Video: 2017 Cadillac XT5 - First Look
By Cars.com Editors
November 20, 2015
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About the video
Cadillac has redesigned its SRX midsize crossover to become the XT5, which stands for "crossover touring 5." We got up close to the new-for-2017 SUV at the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show. Watch the video to see what we learned.
Transcript
(car engine starting) Cadillac has redesigned its SRX mid-sized crossover to become the XT5, that seems for Crossover Touring 5, which makes a little more sense than SRX, but really luxury brands just need to bring back real names for cars again.
Anyway, we're here at the auto show, let's see what Cadillac has cooked up. The XT5 has a clear evolution of Cadillac's design language here, the grill, roughly similar to the old one, a little more technical in appearance maybe. The headlights here have lighting elements that kinda travel all the way down the borders of the front bumpers, that recalls what's going on already on Cadillac's CTS sedan. You come around the side, this is a Platinum version of the car, it's a little more chrome down low. Still, we'd like to see a little more of a monotone appearance, this dark black plastic, maybe it gives a little more of a rugged flare, but for an XT5 Platinum, I'm not sure that's what you should be going for. Inside, a much more horizontal dashboard here, very nice materials in this Platinum model, you've got actual leather here on top of the dash and upper doors, real wood, it's kind of a nice muted tone, real metal Cadillac says. Overall, very consistent even lower down, nice to see that materials just don't kinda just drop off in quality as you get farther below elbow and kinda knee level. There's a new rear camera mirror system, Cadillac says, that actually shows what's behind you via camera instead of just looking straight through the rear view mirror, which you can also do, but bear in mind that the rear window XT5, pretty small and it can get obstructed by some head restraints, so that's an innovative solution for things. In other terms of electronics here, Cadillac's CUE system, that stands for Cadillac User Experience, still shows up here, there's also Apple CarPlay and Android Auto Cadillac says, and finally, some real buttons here for the climate controls instead of just capacitive touch controls, they have a little detents here, so you can feel them out a little bit easier. Still, unfortunately, a volume slider here, which we've used in other cars, and it's pretty terrible. The XT5 is actually a little smaller than the old SRX, but wheel base is up about two inches and that actually adds a little more than three inches to backseat leg room according to Cadillac. It's pretty good back here, I'm six feet tall, that's where I sit to drive, lots of it leftover, and importantly, a nice high seating position, no big floor hump here to encumber kinda foot well space, and so adults' knees won't be uncomfortably elevated. Often, that does sacrifice some headroom, not great here, it's okay, but this car here at the auto show does have a panoramic moonroof, those typically do sap some headroom overhead. The seat does also move forward and backward in a 60/40 split, it also reclines a little bit. Unfortunately, if you have it forward and you fold it down for more cargo space, there's quite a bit of a cargo gap here, competitors like the Lexus RX actually have a little thing that kinda bridges that gap, nothing of the sort for Cadillac. GM's stout 3.6 liter V6 will power the XT5, I hear it's good for 310 horsepower. Stay tuned for our driving impressions, pricing, and more on this car closer to its on sale date in spring of 2016. (car trunk banging)
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