Topic: 2024 Cadillac XT4 Premium Luxury

[Blueprint]

So Car and Driver are reviewing Blackwings 3 or 4 times a month and publish all Escalade-related gossip they can find. That's fine, but what keeps the lights on at Canadian Cadillac dealers is this, the brand's best-selling nameplate. I reviewed the Sport trim at launch in 2019, and this time I had the choice between that and a base trim - the less fixin's you have, the more you "read" the basics, right?

https://www.autohebdo.net/editorial/20240522/cadillac-xt4-2024-essai-routier/

[Blueprint]

Looks

The XT4 was born right, with crisp edges and great proportions - the rear ¾ view is my favourite angle. This year it gets a new face, touch-ups in the rear - including the removal of once-trendy clear lenses - and new wheel designs. I always liked the design of this thing, it's much better-looking than the blobby Q3/Q5, and more cohesive than the XT5. The top half of the dash is new too, with nearly three feet of curved screen plopped there. The horizontal layout is natural, menus are well-thought and look slick. As Quiet Riot sang, this is a slick black Cadillac.

[Blueprint]

Interior/room

As Caddy's entry level offering, you'll find some hard plastics down low, but materials are nice where it counts, except maybe for that piano black around the analog HVAC controls. Seats are elegant and had optional massage feature on my tester, and this XT4 does all-black in a classy way (two-tone interiors are available). Too bad that center armrest is way too high for comfort. In the back, lanky teenagers need not apply as 6' is all that'll fit, and keenroom ain't that great either. The XT4 is much less roomy than a CX-5, including for cargo. Nice powered hatch and carpet trunk sides though.

[Blueprint]

Power

All XT4's are powered by the same corporate 2.0 turbo four. This mill is gaining steam with the restomod crowd and is appearing in older F-bodies these days. Here it makes do with premium-gas fed 235 horses, paired to a conventional 9-speed auto. In classic Detroit fashion, the first mm of pedal travel gives you the big motor feel, and the XT4 is sprightly around town. Floor it at highway speeds though and it lacks some oomph. The Camaro's 300 hp tune of this flexible engine would do wonders in the Sport. The Luxury is fwd-only, but is cheaper than many CR-V trims. The Premium Luxury and Sport have std awd, and as with other GM utes you can lock it in fwd to save gas. My avg for the week was 10.8 l/100 km.

[Blueprint]

Driving

Short version: get the Sport, and please stick with the std 18" wheels. My tester's optional dubs made the amateurish suspension tuning even worse. The XT4 has a rather harsh ride on the thin tires, but that does not translate into handling prowess once the roads go twisty. The steering is just as confused as the suspension if you try to hustle. Cadillac has chassis talent, so where did it go? The Sport has "adaptive" suspension and also comes std with 18 inchers, so that's probably the least offensive option. And its msrp is identical to the Premium Luxury. Brakes are good though, and turning radius is really good, making the XT4 city-friendly.

[Blueprint]

Value

No wonder these sell well - the good looks and premium vibes start at only $44.8k all in but the taxes, while the awd trims begin at 52k$, purely in CR-V territory. Problem is, with a chassis not that well-sorted, limited room and just ok performance, value decreases as the tab goes up - so an XT4 can be a good purchase, but leave the options alone. My tester rang up $10k's worth of add-ons. In town, you'll feel regal, but on the open road the XT4 feels unfinished - road noise is MUCH higher than in a new Trax (shame!), wind noise from the optional pano roof adds insult to injury. You can't hear the engine, at least. Snowbirds, stick to the XT5 for long hauls.

[Blueprint]

Final thoughts

I loved these things when they came out, and they still look fantastic and offer great value if one avoids the options However, time marches on and the XT4's lack of refinement on the road is not worthy of the category. As a couple's luxurious urban roundabout, sure, but if lots of highway travel are planned, better shop elsewhere as the road noise in there gets tiresome (see what I did there?) real quick. The fact that a Chevy Trax is more serene shows it's time for a more serious overhaul.

[bridgecity]

Sounds like an overall dud.

Surprised to hear these are Caddy’s best seller. They are  almost non existent in Sasky. Tiny market I suppose. You’d see 20 Escalades to every XT4 around here.

[OliverD]

They look nice and I do like that dash design but it does seem a bit half baked. I can't say I notice many of these around here but newer Cadillacs in general seem few and far between.

[Firm]

Yeah, I don't see many of these here either, but lots of XT5s and Escalades. I tested one of these back in 2019 too and similarly, didn't love the driving dynamics, but was impressed with the overall fit/finish for the price point. Too small for my needs, but I'd have one over a CR-V for the same $ any day, and that's probably why they're selling.

There's an older lady here at the office that has one in a pinkish beige color, probably a high trim as it has the big wheels on it, she keeps it clean and parks properly to avoid door dings, it's a good look overall.

[Blueprint]

It's the best-selling Caddy in Canada, closely followed by the XT5, 'Slade is a distant 3rd, and XT6 far behind with 50% of the Escalade number. The Lyriq nearly outsold the CT5 in 2023, which is very telling of how relevant the sedans are (and CT4 had half the sales of the CT5...).

[z973]

I see tons of them here in Quebec I think they are the most sold Ice luxury Suv and during the pandemic they where available for immediate delivery

[bridgecity]

Yeah, I don't see many of these here either, but lots of XT5s and Escalades. I tested one of these back in 2019 too and similarly, didn't love the driving dynamics, but was impressed with the overall fit/finish for the price point. Too small for my needs, but I'd have one over a CR-V for the same $ any day, and that's probably why they're selling.

There's an older lady here at the office that has one in a pinkish beige color, probably a high trim as it has the big wheels on it, she keeps it clean and parks properly to avoid door dings, it's a good look overall.

Guess it depends what your needs are.  If you don't need a decent sized back seat, then sure.  Different classes of vehicles for sure.  I'm guessing the XT4 is more HRV sized?

[Blueprint]

Yeah, I don't see many of these here either, but lots of XT5s and Escalades. I tested one of these back in 2019 too and similarly, didn't love the driving dynamics, but was impressed with the overall fit/finish for the price point. Too small for my needs, but I'd have one over a CR-V for the same $ any day, and that's probably why they're selling.

There's an older lady here at the office that has one in a pinkish beige color, probably a high trim as it has the big wheels on it, she keeps it clean and parks properly to avoid door dings, it's a good look overall.

Guess it depends what your needs are.  If you don't need a decent sized back seat, then sure.  Different classes of vehicles for sure.  I'm guessing the XT4 is more HRV sized?

It is 8 cm shorter than a Q5, and about 5 cm longer than the HR-V

[PJungnitsch]

Reminds me of of the previous gen Lexus NX's we were looking at before we got the RX

I kept thinking that theoretically it would be a better fit for us, but every time we drove one we came away with a big nope

[ktm525]

GM should put the magic magnaride in all their offerings. IMO looks way better than the CRV/CX-5 crowd but sounds like the design writes cheques that the running gear can't cash.  Either way would rather have small CUV that can fit 4 adults.

[revalations]

Don’t see too many XT4’s here either. I do know one person who bought one, she loves it. What I do see plenty of are XT6’s. For a vehicle that looks so blah in photos, they really translate differently on the road, they look great.

Wonder what new offerings we might see out of Cadillac now that they’ve come to the realization that not everyone wants an EV. Hopefully the disjointed styling ideas we’ve seen on the Lyriq and Celestiq go into the dustbin.

[Blueprint]

Don’t see too many XT4’s here either. I do know one person who bought one, she loves it. What I do see plenty of are XT6’s. For a vehicle that looks so blah in photos, they really translate differently on the road, they look great.

Wonder what new offerings we might see out of Cadillac now that they’ve come to the realization that not everyone wants an EV. Hopefully the disjointed styling ideas we’ve seen on the Lyriq and Celestiq go into the dustbin.

Expect XT5 to go away and be replaced by an EV. XT6 will probably be replaced by a newer and larger offering (à la Traverse, Acadia and Enclave). Blackwings headed to the dustbin, probably followed by the rest of the sedan trims. Lyriq doing well and probably setting the styling trend of the brand onwards.

[PJungnitsch]

Just got used their naming scheme and am guessing they're going to up and change it all again

If there's one thing GM hates, it's continuity

[bridgecity]

Here’s 2023 Cadillac US sales according to GM Authority. XT4 is not the top seller in the US. Maybe for Canada only?




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