The Cadillac CT5 luxury sedan continues to attract customers and sales despite strong consumer interest in crossovers or SUVs, and now, The General has revealed the average age of a Cadillac CT5 buyer.
Specifically, head of Cadillac John Roth informed the media on the sidelines of the 2023Â North American International Auto Show or NAIAS last week what a Cadillac CT5 purchaser’s age currently averages out to.
According to Roth a typical Cadillac CT5 buyer is 62 years old. This makes the average purchaser of the sedan eight years older than the typical purchaser of a Cadillac brand vehicle overall, currently averaging 54 years of age. While Cadillac has always had a higher appeal for an older clientele, the average buyer is currently getting younger. Nine years ago, the average age was 59.5 years.
While the Cadillac CT5 seems to have been left behind by the overall trend of progressively younger customers for GM’s luxury brand, the high-performance Cadillac Blackwing sedan are attracting more youthful drivers. The hard-charging Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing has a 56-year-old owner behind the wheel on average, six years younger than the average for the more sedate base sedan.
The enhanced performance associated with the Blackwing series makes for a 10-year difference in driver ages when all models are considered.
Segment sales for the Cadillac CT5 show that buyer interest in the nameplate is increasing even for its non-Blackwing variant. The second quarter (Q2) of 2023 saw U.S. sales of the sedan surge 29 percent year-over-year, while first-half sales registered a nearly 33 percent gain compared to 2022, as shown on the following table:
Cadillac CT5 Sales - Q2 2023 - United States
In the United States, Cadillac CT5 deliveries totaled 5,396 units in Q2 2023, an increase of about 29 percent compared to 4,171 units sold in Q2 2022.In the first six months of the year, CT5 sales increased about 33 percent to 9,989 units.
| MODEL | Q2 2023 / Q2 2022 | Q2 2023 | Q2 2022 | YTD 2023 / YTD 2022 | YTD 2023 | YTD 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CT5 | +29.37% | 5,396 | 4,171 | +32.94% | 9,989 | 7,514 |
Cadillac CT5 Sales - Q2 2023 - Canada
In Canada, Cadillac CT5 deliveries totaled 271 units in Q2 2023, an increase of about 43 percent compared to 190 units sold in Q2 2022.In the first six months of the year, CT5 sales increased about 37 percent to 549 units.
| MODEL | Q2 2023 / Q2 2022 | Q2 2023 | Q2 2022 | YTD 2023 / YTD 2022 | YTD 2023 | YTD 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CT5 | +42.63% | 271 | 190 | +36.91% | 549 | 401 |
The sales performance of the Cadillac CT5 placed it roughly in the middle of U.S. D-segment luxury cars during the quarter, with approximately 8 percent market share. This was the same market share it held a year ago in Q2 2022, demonstrating the sedan is at least keeping pace with its competitors:
Sales Numbers - D-Segment Luxury Cars - Q2 2023 - USA
| MODEL | Q2 23 / Q2 22 | Q2 23 | Q2 22 | Q2 23 SHARE | Q2 22 SHARE | YTD 23 / YTD 22 | YTD 23 | YTD 22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BMW 4 SERIES | +107.12% | 13,765 | 6,646 | 21% | 13% | +83.69% | 25,762 | 14,025 |
| MERCEDES-BENZ C-CLASS | -0.31% | 8,623 | 8,650 | 13% | 17% | +75.93% | 16,087 | 9,144 |
| BMW 3 SERIES | +24.15% | 7,665 | 6,174 | 12% | 12% | +0.60% | 14,416 | 14,330 |
| AUDI A5 | +39.20% | 6,658 | 4,783 | 10% | 9% | +42.12% | 12,256 | 8,624 |
| ACURA TLX | +39.48% | 5,762 | 4,131 | 9% | 8% | +33.14% | 9,482 | 7,122 |
| LEXUS IS | -10.79% | 5,753 | 6,449 | 9% | 12% | +1.86% | 11,114 | 10,911 |
| CADILLAC CT5 | +29.37% | 5,396 | 4,171 | 8% | 8% | +32.94% | 9,989 | 7,514 |
| GENESIS G70 | +32.70% | 3,648 | 2,749 | 6% | 5% | * | 6,228 | 0 |
| AUDI A4 | -8.25% | 3,147 | 3,430 | 5% | 7% | +15.14% | 8,386 | 7,283 |
| INFINITI Q50 | +42.00% | 1,829 | 1,288 | 3% | 2% | -14.04% | 3,195 | 3,717 |
| VOLVO S60 | +106.00% | 1,821 | 884 | 3% | 2% | +1.93% | 3,325 | 3,262 |
| ALFA ROMEO GIULIA | -26.63% | 865 | 1,179 | 1% | 2% | -21.21% | 1,831 | 2,324 |
| LEXUS RC | -32.95% | 462 | 689 | 1% | 1% | -26.78% | 842 | 1,150 |
| INFINITI Q60 | -45.20% | 348 | 635 | 1% | 1% | -48.54% | 722 | 1,403 |
| VOLVO V60 | +10.06% | 175 | 159 | 0% | 0% | -62.26% | 280 | 742 |
| TOTAL | +26.72% | 65,917 | 52,017 | +35.35% | 123,915 | 91,551 |
As a reminder, the Cadillac CT5 currently offers several powerplant options, including the turbocharged 2.0L I4 LSY gasoline engine developing 237 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, the twin-turbocharged 3.0L V6 LGY gasoline engine cranking out 335 horsepower and 405 pound-feet of torque – or 360 horsepower and 405 pound-feet of torque in the Cadillac CT5-V – and the CT5-V Blackwing’s supercharged 6.2L V8 LT4 gasoline engine rated at 668 horsepower and 659 pound-feet of torque.
Under the body panels the Cadillac CT5 rides on the GM Alpha 2 platform. Production takes place at the GM Lansing Grand River plant in Michigan for all markets except China, where the CT5 is produced at the GM Cadillac Jinqiao plant in Shanghai.
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Comments
I remember years ago we noticed getting stuck behind old folks in Buicks. Nowadays, it’s usually Honda CRVs and their CUV clones from other brands. I think today’s older folks like the height, utility, and relatively small size, at least that’s what my mother in law says about liking her’s.
As long sales volume increases annually matters the most regardless of age, race and gender of the buyer. But I do find it interesting the average of the regular CT5 is over 60 so I am wondering what the average age of the XT5/6 buyer also.
My 59 yo friend bought a xt6 just last year. She kept her explorer for a backup, she wasn’t ready to part with it
If I’m a marketing executive, I’d be concerned about the age of the buyers of my product. How many more new cars is a 62 year old going to purchase?
Good point. At 61 years old my Blackwing is intended to be both investment and “toy.” I don’t anticipate ever replacing it. To quote a line from Star Trek: “Lately I’ve become keenly aware that there are fewer days ahead of me than there are behind.”
Younger buyers (under 40) are nt buying US vehicles, they are going BMW, Kia, or Toyoto.
Build real, ice sedans like the ct6
I would like the CT6 to return, but it won’t attract young buyers.
Younger buyers (under 40) are not buying US vehicles, they are going BMW, Kia, or Toyoto.
Pretty close. I’m 61 and have had a CT5-V Blackwing on order for a couple years now.
I am 35 and ordered my CT5-V Blackwing … But My guess is most customers my age are looking at CT4’s over the 5
I like it.
Let me tell you what I’ve learned about the age of buyer stat: it can be very misleading. For example, when I was 47 years old I co-signed a loan for my mother-in-law.
It wasn’t that she didn’t have enough money or a good enough credit rating to buy the car herself. In fact, she even had the down-payment herself. I paid NOTHING towards the loan of the car. NOTHING. The title of the car ultimately went to her.
But at her advanced age without significant assets that they could grab if she died before the loan was paid, they insisted she had a co-signer.
So, I co-signed for it. I was told then that I was listed as the buyer of the car. So, in the stats, a car bought by an 80 year old woman went down as a car bought by a 47 year old man. Hyundai got their sale and a younger buyer profile as far as the stat keepers were concerned.
I was even sent the JD Power survey to fill out.
‘Now, as you might imagine. That’s not how it normally works. Usually the co-signer is older: mother, father, wealthy aunt or uncle, grandmother or grandfather.
Luxury cars, especially the first luxury car purchase sometimes comes with help: cash for a down payment and/or co-sign for a loan. Dad could be 65, daughter could be 30 — it doesn’t matter. The co-signer often goes in the books as the buyer, even when the contribution is nothing more than a signature.
If you see people getting in and out of the driver’s side of a Cadillac that repeatedly seems to defy the age stats you see in articles like this: that’s why.
So, when you see the age stats, and you later see a young person getting out from behind a Blackwing’s driver seat, that’s why: a co-signer was likely involved.
This is one of those “careful what you wish for” stories, is all the old people (with money) leaving the brand is a good thing?
FWIW my sister (44) just bought a CT5, she wanted a “Big Car” not many domestic choices.
I am 33 years old, and I bought the regular CT5 back in May. I love my CT5. Cross shopped with the CT4 and the Genesis G70, and I felt the CT5 has the best value. It was bigger in the inside also compared to the other two.
Can’t say I’m surprised. in (very) broad generalizations, the affluent older crowd will often be interested in something that ‘looks the business’, whether that’s sporting or prestigious, however the engine just needs to be able to get the car out of its own way – it’s practical.
Want to drop the average? Offer an optional powertrain (without requiring EVERY other option ticked or the -V price tag) that can cash the checks that the exterior styling (especially Sport trim) is writing. GM can hope for some increased sales numbers after the MCE launches with the interior revisions, but the powertrains are cast in stone and the buyers’ average age won’t change one iota.