Beach wheels: Cadillac XT4 is a stylish family crossover
The Cadillac XT4 crossover comfortably seats five adults.
The XT4 I was given to test was the all-wheel drive premium luxury, which sits at the top of the model’s trim line.
My tester came in what Cadillac calls “shadow metallic” and featured some nicely styled sheet metal with the subtle but not outlandish curves. Sitting on 18-inch alloy wheels, the XT4 has an all business look.
A look inside reveals seats clad in soft leather. The heated front seats offer great lumbar support. The seats offer the driver a higher-than-normal position, which provides superior outward visibility. This is aided by thin, front roof pillars and a large windshield.
This Cadillac comfortably seats five adults and features 48.9 cubic feet of cargo space when you fold the second row down flat. Leg and headroom in the back row, by the way, is truly spacious.
The cabin also features a large moonroof, premium sound system, wood paneling, carbon fiber and buffed aluminium touches. The XT4 comes with a good number of standard amenities, including keyless proximity entry and remote start, an 8-inch navigation-entertainment touch screen and a built-in hot spot for Wi-Fi.
Under the hood you’ll find a 237-hp turbo-four with 258 lb-ft of torque. This power plant is mated to a smooth-shifting, nine-speed automatic transmission. While you won’t be setting any speed records this Cadillac jumps from a dead stop with gusto. You will have no problem passing other vehicles on a highway or merging safely onto a freeway.
The XT4 handles very competently and is easy to maneuver in crowded parking lots and congested city streets.
The XT4’s brakes feel a bit spongy at first due to its electro-mechanical design. I got used to it after a few days.
The XT4 is available in luxury, premium luxury and sport trim levels. Other safety gear includes rear cross traffic alert, blind spot monitoring, pedestrian detection, head-up instrument display, LED head- and tail lights with automatic high beams, lane departure warning, a rearview mirror camera, automatic parking assist, following distance indicator and forward collision warning (among others.)
I enjoyed the XT4 and can confidently recommend consumers who are in the market give it a thorough look. As always, I also recommend people spend the time to do the research and shop around before settling on a model. The XT4 competes directly in price and performance with the Lexus NX, the Mercedes-Benz GLA, the Audi Q3, the Acura RDX and the Jaguar E-Pace.
With standard front-wheel drive (all-wheel drive is a $2,500 option), the XT4 gets 24 mpg in the city and 30 mpg on the highway. My tester’s MSRP came in at $54,795
Jeff Mitchell is a South Bay freelance writer.