2011 Cadillac Escalade Awd 4dr Luxury on 2040-cars

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Cadillac hid more than two dozen Easter eggs in its Blackwings

Everybody loves Easter eggs, right? Finding one is a great moment, especially if you happen upon it by accident, preferably while simply cleaning or poking around, but maybe because you had to dig around in some far-flung corner of the cabin in search of a persistent rattle or some other issue. A hidden symbol or message from the manufacturer helps remind us that some cars aren't just appliances.  The 2022 Cadillac CT4-V and CT5-V Blackwings are perfect candidates. Not only are they niche enthusiast vehicles whose owners are likely to turn them inside out, but they also benefited greatly from Cadillac's racing efforts, providing ample source material for subtle references all over the car, both inside and out. Enough, in fact, that Cadillac managed to stick more than two dozen of them into its two flagship sport sedans. And since I took delivery of my Blaze Orange CT4 last week, I decided to see if I could spot a few of them myself – because I don't spend enough time crawling all over car interiors already.  Cadillac called several of them out in a press kit Tuesday. Manual-transmission cars like mine have blank-off plates installed where the paddles would go on the back side of the steering wheel, for instance. Rather than just leaving bare plastic that nobody would ever have a reason to look at, Cadillac had a small map of its Milford proving grounds printed on the plates.  Each Blackwing also gets a serial number on the wheel. 46-146 translates to CT4-V Blackwing 6-speed #146. CT5-V Blackwings decode similarly, though their model indicator digit is an 8 rather than a 5. While a steering wheel plaque is not exactly hidden, it's among the items Cadillac noted, as are the "Blackwing" tags on the front seats; the subtle logo in the seatback Alcantara is something I spotted on my own. CT5-V Blackwing models with the carbon fiber seat package get their logos embossed in the seatback. This brings us outside. While I know for a fact that there are several items hidden on the CT4-V's underbody (we got to look at these on a lift back in July), there are a couple of obvious items scattered in more accessible locations. The subtle Cadillac crests in the taillights aren't unique to Blackwing, but they're still nicely done. The stylized "V" in the hood insulation layer looks pretty nice too.  The hidden items differ between the CT4 and CT5-V too, as illustrated by the two wheel images above.

2020 Cadillac CT4-V First Drive | The Cadillac of compact Cadillacs

With the launch of the 2020 Cadillac CT4, GM is pushing back into the smallest luxury sedan segment that in recent years has almost exclusively featured entries from Germany. We're pleased to see it return, and importantly, that it definitely came back prepared. The CT4’s key differentiator is its platform. Unlike the bulk of entry-level luxury sedans currently on the market, the Cadillac rides on a rear-wheel-drive platform. All-wheel drive is available throughout the lineup for those who need (or just want) four-season flexibility, but itÂ’s meant to be a convenience feature rather than a performance upgrade — the same is not true of its front-wheel-drive competitors. The CT4 ostensibly replaces the discontinued ATS, but reality is a bit murkier than that. Stop us if youÂ’ve heard this before, but the Cadillac CT4 is not entirely size-appropriate for the class. While the CT4 is aimed at the subcompact luxury sedan segment (and the CT5 at the compact), itÂ’s dimensionally a bit closer to the likes of the Mercedes C-Class than it is the A-Class. This gives Caddy a bit of an advantage, but itÂ’s nothing we havenÂ’t seen from GMÂ’s luxury arm before. Cadillac has chosen instead to target the segment based on price, which is a win for consumers in a way, as you can get a little bit more bang for your buck if theyÂ’re willing to take a chance on the underdog. Cadillac is offering its new small sedan in three states of tune. The base (“Luxury”) model boasts a 2.0-liter engine good for 237 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. The Premium Luxury and CT4-V models get the 2.7-liter — which is still a four-cylinder — that makes 310 hp and 350 lb-ft of torque in its base tune and 325 hp and 380 lb-ft in the CT4-V. All three variants make use of GMÂ’s active fuel management tech which allows them to run on just two cylinders to conserve fuel while cruising. Yes, you read that correctly. The CT4-V boasts just 325 hp, which may seem like a pittance considering the outrageously powerful V models of CadillacÂ’s past, but GMÂ’s luxury arm has decided to re-jigger its performance hierarchy by eliminating “V-Sport” entirely, shifting “V” down to fill that role, and introducing a series of new range-topping performance models dubbed “Blackwing.” In that context, the CT4-V may seem like an also-ran, but consider the company it keeps.

Porsche 911 Turbos, and the new Lotus Emira | Autoblog Podcast #686

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. The two talk about their experiences in the 911 Turbo and Turbo S Cabriolet, then pivot to talking about the BMW M3 Competition on the Indiana Nurburgring. They follow that up by discussing driver assistance systems, given recent experience in the 2021 Cadillac Escalade with Super Cruise and Hyundai's Highway Drive Assist. After that, they get into some news, talking about the new Lotus Emira and Genesis G80 Sport. Finally, they wrap up with a rather interesting two-for-one "Spend my Money" edition where they help two listeners with different car buying conundrums. Send us your questions for the Mailbag and Spend My Money at: Podcast@Autoblog.com. Autoblog Podcast #686 Get The Podcast Apple Podcasts – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes Spotify – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast on Spotify RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown What we're driving: 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S Cabriolet 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo 2021 BMW M3 on Indiana Nurburgring 2021 Cadillac Escalade with Super Cruise Long-term Hyundai Palisade update News: Lotus Emira Genesis G80 Sport Spend My Money, Double Edition Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on Apple Podcasts Autoblog is now live on your smart speakers and voice assistants with the audio Autoblog Daily Digest. Say “Hey Google, play the news from Autoblog” or "Alexa, open Autoblog" to get your favorite car website in audio form every day. A narrator will take you through the biggest stories or break down one of our comprehensive test drives. Related Video: Podcasts BMW Cadillac Genesis Hyundai Lotus Porsche Technology Convertible Coupe Crossover SUV Luxury Performance Sedan