Gilbert’s Garage

Cadillac CT5 pair share power and luxury GILBERT’S GARAGE

JOHN GILBERT

A dark green blur flashed past, the Cadillac CT5 V-Series in stunning Evergreen Metallic with Jack Gilbert behind the wheel. Photos by John Gilbert.

Another quiz of new vehicles is to park a 2020 Cadillac CT5 sedan next to a CT4, and then a CT6, with all four pointing right toward you. Try to tell them apart, from their vertical running lights lining both sides of their front ends.

For me, if the CT5 was painted Evergreen Metallic, that would be my pick, because I think it’s the most beautiful green color I’ve ever seen on a car.

But their near-identical look makes me wonder what I’d have done as a little kid, when my passion for cars far outstripped their aesthetic appeal and technical capabilities. I would walk out to the top of the big hill we lived on, and watch for any approaching cars on what was then a gravel road, and fix my gaze down a couple miles toward Lake Superior’s North Shore Drive to see how close the next approaching car would have to get before I could identify it.

I could discern a 1952 Ford, as opposed to a 1951 DeSoto, or a 1953 Chevrolet, or a 1950 Cadillac.

There weren’t many different models back in the 1950s, and the proliferation of models would make that a lot more challenging in later years.

But now, in 2020, it is obvious we are hurtling toward an era of fewer and fewer cars as consumers switch to SUVs.

The Plymouths and DeSotos of my childhood, as well as models from the Oldsmobile, Pontiac and Saturn nameplates of my youth have all disappeared, among others.

Cadillac, however, is still the pinnacle of General Motors, although its array has been reduced to those three remaining sedans.

Forget Fleetwood, or de Ville – we’re into CT4, CT5 and CT6. Before they are further reduced, let’s check out the CT5.

I had occasion to get a pair of CT5 sedans back to back recently, with the first being a CT5 V-Series. That V-Series designation meant it was the hot-rod version of the CT5, with a 3.0-liter V6, twin turbocharged to deliver 360 horsepower and 405 foot-pounds of torque, through all-wheel drive. The horsepower peak is at 5,400 RPMs and the torque peaks at 2,350. In Premium Luxury, the interior is softened and aimed at attracting traditional Cadillac buyers.

The CT5 V-Series was a treat to drive, with dark grey leather bucket seats, and refined comfort throughout. The most pleasant surprise is the V-Series suspension, which is listed as a “luxury compact” in size.

It is plenty roomy, which no makes me wonder whether Cadillac is going to stretch the CT5 into the full-size region, or if the compact segment has grown to such dimensions.

The CT5 V-Series accelerates well, with a proper sporty car sound, and you can shift the 10-speed automatic with steering wheel paddles if you want to exploit its sportiest tendencies.

The look, with quad tailpipes, and low-profile “summer only” run-flat tires on 19-inch “premium painted alloy wheels with pearl nickel finish,” if you’re interested in wheels to that extent. Run-flats work well if you suffer a blowout from a road irregularity and would rather drive on home than have to change a tire. But they are enormously expensive to replace, and they don’t just keep running indefinitely.

Rear seat room is good, and the trunk is spacious, and overall the CT5 V-Series lives up to its billing and is a very satisfying drive. Fuel economy is estimated at 17 city and 25 highway, with a 20 miles per gallon figure by the EPA, and if you switch it away from sport you still may have trouble getting more than 20 with all that power temptation.

With magnetic shocks that GM has tried on various Corvettes in the last decade, the V-Series handles very well, and with the blacked-out trim all around, it sets itself apart as a highperformer. Never mind all the creature comforts, with the rear camera, park assist, cross-traffic alert, forward collision alert, lane change alert with blind-spot, and front pedestrian braking, and the driver awareness package that includes one keep assist with departure warning, head-up display, and “intellibeam” headlights.

Then we get back to the appeal of such a stunning dark green. My wife, Joan, thought it was black for the first night and day she observed me zipping in and out of the driveway. Then she, too, admired the green.

We never had occasion to tax the allwheel-drive system, but it added to the feeling of stability wherever we drove.

Base price of the CT5 V-Series is $47,695, and the various upgrades lifts it to $58,305.

It was with some disappointment that I awaited the press-fleet guys to arrive from Chicago a week later to pick up the CT5 V-Series, even though they were swapping me into a “Premium Luxury” version of the CT5. But as they rolled into my driveway, I was impressed by the “Garnet Metallic” paint – a dark, deep red that may not have approached the appeal

The CT5 twins were the Premium Luxury, left, and the V-Series performer. Styling touches encase the quad-exhaust rear of the V-Series.

of the unique green, but it was close.

They looked good side by side, and you’d have to look very closely to realize the V-Series had an inch larger wheel diameter and lowerprofile tires, Technically, the 18-inch wheels on the Premium Luxury model were “Premium painted alloy with Manoogian Silver finish,” mounted with all-season self-sealing tires. The inch-thicker tires helped give the Premium Luxury CT5 a slightly softer and less performance-oriented feel, and as if to give me a test of perceptions in my driving, it didn’t feel anywhere near as racy as the V-Series.

It was, however, an eye-opener to examine the differences in power-trains between the two cars. The Premium Luxury had, of all things, a 3.0-liter turbocharged V6, with 360 horsepower and 405 foot-pounds of torque – exactly the same as the V-Series! It also had the same 10-speed automatic transmission, and the same paddle shifters, although lacking the magnesium paddles of the V-Series. It also lacked the quad exhaust tips, the rear spoiler, and the throaty sound of its racier sibling.

But my perception was that it was a lot sportier after learning that it had the same drivetrain, with lowerperformance tires, and we started driving it a little more forcefully.

The interior of the Premium Luxury Caddy also was leather, in a soft, beige, and the Bose audio system was declared a premium unit, with 15 speakers. Otherwise, the equipment was remarkably the same, including the all-wheel-drive system, with EPA fuel-economy estimates of 18 city, 25 highway and 21 combined, one mpg higher in the city than the V-Series.

The sticker on the luxury-loaded Premium Luxury model showed $40,695, with added options lifting it to $52,155. What price performance? In the case of the Cadillac CT5, it’s about $5,000. Worth it, if you like the sound and the style of magnesium paddles and the blacked-out grille and trim of the V-Series. The Evergreen Metallic that cost an extra $625 on the V-Series, is offset by the Garnet Metallic’s $625, and both paint schemes are probably available on both cars. Take your pick.