Cadillac celebrates 15 years of V-Series powerhouses ahead of CT4-V, CT5-V debuts
We're just one week away from checking out Cadillac's two new sport sedans.
Cadillac introduced the CT5 at the New York Auto Show in April, and in just one week, it'll unveil a much faster version of the same sedan alongside an even newer, smaller sibling. But before we dive into all that power, Cadillac wanted to take a look back to see what brought it here.
Cadillac on Thursday announced that it will debut the CT4-V and CT5-V in Detroit on May 30, one day before the annual Detroit Grand Prix kicks off on Belle Isle. At the same time, Cadillac pointed out that its V-Series cars have been kicking for 15 years now. Some of them have been weird, others have been pretty darn righteous, and it'll be interesting to see where these two cars take it next.
The V-Series lineup first sprung to life in 2004 with the introduction of the first-generation CTS-V . It started the trend of shoving powerful V8s under the hood of its luxury cars -- in this case, its 5.7-liter V8 put out 400 horsepower, enough to bring the car to 60 miles per hour in about 4.6 seconds.
The next two vehicles to enter the V-Series lineup were... weird. 2006 saw the introduction of both the XLR-V and the STS-V . The XLR-V built upon the more pedestrian variant of the Corvette-based XLR , adding a 443-hp supercharged V8, kicking off the forced-induction trend that still continues. The STS-V took what would otherwise be an airport livery car and shoved a 469-hp version of the XLR-V's engine under the hood.
In 2009, the second-generation CTS-V debuted, carrying a supercharged V8 good for 556 hp. It could get within reach of 200 mph, and it brought Cadillac's still-excellent Magnetic Ride Control to the brand for the first time. Two years later, Cadillac introduced wagon and coupe variants of the CTS-V.
The third-generation CTS-V came next, in 2016. It borrowed its new supercharged V8 from the Corvette Z06, turning out an impressive 640 horsepower, enough to finally push the super sedan past that 200-mph barrier. That same year, the V-Series expanded to include turbocharged V6s with the introduction of the 464-hp ATS-V, available in both coupe and sedan form.
That brings us to today. Now that CT5 is the new hotness, with CT4 hot on its heels, the only remaining V-Series car is the CT6-V . It rocks a new 4.2-liter twin-turbo V8, which puts out about 550 hp and will undoubtedly land in other models (like CT5-V, perhaps) in the future. We're not too sure what to expect when the CT4-V and CT5-V make their debut next week, but if history teaches us anything, it's that these two cars will probably be a hoot to drive.
