AutoNSider Review | 2020 Cadillac CT5 Premium Luxury

Imagine being an infant cradled in the gloved arms of a heavyweight boxer. Soft leather against your skin…and around 250 pounds of solid muscle supporting you. That’s kinda’ how I felt driving our test Cadillac CT5. While it weighs a bit more than 250 pounds, the CT5 was a comforting combination of luxury, poise and performance. In fact, I’m not sure if Cadillac doesn’t have the advantage over some of those German performance sedans these days. Of course we were driving Cadillac’s optional 3.0 liter, 360 HP twin turbo six. A 2.0 turbo four is standard….as are “Touring”, “Sport” and “Snow / Ice” performance choices. The six will get you to 60 in less than five seconds…the four, as you’d imagine, takes more like 6.6 seconds…and that’s not exactly shabby, either. The mid-size, rear-wheel drive, five-passenger CT5 is all-new for ’20…altho’ you might say it’s an evolution of Cadillac’s CTS that’s been with us for a while. What’s new for Cadillac is the more aerodynamic look. The CT5 has a fastback profile…a bit of a change from Cadillac’s previous more squared-off “three-box” look. But one design cue from years’ past remains…Cadillac’s vertical front and rear lighting. Nothing “me too” about that lighting. To me it simply says “Hey…I’m different…and darned proud of it. If you go the four-cylinder route, pricing for the CT5 will start in the high $30’s. Opt for their “Luxury” or “Sport” versions and the entry fee will be just a hair over forty…and these are the combinations that stand so well in comparison to Europe’s finest. Add $3,500 for that sweet 3.0 six…and another $2,000 for AWD if you like…and you’ll still have a high-performance sport sedan with luxury and tech feature to rival any of the others….all for 59 thousand and change. Not bad. And here’s just some of what you get standard with Cadillac’s new CT5: We’ll start with Cadillac’s 10-speed automatic, 18” alloys, rear parking and cross-traffic alerts, forward collision alert, lane change and blind side alerts, auto emergency braking, and GM’s Teen Driver program. Our test Premium Luxury gave us the “extras” that today’s luxury shopper usually expects…including front massaging seats for both the driver and passenger, adjustable front seat cushion length, semi-aniline leather, Bose audio, forward and reverse auto emergency braking, heads-up display and Cadillac’s Advanced Cruise control…which is perhaps the most advanced “hands-free” driving system available today….all for $59,395. And one more thing that you get with Cadillac’s new CT5 is a bit of attitude…a distinctive bit of poise that is just not available on anything from Europe, Japan or Korea. Follow AutoNSider on Facebook for review videos and more!