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Just Six People Will Build Cadillac’s 4.2L LTA Twin-Turbo V8 Engine

Cadillac will once again offer its own exclusive engine when the 4.2-liter DOHC twin-turbo V8 engine begins production for the 2019 CT6 sedan. Matching its exclusivity will be the small team of employees tasked with building the powerplant.

Popular Mechanics reported Tuesday that a team of six workers will be assigned to build the 4.2-liter LTA V8 engine. However, only one worker will assemble one engine by hand at a time. Production will take place at the Bowling Green, Kentucky, assembly plant where other workers assemble General Motors’ small-block V8 engines used for the C7 Corvette.

Jordan Lee, chief engineer for the 4.2-liter V8, told the publication that the new engine won’t be raucous like drivers may remember with small-block V8-powered Cadillacs such as the CTS-V. Instead, the new engine is meant to compliment the CT6’s extra weight with a silky response and less drama.

“The engine is biased toward torque versus peak power,” he said.

That doesn’t mean it will be a slouch, though. In its regular output, the engine makes 500 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque. Stepping up the 2019 Cadillac CT6 V-Sport will see the engine produce 550 hp and 627 lb-ft of torque.

We’ll likely see the engine make its way into many future Cadillac vehicles. The next-generation 2020 Escalade and new CT5 sedan seem like primary contenders.

Former GM Authority staff writer.

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Comments

  1. All that means, Cadillac will finally have an engine befitting the brand. Cadillac should have never used a “raucous” Chevy Small Block. I know it was all they had but it was never an appropriate powerplant for a brand that wanted to been seen as a peer to the German luxury brands.

    I wonder though with only six people building the engines by hand, and one at a time, if this will really be a widely available engine option in the CT6. What Cadillac needs is a modern, ultra-refined V8 for CT6 and other large products that becomes synonymous with the brand as the Northstar was in its day. They don’t need a rare, hand-built engine that is rarely actually sold while the vast majority of cars still come equipped with a standard issue GM 3.6L V6 or a corporate 2.OL I-4 .

    Reply
    1. I don’t know what you mean by that comment that Cadillac needs an ultra-refined V8 for the CT6 but it looks like this engine is it. We just have to wait and see when reviews of the CT6 comes out.

      If there’s more than enough demand for this engine, the workforce around the engine could change in the future. I’m betting the engine is bullet-proof durable and reliable and lets hope GM learned their lesson from the disastrous Northstar days.

      Reply
    2. They’ll most likely increase the work force & ramp production as time goes by, especially if the 4.2 makes it to Escalade as rumors & speculations suggest.

      Reply
  2. Johnls_39,

    What I mean is that Cadillac needs an ultra-refined V8, which I’m sure this engine will be, that is also widely used. I don’t think they need a rare, hand-built engine that only gets installed in five percent of all CT6 models sold. Perhaps touting the hand-built nature of the engine is a way of creating mystique around the powerplant which I totally agree with but it just somewhat concerns me because I don’t think this engine should be rare. It should be special, it should be spectacular, it should only be available in Cadillacs but I want to see Caddy again be seen by the public as the purveyor of special cars that are far more than souped-up Chevys. I think if this engine is too rare, I don’t think it gets Cadillac, as a brand, back to the level of esteem they once had.

    Reply
    1. How about this for usage of the 4.2. XT7,XT8,CT5V,CT6,CT7,CT8 AND ESCALADE.

      Reply
  3. Finally catching up with the market. I just wish they replaced 3.6L V6 with 3.0L V6 Turbo. Torque and millage on the current engine is a joke.

    Reply
    1. Yes! The 3.0TT is the perfect upgrade engine from the 2.0T LTG.

      Maybe they’re doing a slow roll out of the 3.0TT to be sure it’s reliable? Cadillac engineers have done several twin turbo sixes now so maybe the next generation one will finally be ready for duty in higher volume models.

      Reply
  4. They need to make enough for the Escalade

    Reply
  5. This has been a long over due problem at Cadillac. While the Chevy is a fine engine people paying more for a high end car expect to get more or at least something better and more advanced than the engine in the Tahoe they have in the driveway.

    This is seen as added value and image as long as it is better than the N star was on head gaskets.

    Cadillac is doing the right thing here and I hope the GM board learns from this and continues to let Cadillac be Cadillac and not a Chevy with a better interior.

    Reply
  6. If it makes it to the Escalade that is where the hand built verbage stops. There is no way it will stay hand built with the volume the Escalade sells at and as far as the CT5, the Ct6 and Escalade should be where this engine starts. I don’t see why a lower level CT5 should even have it offered IMO.

    Reply
  7. With the 4.2 coming online & positioned as the top engine for the CT6 line, The 3.0 now serves as the mid level offering & its a perfect opportunity to drop the corporate 3.6.

    The 3.6 should never been offered on the CT6.

    Reply

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