2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing PVOTY Review: V-8 Swan Song
Pros
- Supercharged power wallop
- Fantastic chassis control
- Excellent six-speed manual transmission
Cons
- Complicated performance modes
- Feels big at times
- Very thirsty
There's a scene in the movie Mad Max where Max gazes upon a blown V-8, whining and roaring in the engine bay of a Pursuit Special as the mechanic maniacally exclaims: "It's the last of the V-8s!" We couldn't help but replay that clip in our minds as we hammered the 2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing around the Hyundai Proving Ground and later as a finalist on Angeles Crest Highway and the Streets of Willow circuit. We're not in some distant dystopian future, yet here is the last of Cadillac's supercharged V-8 superheroes, a stupendous, 668-hp sendoff to the marque's high-performance V-series cars.
"What a shame Cadillac is going to stop making monstrous supercharged track machines like this," senior features editor Jonny Lieberman said. "Because it just feels so good to drive. So, let's call the big Blackwing bittersweet. As well as awesome!"
The rest of the judges were as effusive in their praise, lathering love on the CT5-V Blackwing for its composed chassis—thanks in part to GM's excellent magnetic ride control—and its exceptional, stout brakes. (Our test car had the $9,000 carbon-ceramics.) And we can't forget the six-speed manual transmission and its no-lift shift feature; the gearbox garnered plenty of judge fan mail (and more all-caps exclamations) and is a novelty on a performance sedan these days.
"Great manual transmission," features editor Christian Seabaugh said. "It's one of the best ones here. Short, precise throws with just enough assist to ensure you never miss your gate, but not enough to make the shifter feel springy. Good clutch feel, well-spaced pedals."
Although it's on the heavy side at 4,067 pounds, the CT5-V Blackwing still lays down some impressive performance numbers. It rumbles to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds and on to a quarter-mile time of 11.5 seconds at 127.5 mph, and it reels itself in from 60 mph in 102 feet.
"Power, power, power, power, and a boatload of torque, too," Lieberman said. "I barely needed to shift gears on the Crest, as a tsunami of torque [659 lb-ft] was flooding the joint. You quickly notice this is a large family sedan with a massive rear seat. That said, the suspension does its part, and the body control is surprisingly solid."
Indeed, it was hard to find any real flaws with the CT5-V from a performance vehicle perspective. A few judges thought the car felt big at times on Streets, but only in the context that it would have fit better on a larger track where you could take more advantage of its prodigious power. That, and editorial boss man Ed Loh wasn't enamored with what he considered the car's over-configurability. "Like BMW, all the modes are entirely too complicated to navigate. It's dumb to be left wondering if, among the many combinations, you're in the right mode for the conditions," Loh said. Oh, and it also flat-out swills gas.
After our evaluation, however, there was zero question the Blackwing's capabilities are immense, the result of two decades' worth of honing and harnessing a front-engine, rear-drive super sedan formula. Max would no doubt approve.
And although it's a drag that this Caddy is the last of the supercharged V-8s, the fact the CT5-V is so good it finished third in the inaugural Performance Vehicle of the Year bodes well for Cadillac's high-performance future—electrified though it may be.
2022 Cadillac CT5 V Blackwing Specifications Base Price/As tested $84,990/$112,545 Power (SAE net) 668 hp @ 6,500 rpm Torque (SAE net) 659 lb-ft @ 3,600 rpm Accel, 0-60 mph 3.6 sec Quarter-mile 11.5 sec @ 127.5 mph Braking, 60-0 mph 102 ft Lateral Acceleration 1.04 g (avg) MT Figure Eight 23.4 sec @ 0.89 g (avg) EPA City/Hwy/Comb 13/21/15 mpg Vehicle Layout Front-engine, RWD, 5-pass, 4-door sedan Engine, Transmission 6.2L Supercharged direct-injected OHV 16-valve 90-degree V-8, 6-speed manual Curb Weight (F/R DIST) 4,067 lb (54/46%) Wheelbase 116.0 in Length x Width x Height 194.9 x 74.1 x 56.5 in On Sale Now Show AllYou may also like
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Looking to deck out your Tesla with carbon-fiber dress-up bits? A new lineup of carbon parts from Unplugged Performance bring more than an extra dash of splash—they're manufactured by none other than Koenigsegg. Yes, that Koenigsegg, the hypercar manufacturer behind crazed top-speed runs and exotic (internal-combustion) engine technologies.This collaboration, dubbed UP x KAM, in reference to Koenigsegg Advanced Manufacturing, kicks off with carbon-fiber spoilers for the Tesla Model 3, Model Y, Model S, and Model X, as well as wider front fenders and a "high-downforce" spoiler for the Model 3 specifically. More parts are promised later this year.While the parts themselves cost significantly less than, say, one entire Koenigsegg hypercar, these aren't Pep Boys bits. The regular spoilers for the Model 3 and Y run $1,745 apiece and are claimed to aid each vehicle's aero efficiency. The "long-tail" spoilers for the Model S sedan and X SUV cost a cool $2,495. And those wider Ascension R front fenders for the Model 3? Those are listed at an eye-popping $8,845; to be fair, the lightweight wings lend the Model 3 a spicy vibe while their 0.8-inch extra width helps accommodate up to 315-section tires, compared to the biggest a regular 3 can comfortably swallow, 275 to 295s. Unplugged Performance also claims the fenders, when used in collaboration with other Ascension-R front-end parts, help with downforce.Every component comes with a nifty UP x KAM sticker denoting the Koenigsegg, er, koennection, and each piece is handmade. Quantities of these first-run products are limited, so if you want some for your Tesla, you better hurry. Unplugged Performance also has its own assortment of exterior upgrades for Teslas, in case you miss out.
cadillac ct5 Full OverviewCadillac's story in the two decades since the year 2000 has been one of chasing dreams. It went on a search for Art and Science. It traveled east to New York to find brand cachet and score modeling gigs. Like every carmaker, it pivoted wildly to crossovers and SUVs. Then along came EVs and the pledge that every Cadillac would soon be all-electric, all the time.Then there was V, the attempt to out-German the Germans at sport sedans. Like many of Cadillac's efforts in the past 20 years, it didn't quite pan out. But man, did the company ever get close, and the 2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing is the proverbial going-out-with-a-bang car that should reverberate as one of the greatest American sport sedans of all time 20 years from now.The powertrain numbers are the pinnacle of Cadillac's gas-only power and performance: 668 hp and 659 lb-ft of torque from a 6.2-liter supercharged, direct-injected V-8. The engine itself is one of the last of the venerable LTs from GM's murderer's row of V-8s—the LT4. You get your choice of transmissions to pair with this aluminum-cast monster: an available 10-speed automatic or the standard Tremec six-speed manual.How Well Does the CT5-V Perform?For our instrumented test runs, we scored a manual-equipped version of the 2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing. It also came with one significant performance upgrade, Cadillac's optional carbon-ceramic front and rear brake package ($9,000). Though our test team experienced some issues launching the car from a stop, the CT5-V (eventually) performed about as expected.In fact, our number from 0-60 mph mirrored what Cadillac called out in its own estimates, a 3.6-second run. But it didn't exactly come easy. We found it incredibly tricky to get the CT5-V to hook up, despite following Cadillac's extensive launch instructions, including bleeding the tires down to 35 psi, which helped.Our most experienced tester, road test editor Chris Walton, also had his hands full with getting the CT5-V to launch correctly and channeling the car's prodigious power to the pavement. It ultimately thundered its way to a best quarter-mile time of 11.5 seconds at 127.5 mph."I, too, struggled with the launch on this car," Walton said. "It's one of those 'you can't go to wide-open throttle until the very top of first gear or you roast the rear tires.' I tried automatic launch control first, then started tweaking the launch rpm and tire-slip knobs. After failures and some successes, I found one that worked on our testing surface: 4,000 rpm with 10 percent slip, which goes against logic, but it worked."The brakes were also a bone of contention with the test team. We recorded 102 feet to stop from 60 mph—a more than respectable number, especially considering the CT5-V Blackwing's 4,067-pound curb weight—but Walton wasn't exactly enamored with what he found when he pressed the slow pedal. "The brakes are OK," he said. "The pedal feels unnecessarily firm, making it difficult to modulate on the release into the skidpad." That said, the team reported that the carbon units held up well after repeated whoa downs from triple-digit speeds.Dynamic Numbers Are DynamicWe also had some trouble getting things totally sorted on the skidpad, but the 2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing still put up some super numbers in the lateral-g and figure-eight departments, helped in part by a set of Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires. Its 1.04-g average number is up there with the best sedans we've tested in recent years, and it matches that of the 2022 BMW M5 CS (interestingly, its CT4-V Blackwing stablemate performed a smidge better at 1.05 g).Out on our MotorTrend figure eight, the CT5-V Blackwing posted a 23.4-second lap at 0.89 g (average), with the M5 edging it at 23.2 seconds at 0.92 g. No, it didn't quite out-German the M5 dynamically, but for a front-engine, rear-drive sedan with a manual transmission (the M5 is all-wheel drive with an eight-speed automatic), the Cadillac is right there with it. That's duly impressive for a car that is in essence in its first and last generation. Yes, it's an evolution of the CTS-V, but the 2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing is its own car, a Blackwing that can really fly.SPECIFICATIONS 2022 Cadillac CT5 V Blackwing BASE PRICE $84,990 PRICE AS TESTED $112,545 VEHICLE LAYOUT Front-engine, RWD, 5-pass, 4-door sedan ENGINE 6.2L Supercharged direct-injected OHV 16-valve 90-degree V-8 POWER (SAE NET) 668 hp @ 6,500 rpm TORQUE (SAE NET) 659 lb-ft @ 3,600 rpm TRANSMISSION 6-speed manual CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST) 4,067 lb (54/46%) WHEELBASE 116.0 in LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT 194.9 x 74.1 x 56.5 in 0-60 MPH 3.6 sec QUARTER MILE 11.5 sec @ 127.5 mph BRAKING, 60-0 MPH 102 ft LATERAL ACCELERATION 1.04 g (avg) MT FIGURE EIGHT 23.4 sec @ 0.89 g (avg) EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON 13/21/15 mpg ON SALE Now Show All Looks good! More details?
Ford's Director of North American Product Communications Mike Levine sure loves to share stuff about all things Blue Oval on Twitter. That is, of course, his job, but lately some of that sharing has included peeks at hotly anticipated new 2022 Ford Bronco models such as the Raptor and the Everglades. As shared on the Bronco6G forums, Levine has helped make it look as though Ford is really taking the capability of the ultimate adventuring Bronco very seriously—well, mostly seriously.Snow Testing, In California?If you've been unaware of conditions here in California, we've come mostly out of our drought with a very rainy end of December 2021 and into the middle of January 2022. This has also led to some amazing snowfall in the mountains of Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. Especially so near Death Valley, the relatively flat land between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.This seemingly rare instance of precipitation in California apparently was perfect for some snow testing of the upcoming 2022 Bronco Everglades. From the looks of the first image, the camouflaged Everglades prototype—apparently the same one seen testing back in December of 2021—hasn't changed much. It's also "Mr. Plow"-ing its way through a snow-covered trail just ahead of another Bronco. The second image shows it roosting its way forward in an impressive display of snow flying out from the wheel wells.Another Interesting Feature?Also visible in this preview? The seamless onboard integration of onXMaps via Apple CarPlay in the Bronco. This allows drivers with the app to display trail maps with topographic and satellite views on the Bronco's touchscreen, a handy feature when out trail driving—certainly handier than holding your phone while wheelin' or using a dash mount like it's 2012. What we're interested in is if this isn't a sneak peak into the interior of the Everglades as the images are cropped just enough to potentially hide its factory installed snorkel.
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