Summary
- The Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing competes with top European sports sedans like BMW and Mercedes-Benz, offering a powerful V-8 engine and luxurious interior.
- With a manual transmission, the CT5-V Blackwing is a rare find in today’s market, boasting a strong engine that accelerates to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds.
- Cadillac’s CT5-V is designed for both road and track performance, featuring impressive performance technology and a customizable, upscale interior to rival European luxury cars.
Sports sedans have quickly become the people’s choice for a blend between practicality and performance. Where the larger, heavier frames used to get in the way of a sporty experience, engineering has come a long way in making these big beasts accelerate and handle as well as any coupe.
Where most people would look to BMW or Mercedes-Benz for the best sports sedan, a big player that is getting criminally overlooked is the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing. Not only does this monster pack a V-8 with an immense amount of power, but it also has an interior that can compete with any other premium car that money can buy and easily sits among the best four-door sports cars.
To help you understand why we think the CT5-V is just as good, if not better, than premium sports sedans from Europe, we take a look at everything it has to offer. From its incredible engine to its luxurious interior, the CT5-V Blackwing shows that the American auto industry can still play with the big boys in this segment.
In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from Cadillac, and other authoritative sources, such as Fuel Economy.gov.
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The Only V-8 Powered Manual Performance Sedan On Sale Today
The Cadillac CT5-V marks the end of an era as the last surviving V-8 sports sedan to be offered with a manual
A Sonorous 6.2-Liter V-8 Sits At The Heart Of The CT5-V Blackwing
Cadillac’s CT5-V Blackwing is special in a ton of ways. It is the last V-8-powered, manual transmission sports sedan that you can buy new today. Its incredibly engineered engine pairs with a manual transmission for one of the rawest, most exciting driving experiences that you can get in this class.
Performance
|
Engine |
6.2-Liter Supercharged V-8 |
|---|---|
|
Transmission |
6-Speed Manual or 10-Speed Automatic |
|
Horsepower |
668 HP |
|
Torque |
659 LB-FT |
|
Driveline |
RWD |
|
0-60 MPH |
3.4 Seconds |
|
Top Speed |
200 MPH |
(Source: Cadillac)
The 2024 CT5-V Blackwing is one of the best-performing sports sedans you can buy. Its massive V-8 may not be the twin-turbo that the outgoing CT6-V had, but it produces an insane amount of power that carries this heavy behemoth from a stop to 60 miles per hour in a claimed 3.4 seconds. Cadillac also claims that the CT5-V Blackwing has a top speed of over 200 miles per hour when being taken around a track, making it the fastest American luxury car by a mile.
Cadillac’s premium sports sedan also offers drivers a manual transmission. Both the V-8 and manual transmissions are quickly becoming extinct, so to see them together is definitely a treat. If you would rather have the quicker, more efficient automatic, you won’t be disappointed in the 10-speed either.
Fuel Economy
|
Model |
City |
Highway |
Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Automatic |
13 MPG |
21 MPG |
16 MPG |
|
Manual |
13 MPG |
21 MPG |
15 MPG |
(Source: Fuel Economy.gov)
While no one really expects a high-performance, V-8 sports sedan to do particularly well in terms of fuel economy, it’s worth noting that it comes out on par with its German competition. Why this is so impressive is that most of them have downsized their engines to become more efficient.
Cadillac’s CT5-V Blackwing performs pretty similarly whether you have the manual or the automatic, which is somewhat abnormal. Most of the time, new automatic transmission cars have better fuel economy. It’s good to know that those seeking a pure driving experience won’t be punished at the tank.
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The CT5-V Blackwing Is Built To Dominate The Road And Track
There are few sedans that are as well-equipped as the 2024 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing to perform well both on the road and as a track day car. Many luxury performance sedans claim to be track-ready, but Cadillac has given its drivers features that prove its capability in a way that many others don’t. These features help the CT5-V Blackwing sit among some of the best four-door cars purpose-built for enthusiasts.
Performance Features
The powertrain isn’t the only impressive piece of performance equipment in the CT5-V Blackwing. Cadillac didn’t design this car to be driven in a straight line and it shows. For a start, it features magnetic ride control, a system that reads the road up to 1,000 times per second and adjusts the suspension accordingly.
Brakes are also important in a car that wants to dominate the track. That’s why the CT5-V Blackwing is the only Cadillac with carbon-ceramic Brembo brakes with cross-drilled rotors, giving it insane stopping power for a car its size. Nineteen-inch lightweight wheels paired with low-profile tires add to the aggression of this incredible beast.
All of these things paired with a V-8, a manual transmission, and a rear-wheel drive set-up make this the purest, most American sports sedan to hit the track.
Performance Technology
Cadillac has not only equipped the CT5-V Blackwing with all the physical tools necessary to set track records, but it also has technology that essentially no one else is offering. Cadillac has included an integrated performance data recorder which allows you to capture every detail of your driving. Not only does it capture front-facing video, but it also gives you information on how you can improve your lap times.
Your gauge cluster is also fully customizable, meaning that you can display all the most necessary information for track days. You get access to custom launch control settings, shift lights, and even a lap timer.
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Cadillac Challenges European Sedans Effortlessly With The CT5-V Blackwing’s Interior
While the Cadillac is part of the V performance series and takes it further with the Blackwing mantle, underneath it all it’s still a luxury vehicle. Cadillac has been producing high-quality cars that have always been able to challenge the luxury offered in Europe and the CT5-V Blackwing is no different. It may be raucous, but its design makes it look refined and tame.
Comfort And Technology
The CT5-V Blackwing has a matching interior with the base CT5, dressed up a little bit to match the sportier ideology. Leather upholstery is standard, as are heated and ventilated seats with 18-way power-adjustable seats. Performance sports seats with leather and microfiber upholstery are an optional extra. A digital gauge cluster and a heads-up display are standard tech and are also customizable.
A 10-inch infotainment screen sits at the center of the dashboard and can be controlled either by touch or with a rotary controller for those of you who are a little more old-school. a 16-speaker AKG sound system comes standard for unparalleled audio quality.
Interior Space
|
Front Row Headroom |
39 Inches |
|---|---|
|
Front Row Legroom |
42.4 Inches |
|
Second Row Headroom |
36.6 Inches |
|
Second Row Legroom |
37 Inches |
|
Cargo Space |
11.9 Cubic Feet |
(Source: Cadillac)
Whether you’re the driver or a passenger in the CT5-V, you’ll find that the interior is decently spacious. It isn’t quite as big as some full-sized sedans, but its comfortable seating will definitely take your mind off of that fact. Cargo space is also more than enough for the average person. It’s impressive that a car this performance-oriented has this much space for people or things other than the driver.
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Cadillac Refreshes The CT5-V Blackwing, Keeping The Sports Sedan Around For 2025
While some were worried that Cadillac would pull the CT5-V Blackwing from the shelves, they have confirmed that it is coming back for 2025 with a vengeance. Its updated styling and its improved interior tech mean that it can even better combat premium sports sedans from overseas.
A New Front Fascia Is The Main Change
Like the CT5, the CT5-V Blackwing has gotten a completely updated front end, with a wider grille and extended running lights that run vertically down the whole front fascia. The Blackwing also ditches the 10-inch infotainment screen for a 33-inch curved, running display that covers both the digital gauge cluster and the infotainment screen. The touchscreen portion uses GM’s new Google-based operating system and also features new telemetry apps for performance enthusiasts.
The powertrain remains untouched for the 2025 model year, which is a good thing in our opinion. If we were to go by modern trends, a new engine would mean downsizing. The V-8 produces more than enough power and features one of the most perfect exhaust notes known to man. The six-speed manual transmission also sticks around a little longer, much to the relief of purists. There were rumors that the Blackwing would inherit the supercharged engine from the Escalade, which has a mere 14 more ponies, but Cadillac decided that losing out on the torque wasn’t worth it.
