Road Test: 2021 Cadillac CT4 AWD
I regularly haunt McLaughlin Cadillac’s used cars online. Not because I’m actively looking to trade the MKZ, but because I love cars and if there’s something interesting, I usually want to head over and check it out. Thanks to Lincoln idiotically offering only SUVs and combovers, they’re dead to me until they offer another new sedan, which will probably not be happening any time soon. If ever.
So my short list consists of various Volvo or Cadillac sedans, because I have zero interest in Japanese or Korean vehicles, and McLaughlin is a great dealership that sells both Ovlovs and Caddys.
At any rate I saw that they had a navy blue CT4 with the “tuxedo” black and white interior, so I figured I’d head over and check it out. My friend Brian Cox works there, and he was happy to let me take it for a spin.
It’s smaller than my MKZ, which makes it WAY smaller than my Town Car, but it was a pretty enjoyable car. Initially I thought it was the V6, as it was very torquey in traffic and very quiet. Back in 2020-2021 I’d driven a couple of 2.0 CTSs and found them annoyingly buzzy with way more NVH than a Cadillac should ever have.
But this car was quiet, and I found it very tossable amongst the bovine Traverses and Fatlanders grazing along John Deere Road. I also was happy to see a moonroof, as my MKZ doesn’t have one and I kind of miss them—though the Town Car does have one, fortunately, so I’m not totally without transportation with a hole in the roof. It had heated and cooled seats too.
But—it IS small. I had plenty of room up front and the seats are very comfortable, and being a single guy who goes to car shows and supper clubs, the tight back seat really isn’t an issue. But it likely would be for people who regularly need a back seat for grown adults.
I’d definitely consider one as a daily driver now. Was very enjoyable! But my MKZ only has 61K miles on the clock and I’m just not ready yet. But when she gets closer to 100K and if I start getting bored…this could be a short list item. Especially painted in a REAL color like this one!
So there you have it. I drove a car, enjoyed it, and didn’t have to get bribed by the manufacturer with free hotel rooms or lobsters, or be an “influencer,” i.e. unemployed person. Bwa ha!
But Cadillac…you REALLY need a big sedan. Make a note of it. Oh, and zap the electric crossover…no one wants one!
"VOLVO" is a Latin pun or witticism.
The Swedish SKF ball-bearing company, in the early years of the 20th century, decided also to sell roller bearings, and trademarked the name "Volvo," which is Latin for "I roll" or "I revolve."
But the perception was that that Trademark lead to customer confusion, so the trademark was shelved.
But in the 1920s, a couple of SKF engineers decided to design a truck for Sweden's cold winters and bad roads, and they took the already-registered trademark off the shelf. Volvo.
The other Latin-Pun Auto-Trademark Story is "AUDI." Imperative Latin for, "Listen" or "Hear" (as in Auditorium).
The car company that was founded included an engineer named Horch (German for "Listen;" but, more accurately, "Harken"), but he was under a non-compete. So, he translated his name into Latin.
Rilly.
john
It seems Cadillac benchmarked the E46 3 Series for its driving dynamics when developing the Alpha platform, particularly the ATS and subsequent CT4. However, it seems they also benchmarked that car’s interior volume. What a few inches of wheelbase wouldn’t do for this car’s livability.
I sat in a new CT4-V Blackwing on the showroom floor and could not sit behind myself in the rear seat. My head was touching the roof. And I’m not tall (comfortably under 6’).
Which just makes me sad they killed the coupe.