While we can confirm Chevrolet won’t shock and awe those in attendance at the 2019 North American International Auto Show in Detroit with the mid-engine Corvette, Cadillac will indeed show a new vehicle.
After months of rumors, Cadillac confirmed with Automotive News (subscription required) that the XT6 three-row crossover will bow on the eve of the Detroit Auto Show. The Cadillac XT6 is a much-needed product for Cadillac to fill the space between the mid-size XT5 and full-size, body-on-frame Escalade. The XT6 will essentially be a stretched XT5 and share the extended-wheelbase C1 platform with the Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave. The GMC Acadia and Cadillac XT5 ride on the shorter wheelbase version.
Yet, we haven’t seen the XT6 and we already have mixed emotions. GM Authority learned last week that the XT6 will sport an identical interior to the rather old XT5. Spy shots then confirmed the report.
Development on the XT5 began a decade ago, and the new XT6 will share every single part and design cue inside. The only changes will be a third row of seats and a rotary control knob for the CUE system. The XT5 will also gain the same infotainment hardware update.
That will put the XT6 in contention with the newly launched Cadillac XT4, which sports a new interior design that’s also destined to make its way to the upcoming CT5 sedan. The interior layout, while not a home run, is far more user-friendly, looks better, and packages far nicer than the outdated-looking XT5-era design.
We should expect an exterior design similar to the XT4, however, and not just an extended version of the XT5. Look for plenty of Escala-inspired elements when the car debuts.
The parts sharing is a major signal that GM has rushed to bring the XT6 to market as quickly as possible. However, the XT6 will launch as the large luxury SUV segment stalls and compact luxury SUV sales begin to take off.
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Comments
I can’t get excited about this Chevyllac/Chevallac/Chevrollac.
A new Cadillac every 6 months until 2020? There is not much time remaining…XT6 Jan 2019. Summer 2019 CT?? Is that it?
CT4, CT5?? Only two sedans?
XT4,5,6, Escalade Four SUVS?
Is that Cadillac’s future line up?
Can someone advise?
It’s possible the Hamtramck plant that makes the CT6 and the Volt will be negotiated back into life. That’s a lot of sunk cost to walk away from.
The side of the car looks bashed in in the second photo. This car may look unusually svelte for a large crossover.
I just hope they offer a 400 hp motor the first year, so people won’t complain about it, but GM has a bad habit of waiting.
This site and others keep saying it’s on the long Traverse wheelbase, but it sure looks closer to the 112.5 Acadia/XT5 wheelbase with a longer tail.
I hope this won’t stop them from making an un-truck-like but RWD XT8 off the Omega platform for those of us who don’t want to step UP into our vehicle.
This will not be the size of the Enclave. It will be the size of the Acadia. The Enclave is also wider than the Acadia. That is why the XT6 can use the XT5’s dash. This site should be able to figure this out.
It’s basically a stretched XT5 with unique exterior styling. The XT5 is being updated next year and will probably sport similar styling then.
I really hope there’s a defeat switch for the auto start/stop. Really hard to justify $65,000+ for a vehicle that doesn’t have that simple feature.
I don’t care how smooth it is in the XT5. It’s a glaring omission on that car that really detracts from the driver experience in stop and go traffic.
Lincoln’s Aviator is already shaping up to have won this war. Interior AND exterior. You can’t hide XT6’s FWD based roots and front overhang. I hope it looks nothing like the nose heavy XT5 but you guys aren’t giving me hope in the comments. This is coming from Cadillac’s biggest fan too. Is this going to also feature the tired 3.6? If so, put a nail in the coffin already. Lincoln nailed it with the smart suspension and drivetrain too.
I never would have considered a Lincoln in the past. Wasn’t on my radar. Not a Ford guy. I’m a GM guy. A Chevy guy. That’s what I grew up on. I didn’t even care about luxury cars growing up. The cars I lusted and salivated over were KITT, the DeLorean from Back to the Future, the Corvette, and the 1989/1992 Batmobile, which itself is based on a modified Impala chassis or two Impala chassis chopped up and put together, I forgot which. Because of the Corvette and the Batmobile and KITT, I was a GM’er. Corvette all the way. Ferrari and Lambo were dead last or not really even on my dream list. I
think it was after I was completely finished with school I started to notice luxury cars and the only luxury car I ever wanted was a Cadillac. That was it. Nothing else in the luxury space had my eye. Because Cadillac was the homebase. It was GM. It was American. And, again, not a Ford or Lincoln guy.
My opinion on Lincoln changed when I observed up close the Navigator, Aviator pre-prod, and Continental at the last NY Auto show. I was blown away by the sheet medal and especially the interiors of the SUVs. Even the Continental interior looked pretty good to me.
Right now, save for the Escalade, there isn’t anything that really captivates me at Cadillac. I wish I was blown away by their interiors but I’m not. There’s so many other luxury vehicles to choose from with superior interior design. In the next 2 to 3 years, my next vehicle likely won’t be a Cadillac. It might be Lincoln, which I thought I’d never say. Owning a Ford. That’s blasphemy coming from Chevy.
I still love Corvettes. I’d easily take a Corvette over any Ferrari, Mclaren..any sports car in the world.
I have a question? The CT5 & CT4 were shown long before the XT6 but no mention of when they will be shown. Will they be at Detroit?
That hasn’t been announced to my knowledge, but the sedans should appear soon–maybe the New York show–if one or both isn’t canceled.
My guess is the CT4 will be produced first since the ATS is out of production (they stopped taking orders for the 2019 Coupe a month ago). The CT5 will be close to the same size as the CTS but cheaper, so overlap for those two doesn’t make sense.
Thanks.