Cadillac XT5 Storms Dubai

Cadillac unveils today in Dubai the ’17 XT5, a fresh take on the brand’s best-selling SRX 5-passenger CUV.

“The all-new XT5 not only enters the most popular segment in the worldwide luxury auto market, it is the first of four new crossovers from Cadillac,” Cadillac President Johan de Nysschen says in a statement ahead of the premiere. “It’s pivotal to our ongoing growth, which is why we developed XT5 from the inside out to provide customers more space, more technology, more luxury and more efficiency.”

The XT5 will mark the second vehicle after the all-new CT6, due just weeks ahead of the XT5 in early spring next year, to adopt Cadillac’s new naming nomenclature. Letters now designate vehicle type, while numbers indicate its position in the lineup.

The global unveiling in Dubai, followed by a North American showing later this week at the Los Angeles auto show, is meant to demonstrate the brand’s growing global outlook and market positions.

First launched in the U.S. as a ’04 model, the SRX was redesigned from stem-to-stern in ’10 and since that redo has emerged as Cadillac’s best-selling vehicle on a shift in the luxury market away from sedans and big SUVs to smaller CUVs.

So far this year, sales of the SRX in the U.S. are up 25.1% to 56,732 from 45,348, according to WardsAuto data. The next-closest-seller on a volumes basis in the Cadillac lineup is the Escalade large SUV at 28,303. It is the second-best seller in its segment, behind 7,940 deliveries of the long-time leading Lexus RX through October.

XT5 lighter, more agile and fuel-efficient than predecessor.

General Motors executives think the XT5 will raise the bar enough in a booming segment to perhaps unseat the RX, and at the same time raise global appeal of the CUV and the brand.

The XT5 is a key element in a $12 billion product investment by GM into Cadillac over the next few years and shifts the CUV to a new platform designated “Chi,” which unlike the current Epsilon-based architecture reportedly includes the option for a long-wheelbase model. WardsAuto also expects a hybrid model of the XT5. Production of the XT5 for North America switches from Ramos Arizpe, Mexico to Spring Hill, TN.

Cadillac calls the XT5 “bold, distinctive (and) sophisticated with superb driving dynamics.” At 3,999 lbs. (1,815 kg) as front-wheel drive and 4,277 (1,940 kg) with all-wheel drive, the XT5 is some 278 lbs. (126 kg) lighter than its predecessor and 100 lbs. (45 kg) lighter than the Audi Q5, a key competitor. The XT5 is 650 lbs. (295 kg) lighter than the Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class, Cadillac says.

“The new XT5 takes the lessons learned from Cadillac’s highly acclaimed lightweight and agile luxury cars and adjusts the formula for the unique desires of the crossover-vehicle customer,” says Cadillac Executive Chief Engineer Dave Leone. “Reducing mass and bulk not only improves driving dynamics, it enables us to improve interior space and fuel efficiency.”

For example, rear legroom in the XT5 increases over the SRX and second-row seating reclines and slides fore and aft, as well.

Inside, the XT5 is said to express the evolving Cadillac design language first shown with CT6. Outside, strong exterior visual cues draw focus to the driving experience and hint at lightweight materials under its skin. Surfaces are “lean, taut and liquid,” the automaker says, with “uninterrupted lines separated by crisp edges.”

“The XT5 has a great stance,” says Cadillac Design Director Andrew Smith.

The XT5 receives GM’s all-new 3.6L V-6, which now features fuel-saving cylinder deactivation technology. The gasoline direct injection engine puts out a peak 310 hp and 270 lb.-ft. (366 Nm)  of torque. It is outfitted with stop-start, another fuel-saving technology, and an all-new 8-speed automatic transmission.

In China, the XT5 is outfitted with a standard 2.0L 4-cyl. GDI turbo, also using stop-start.

The CUV’s optional  AWD system employs “twin-clutch” technology, which can shift torque output between the front and rear wheels. It also can shift torque output between the rear wheels.

A key interior technology piece of the XT5 is a rear-camera mirror system. Debuting on the CT6, the new mirror is said to enhance a driver’s rear vision 300% by applying a video display over a conventional rearview mirror. The technology includes software to eliminate visual obstructions, such as the roof, rear pillars and second-row passengers.

XT5 pricing and fuel economy estimates will be released closer to the spring launch.

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