Cadillac Details New V-6 Engines for CT6 Flagship
Cadillac is slowly revealing details about its CT6 luxury sedan, its new range-topping flagship that’s set to debut at the end of March before the 2015 New York International Auto Show. We saw a teaser of the car in Cadillac’s Super Bowl commercial, but now we’ve had our own look at the engines that will power the alphanumerically named four-door.
Related: Latest 2015 New York Auto Show News
The brand has unveiled two all-new engines that will see their first action under the hood of the new CT6: a 3.6-liter V-6 and a twin-turbo 3.0-liter V-6 engine. The turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder that is currently available in the Cadillac ATS will be offered as the CT6’s base engine.
The 3.6-liter is all-new, despite GM already having a 3.6-liter engine currently used in much of the company’s lineup including the Cadillac ATS and CTS sedans. This is a “clean-sheet” design, according to Cadillac, and it features a stronger aluminum block, a new “targeted” cooling system, new lubrication system with a variable displacement, two-stage oil pump and more. It makes 335 horsepower and 284 pounds-feet of torque, but is reportedly 9 percent more fuel-efficient than the outgoing engine. It features stop-start technology and cylinder deactivation for improved fuel economy. The company benchmarked it for quietness against Infiniti’s 3.7-liter V-6.
The top engine in the CT6 (for now) is going to be an all-new, twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 engine, related to the new 3.6-liter but featuring a smaller bore for a lower displacement. Cadillac says it’s the first turbocharged engine to feature cylinder deactivation and stop-start technology as well. The new twin-turbo 3.0-liter will pump out 400 hp and 400 pounds-feet of torque, making it one of the most power dense engines ever made. Cadillac says that the motor outguns the BMW 740Li’s 315-hp, twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six-cylinder by 27 percent and the Audi A7’s 310-hp, supercharged 3.0-liter V-6 by 29 percent. It shares much of the 3.6-liter engine’s features, and like that motor, it is significantly quieter than its competition, up to 5 decibels quieter than the Audi 3.0-liter engine, according to Cadillac.
The new engines will be teamed up to two different versions GM’s new eight-speed automatic transmissions, which first debuted in the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and more recently in the company’s full-size pickup trucks.
The new 3.6-liter also will be available in 2016 Cadillac ATS and CTS models, while the 3.0-liter will be exclusive to the CT6.
The new engines and transmissions are part of Cadillac’s $12 billion investment in new products. Cadillac’s chief engineer Dave Leone says this will include eight new products by 2020, five models in segments in which the automaker doesn’t currently participate as well as new four- and six-cylinder diesel engines.
Look for the new 2016 Cadillac CT6 to be fully unveiled late on March 31, in advance of the 2015 New York International Auto Show.
