First things first: To clear up any potential confusion, think of the new V-Series Blackwing models as the “true” successors to the CTS- and ATS-V of yesteryear. That means the “more pedestrian” non-Blackwing V-Series CT4 and CT5 are more akin to Cadillac’s version of a BMW M-Sport, Mercedes-Benz AMG Line or even a Hyundai N-Line model.
Make sense? Great. Let’s carry …
Well done Cadillac. The CT5V is a worthy successor to the CTS-V, and the pricing isn't totally out of line. It looks pretty great too.
Too bad they ditched the blackwing engine they spent all that money on and hardly used...
Considering no-one else is doing manuals these days they have my attention. The stats and pricing seem to be inline for this type of vehicle as well. Well done indeed.
Wow. That's impressive. And not astronomically priced either...
How big are they comparatively?
My mother-in-law always wanted a new Cadillac but ended up getting new Bonneville's, Delta 88's, Oldsmobile 98's, and finally a Buick LeSabre. She never got the Cadillac - oh so close she was given my father-in-law worked for General Motor's Fisher Body his entire career.
In 1985 I showed up in a brand new 5-speed manual tranny Nissan 200SX and her reply to me was; you paid all that money for a new car and you still have to shift the gears?
If she was here I wonder what she would say about that sweet $85,000 CT5-V?
rslifkin said:Too bad they ditched the blackwing engine they spent all that money on and hardly used...
This man speaks the truth
The lack of a 2 door makes me a little sad but otherwise well done Cadillac!
Colin Wood said:For both cars, perhaps the most notable feature is that a six-speed manual is standard.
!!! I didn't expect that. There's still hope for us Luddites who like to change our own gears. 
Now if they only offered a naturally aspirated version.
Well this is exciting news. Not like I'll ever own one, based on where CTS-V prices have bottomed out, but it still cool to see. I like cadillac's new design language.
They look big and the interior styling definitely seems to be aimed at an older crowd that has that kind of money to spend. I don't hate the exterior styling, even if I'd rather see a smaller 2-door, as it seems to strike a good middle ground of exciting but not busy. Even looks like the visibility oughta be pretty good out of the 5, as well. The interior, though, is just awful. Whoever they put in charge of the interior should not be allowed to do that again. It almost reminds me of an SN95 mustang interior, if you kinda squint a lot. Either way, love it or hate it, the price tag makes clear they're not for me.
rslifkin said:Too bad they ditched the blackwing engine they spent all that money on and hardly used...
Until something goes wrong with the motor and replacement parts don't exist or cost more than the car. Can you say VooDoo
GM may be transitioning to EVs, but they are sending the ICE out in style!
Sorry but the 0-60 numbers(3.7) are suspect with the lack of awd having just read a 2018 C&D comparo with BMW, MB , and Porsche (Panamera) ......so what's new to achieve sub 4.0 0-60 with rear whl drive????
Being a "V" owner makes me very much interested. but lack of traction (2whl drive) is what it is...regardless of what you stuff in the rear wheel wells......
Matt B (fs) said:Considering no-one else is doing manuals these days they have my attention. The stats and pricing seem to be inline for this type of vehicle as well. Well done indeed.
No-one else is doing manual ignition timing controls, either.
This is 2021. Where's the dual-clutch transmission? This technology is 35 years old already, even Cadillac should be making it available next to the Twilight Sentinel (automatic headlights).
Pete. (l33t FS) said:Matt B (fs) said:Considering no-one else is doing manuals these days they have my attention. The stats and pricing seem to be inline for this type of vehicle as well. Well done indeed.
No-one else is doing manual ignition timing controls, either.
This is 2021. Where's the dual-clutch transmission?
The manual is the dual clutch:
"Said to be a Tremec unit that uses a twin-disc clutch, the manual transmission features “Active Rev Matching accessible via a console-mounted toggle switch to automatically adjust engine speed to match anticipated downshifts,” along with “No-Lift Shift allowing the driver to shift gears without letting off the gas pedal. In the case of the CT4-V Blackwing, it allows the turbos to remain spooled, resulting in faster lap times.”
The CT4-V just seems like a heavier, less pretty version of the ATS-V to me, but the CT5-V offering a manual is a really nice return to sporting form for that car. It makes for an appropriate swan song for large, V8 sports sedans from Caddy.
At least it has a name. A proper, real name, not just a fist full of alpha-numeric soullessness.
Appleseed said:At least it has a name. A proper, real name, not just a fist full of alpha-numeric soullessness.
If only the racing-inspired names hadn't all been ruined by previous GM models already (Bonneville, Grand Prix, Le Mans, etc.)
STM317 said:Pete. (l33t FS) said:Matt B (fs) said:Considering no-one else is doing manuals these days they have my attention. The stats and pricing seem to be inline for this type of vehicle as well. Well done indeed.
No-one else is doing manual ignition timing controls, either.
This is 2021. Where's the dual-clutch transmission?
The manual is the dual clutch:
"Said to be a Tremec unit that uses a twin-disc clutch, the manual transmission features “Active Rev Matching accessible via a console-mounted toggle switch to automatically adjust engine speed to match anticipated downshifts,” along with “No-Lift Shift allowing the driver to shift gears without letting off the gas pedal. In the case of the CT4-V Blackwing, it allows the turbos to remain spooled, resulting in faster lap times.”
Not to sound pedantic, but a twin disc clutch and a dual clutch don't mean the same thing. A twin disc means you have 2 friction plates to have more clamping pressure and torque while being more compact and having a lighter clutch pedal. Dual clutch means you have 2 clutches acting on different gears to have uninterrupted drive.
fatallightning said:STM317 said:Pete. (l33t FS) said:Matt B (fs) said:Considering no-one else is doing manuals these days they have my attention. The stats and pricing seem to be inline for this type of vehicle as well. Well done indeed.
No-one else is doing manual ignition timing controls, either.
This is 2021. Where's the dual-clutch transmission?
The manual is the dual clutch:
"Said to be a Tremec unit that uses a twin-disc clutch, the manual transmission features “Active Rev Matching accessible via a console-mounted toggle switch to automatically adjust engine speed to match anticipated downshifts,” along with “No-Lift Shift allowing the driver to shift gears without letting off the gas pedal. In the case of the CT4-V Blackwing, it allows the turbos to remain spooled, resulting in faster lap times.”
Not to sound pedantic, but a twin disc clutch and a dual clutch don't mean the same thing. A twin disc means you have 2 friction plates to have more clamping pressure and torque while being more compact and having a lighter clutch pedal. Dual clutch means you have 2 clutches acting on different gears to have uninterrupted drive.
Pedantry is fine. I understand the differences in operation, but I think a stick with auto rev matching and no lift shifting gives you similar results as a dual clutch. The actual shift may take a fraction of a second longer, but the engine is at the proper rpm for downshifts and will stay "on boil" while accelerating.
Pete's implying that it's basically an antique, and I'm going to push back on that a bit because it sounds like a highly advanced stick to me. It seems like it takes away some of the largest drawbacks while retaining the most fun part of driving a manual. People buying these 4000+lb luxury sedans aren't tracking them for any serious purpose, if at all. They just want to have some fun, and engagement and I think many will appreciate the option of rowing their own gears.
I like everything except the wing on the red car. Reminds me of the re do of the BMW back end a while back (that was really bad). I think if they lost the tacked on wing and maybe re did the spoiler on the back deck lid it would be a winner. I would like to see it with out the wing and just the stock deck lid.
This needs to be re done.
Wish I could justify spending that kind of money on a car, but that's a ton of money for me. These two sure do tick all the right boxes though, and I really want to support a manufacture that puts a manual trans in something like this in 2021. Rich people, buy two or three of these each, so I can buy them in 5-10 years!
I bet manuals will be unobtanium to find as they'll produce such a low number of them. Still a lot of money for a vehicle. Still cool and I'll be considering one but I have a vendetta against GM so it would be a hard sell.
Outside my price range, but I love that Cadillac is building them.
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