwinds for the cars to get discerning Euro-brand snobs to buy them. And at the same time, they were either too expensive or too small for the money when it came to selling to American-brand loyalists that have returned to Cadillac repeatedly for their next vehicle. Add to that a historic preferential shift from passenger cars to crossover SUVs, and the brand’s product-starved lineup became one of the most vulnerable in the industry.
On the flip side, the previous-generation Cadillac CTS saw a fair bit of success. For instance, Cadillac sold over 55,000 units of the CTS in the United States back in 2011, which was its best year. In 2017, the nameplate underwhelmingly accounted for just over 10,300 units. The ATS: just 13,100 last year, compared to the 38,319 it sold in its first full year of sales back in 2013. These products deserve to sell better.
The previous-generation CTS was nearly the size of a BMW 5 Series at the time, but sold for around the price of a BMW 3 series. The Cadillac SRX crossover had similar positioning, as well. In retrospect, this “tweener” vehicle strategy proved to be fruitful for Cadillac, at least more so than what we have presently.
It seems the 2019 Cadillac XT4 will follow this prosperous game plan. And considering the timeline, we likely have the ousted brand president Johan de Nysschen to thank for that, as well.
Without driving it, we’re still able to examine where the 2019 XT4 will fall into the fray of the most contested segment in the premium/luxury vehicle space. The chart below showcases where the Cadillac XT4 places among several of its rivals.
Metric / Vehicle | 2019 Cadillac XT4 | 2018 BMW X1 | 2019 BMW X3 | 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class | 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class | 2018 Audi Q3 | 2018 Audi Q5 | 2018 Lexus NX | 2018 Lexus RX | 2018 Infiniti QX30 | 2019 Infiniti QX50 | 2019 Volvo XC40 | 2018 Volvo XC60 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wheelbase (in) | 109.4 | 105.1 | 112.8 | 106.3 | 113.1 | 102.5 | 111 | 104.7 | 109.8 | 106.3 | 110.2 | 106.4 | 112.8 |
Length (in) | 184.1 | 175.4 | 185.9 | 173.9 | 183.3 | 172.8 | 183.6 | 182.6 | 192.5 | 174.2 | 184.7 | 174.2 | 184.6 |
Starting MSRP | $35,790 | $33,900 | $41,000 | $33,400 | $40,050 | $32,900 | $41,500 | $35,985 | $43,270 | $29,950 | $36,550 | $35,200 | $41,500 |
In terms of price, the 2019 Cadillac XT4 is undercut only by the Audi Q3 and Infiniti QX30. Both of which are significantly more petite than the Cadillac in terms of every dimension, especially in terms of wheelbase. The Cadillac XT4 pricing is so aggressive that it is only two thousand more than the BMW X1, which is nearly a foot shorter in overall length. The 109-inch wheelbase of the Cadillac XT4 should pay major dividends in the rear legroom department compared to other vehicles for the money. It’s more crossover for the coin. And with a new LSY engine putting out 237 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque from the start, the 2019 XT4 launches with more power than the BMW X1, as well.
Other vehicles in the segment, such as the Volvo XC60 and Audi Q5, are more proportionate to the Cadillac, but ring in a starting price that’s $5,000 to $6,000 more. It will be interesting to see how Cadillac tiers the content of the XT4, because it’s likely that the average transaction price for this entry-level luxury crossover will climb real quick.
Stay tuned to GMAuthority as we approach the launch of the 2019 Cadillac XT4, which is expected in September 2018.
Comments
Based on these numbers, it looks like the closest competitor is the Infiniti QX50.
Like the original CTS strategy in 2003 was to place it as a 3 Series fighter but almost the size of the 5 Series. It worked. I had a 2006 3.6 CTS and then later a 2004 LS6 CTS-V, great car for the times.
Careful planning?
Or fortuitous use of the right-sized Malibu platform?
Whatever the reason, it fits into the competitive lineup nicely …
“In terms of price, the 2019 Cadillac XT4 is undercut only by the Audi A3 and Infiniti QX30”
Audi Q3, not A3. Also undercut by the BMW, Mercedes and Volvo.
Yep I like it. Our 2004 CTS was / is the best car we have ever owned, and we have a 2014 ATS also now. We just cant get rid of the CTS. Also we chose the ATS after driving both the new ATS and CTS, and price had nothing to do with it. New CTS was just to big and this ATS is just to small. Not to mention our 2004 CTS 3.6 will eat this ATS alive from 20 to 60, it just doesn’t know where to shift and what to do. I am 49 years old 5’10”-210 lbs and it is a chore to get in this ATS. Neither of our parents ride in it because its just to hard to get in and out, and we took our old 2004 CTS and our 2005 SRX everywhere. We love the looks of our ATS and once I get in it, it drives great down the road, but in traffic you better remember to put it in sport mode so it knows how to shift in traffic. We would NEVER buy another. So the XT4, we will drive one to check out the performance. But with a 2.0 T like our ATS, well we will see. We will also see what motor will be in the CT5 and the performance. Hopefully both drive great and perform great and we will have both again. We do like the design of the XT4.
Im surprised at 20mph your turbo ATS isn’t spooled up and ready to rip, it makes over 200lb-ft at 1500rpm, and peaks at 250ish (at the wheels).
If you really want more oomph, D3 is (or was?) a factory approved Cadillac tuner, and through Trifecta offer various tunes. I think their least aggressive tune bumps power and torque by 15% and runs $300ish dollars. And their race tune had something like 120hp gains.
But I agree the first gen CTS is a great car.
This is how our car goes if not in sport mode. It upshifts, upshifts, upshifts. Then when you want to pass in traffic it just cant find the gear to get that torque to the road. In sport mode its great, but every time you shut it off it switches back to touring. 0 to whatever its great but as soon as you let it upshift your screwed. Our 2015 Canyon is even worse. And yes both motors have plenty of torque, and the tunes fix both shifting troubles. So what is keeping GM from doing this ( EPA ). Because without explanation it just appears GM can’t, won’t, or doesn’t know how. So we buy a $50,000.00 car and then have to tune it to get it to perform to its potential.
It’s almost the same wheelbase as the Lexus RX
I have a family. We like to take road trips. Therefore, cargo capacity is extremely important.
GM used to RULE in this area. The Buick Rendezvous, the second-gen Equinox, the Cutlass Supreme, the first gen Cruze… all cars we owned that absolutely beat the competition in cargo space.
Lately, GM is giving up a LOT in this area. Is it for the sake of style points??
BMW X3 is only 1.8″ longer than XT4. Yet the X3 has 28.7 cu ft of cargo capacity, while the XT4 has only 22.5. That is a massive difference. One of them will take my family of 4 on a week’s vacation to the beach, the other will not.
XT5 is 190″ long with 30 cu ft of cargo capacity. I guess, if I want a Cadillac that can meat-or-beat BMW, I should buy the XT5. It will cost the same as the X3, but will give me a little bigger vehicle.
Admittedly, perhaps I am just having to think this through.
However, it’s still tough to wrap my head around the fact that a Cadillac with a “4” in its name is smaller than a BMW with a “3” in its name. The numbering system is way off if I’m supposed to realize that GM wants me to cross-shop XT5 with X3.
The goal of the XT4 was rear leg room rather than cargo capacity. If you compare the X3 to the XT4, XT4 has 3 more inches of rear leg room – a huge advantage. This vehicle is definitely more focused on passenger comfort.
Thanks David. I did forget to check rear seat space.
XT5 has a sliding rear seat. I believe XT4 does not? Would have been a great feature to go from “young family on vacation” mode to “4 adults on a double dinner date” mode.
David, if you are going to talk about legroom, why not talk about the fact that at a stated spec of 40.87″, the XT4 is extremely short on legroom for a Cadillac or for any car. And as far as cargo capacity, it’s hard to see that the XT4 sacrificed cargo for legroom, when the similarly sized Honda CR-V has 50% more cargo capacity than the XT4 when the rear seats of both are folded down!
This article suggests we have JdN to “thank” for the XT4. Gee thanks Johan, this was your one and only full project at Cadillac, and you not only gave it functionally unsound dimensions, but you gave it an ugly and boring non-luxury plastic interior, and you ruined the classic Cadillac taillamps. Johan already had enough “thanks” from GM, millions and millions of them in the form of greenbacks, I assume.
Johan was very well compensated, got to live his dream of a life in NYC at shareholder’s expense, oversaw a decline in US Cadillac sales of 11%, and then came out with the entirely underwhelming, non-Cadillac XT4, along with its copycat naming system. I don’t think he deserves any more “thanks” than he’s already received. In fact I’d like to see him pay back Cadillac/GM for the damage he’s done and the opportunities he’s missed, though that’s not going to happen.
if more legroom and cargo room is needed. Cadillac has the XT5, Escalade and the soon to be XT6.
lot of Cadillac have cargo space and legroom, but they do need some Compact Vehicles like this and the ATS
“lot of Cadillac have cargo space and legroom, but they do need some Compact Vehicles like this and the ATS”
Gino WHY does Cadillac need cheap compact cars? If GM wants to sell cheap and compact cars, they have Chevrolet for that. The “Cimarron strategy” of offering a cheap compact car under the Cadillac name is already a proven disaster. Some clown may be driving his cheap compact and think “Look at me, I’ve got a Cadillac!” – but he doesn’t. This is how brands get ruined. Real Cadillacs are not cramped, don’t have little engines, cheap plastic interiors and vinyl seats.
Yes I realize there’s the theory that if you can get younger, less affluent customers into a smaller and cheaper “Cadillac”, you’ll have a customer for life. And that customer will buy better and more expensive Cadillacs as they age and become wealthier. However, if the customer gets a cramped, cheap and generic experience in their first “Cadillac”, why would they aspire to stay with the brand when their circumstances improve?
I don’t understand this “We must offer a Cadillac of every shape, size, and price for everyone” mentality. What’s next, Cadillac tricycles, to edge out everyone else in the “customer for life” race? If Cadillac doesn’t have standards, it means nothing as a brand. I always thought the Cimarron experience served as a warning for the future, not a pattern to be emulated.
Drew, I am assuming that 40.87″ figure you quoted is for the front leg room. XT4 has 40.87″ of front leg room. X3 has 40.3″ of front leg room. GLC has 40.8″ of front leg room. Again, win Cadillac. The XT4 is not “extremely short on legroom” as you claim. It is right where it needs to be.
David, yes that’s 40.87″ spec front legroom, which is incredibly small. My mistake to not include the word “front”, as I meant to. You are right that the rear legroom on the XT4 is very good.
As far as what is acceptable in terms of front legroom, I don’t care if someone else shortchanges the front legroom or anything else in their vehicle. Cadillac should have their own standards and stick to them. If others fail to measure up to Cadillac’s standards, that’s no reason for Cadillac to drop their own standards, it’s an opportunity to show that other brands are not Cadillacs.
The upcoming XT4 is not a Tweener. The new QX50 is the same size. The upcoming Q3 will be the same size per reports. The Lexus NX200 is about the same size. The upcoming GLA will be much bigger as well.
The XT4 size is the new size for the Compact class. They will now have a Sub-Compact size Luxury CUV.
The reported length of the XT4 in the included chart is incorrect. The length of the XT4 is 181.4 inches, not 184.4 inches. Inches matter. I wish the XT4 was in fact 184.4 inches long, which would slightly better my ’18 Q5. I also wish the 2.0T engine had more power and torque. We’ll see how the thing drives when it finally hits dealerships in 6 months time.
I am looking at the XT4 as a potential replacement for out 2016 Buick Envision Premium when the lease is up next year. We have gone through an MDX, SRX, (2) Buick Enclaves, and now the Envision and our favorite by far is the latter. Yes built in China but the fit and finish is as good as the 2 BMW’s we have owned and the Envision has been flawless over the past 20 months. The lease deal we got on it was amazing because the MSRP was just crazy high so they were not selling…afraid we cannot replicate this deal next year. The XT4 sounds perfect since my wife and I love the 2.0T engine (252 hp but why less in the XT4…maybe regular gas tuned ???) even with a crappy old style 6 speed transmission; the SRX was very nice but totally inefficient seating space. Our gas mileage is not great with the 2.0T but we both have “heavy feet” so to speak…
^ I have also owned a ’16 Buick Envision Premium, and now own a 2018 Audi Q5. A couple of the Envision’s best attributes are its rear seat legroom and rear flat floor feature (no raised tunnel). The XT4 is said to have segment leading rear seat legroom/knee room, but doesn’t have a flat floor in the rear and the rear seats aren’t fore/aft adjustable (probably not a concern for most?). The XT4 in most other areas sounds pretty perfect, but I have a concern with the engine being under-powered. At least they’re pairing the engine with GM’s impressive 9-speed transmission.
I was hoping the XT4 would be a little larger (longer) than it is – 185 inches in length would have been perfect. Looking forward to test driving the vehicle when it finally arrives.
Richard: I just checked the weight of our Envision 2.0T with all wheel drive and it is 4,045 lbs. The new XT4 is shown at 3,660 lbs. 2WD so maybe the power gap is not huge in actual driving. I’m also a firm believer in the low end grunt that a turbo has with all that torque which is key in city driving.
We had someone hit our car so currently have a 2018 Enclave loaner and it will not fit in the smaller garage of our new house…it is almost 21 inches longer than our Envision! The 9 speed is very smooth however.