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Trim Guide · Four Trims
Two CT5 trims, two V-Series models, one ladder — and the trim that looks fastest is the one you cannot make fast.
The 2026 Cadillac CT5 comes in two trims — Premium Luxury from $49,200 and Sport from $50,200 — and shares its body with two V-Series models, the CT5-V from $58,300 and the CT5-V Blackwing from $98,900. That is a spread of nearly fifty thousand dollars across four cars that look closely related from thirty feet. The decision buyers get wrong sits at the entry trim, not the top.
We stock all four at Covert Cadillac Bee Cave. This page walks each one, puts them in a matrix, compares the pairs people actually cross-shop, and ends with a step-up guide that says plainly which trims buy capability and which buy appearance. The CT5 and CT5-V buyers guide is the front door for everything else.
The Trims
CT5 Premium Luxury — from $49,200. The entry car, already carrying Super Cruise and the big display.
CT5 Sport — from $50,200. Nineteens, an aero package and an optional brake upgrade — and the four-cylinder, with no V6 option.
CT5-V — from $58,300. A different engine, standard Brembos and Magnetic Ride Control. The step where the difference becomes real.
CT5-V Blackwing — from $98,900. Supercharged V8, manual gearbox, limited availability.
MSRP excludes destination freight charge, tax, title, license, dealer fees, and optional equipment. Dealer sets final price.
A note on naming, because it matters when you shop: Cadillac lists the CT5-V and the CT5-V Blackwing as separate models. We put them on this page because you are cross-shopping them, not because Cadillac stacks them in one column. Cadillac lists them as separate models.
Each Trim
Available engines: the 2.0L twin-scroll turbocharged four-cylinder, 237 horsepower and a Cadillac-estimated 258 lb-ft of torque on premium gasoline, standard; and a twin-turbocharged 3.0L V6, available on this trim only. Both drive through a 10-speed automatic transmission. Rear-wheel drive is standard on Premium Luxury and all-wheel drive is available. Standard equipment on Premium Luxury runs deeper than the price implies: eighteen-inch aluminum alloy wheels in a Bright Silver finish, heated, ventilated and massaging front seats, the 33-inch Horizon Display with Google built-in, an AKG Studio Audio System, and Super Cruise with a three-year OnStar plan. Premium Luxury is also the trim Cadillac offers the dealer-installed Radiant Package on. Who it is for: the buyer who wants a Cadillac sedan and has no interest in paying for the look of speed.
Available engine: the 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder, 237 horsepower, and nothing else. The V6 that Premium Luxury can be ordered with is not offered on Sport. Both drive through a 10-speed automatic transmission. Rear-wheel drive is standard on Sport and all-wheel drive is available. What changes is presentation and one piece of hardware: nineteen-inch alloy wheels in a Pearl Nickel finish, a performance aero black mesh grille, black window moldings, rocker extensions and a rear spoiler, Inteluxe seating surfaces with carbon fiber interior trim. Brembo front brakes are available on Sport as V-Performance Brakes with red or blue calipers. Super Cruise is standard on Sport as well. Who it is for: the buyer who wants the car to look the way it drives on a good road, and who will actually tick the brake box.
Available engine: a 3.0L twin-turbocharged V6, 360 horsepower and 405 lb-ft of torque. A 10-speed automatic transmission is standard on the CT5-V. Rear-wheel drive is standard and all-wheel drive is available. Standard equipment on the CT5-V: Brembo performance front brakes, Magnetic Ride Control, Launch Control, nineteen-inch aluminum wheels in Satin Graphite, an AKG 15-speaker Studio Audio system, the 33-inch Horizon Display with Google built-in, and Super Cruise with a three-year OnStar One plan. An Enhanced Performance Data Recorder is available. Packages: Platinum, Technology, Onyx, and Bronze, Red and Blue accent packages. Who it is for: the buyer who wants a fast sedan that still commutes. Full detail on the CT5-V page.
Available engine: a 6.2L supercharged V8, 668 horsepower and 659 lb-ft of torque. A six-speed manual is the standard transmission on the Blackwing and a 10-speed automatic is available. Standard equipment on the Blackwing: Brembo performance front and rear brakes, Magnetic Ride Control, Custom Launch Control with Line Lock, nineteen-inch forged aluminum wheels in Polished Dark Android, an AKG 16-speaker Studio Audio system, and an Enhanced Performance Data Recorder. Carbon ceramics with cross-drilled rotors sit on the Blackwing’s option sheet. Super Cruise is available on the Blackwing and Cadillac bundles it with the 10-speed automatic. Packages: Precision, which adds the carbon ceramics, revised knuckles, mounts, suspension links and tuning, and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires; and Deep Ocean, which Cadillac calls extremely limited. Who it is for: the buyer who wants a manual gearbox and a supercharger and has somewhere to use them. Full detail on the Blackwing page.
The Matrix
| Model | Starting MSRP | Engine | Transmission | Drivetrain | Brembo Brakes | Super Cruise | Headline Tech |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CT5 Premium Luxury | From $49,200 | 2.0L turbo I4, 237 hp / 258 lb-ft; 3.0L twin-turbo V6 available | 10-speed automatic | RWD standard, AWD available | None standard | Standard | 33-inch Horizon Display, Google built-in, AKG Studio Audio |
| CT5 Sport | From $50,200 | 2.0L turbo I4, 237 hp / 258 lb-ft | 10-speed automatic | RWD standard, AWD available | Brembo front available | Standard | 33-inch Horizon Display, Google built-in, AKG Studio Audio |
| CT5-V | From $58,300 | 3.0L twin-turbo V6, 360 hp / 405 lb-ft | 10-speed automatic | RWD standard, AWD available | Brembo front standard | Standard | 33-inch Horizon Display, Google built-in, AKG 15-speaker |
| CT5-V Blackwing | From $98,900 | 6.2L supercharged V8, 668 hp / 659 lb-ft | 6-speed manual standard, 10-speed automatic available | Ask us; we confirm it on the car | Brembo front and rear standard, carbon ceramic available | Available, bundled with the automatic | 33-inch Horizon Display, Google built-in, AKG 16-speaker |
MSRP excludes destination freight charge, tax, title, license, dealer fees, and optional equipment. Dealer sets final price. Dimensions, curb weights and remaining fuel-economy ratings live on the specs and dimensions page rather than being repeated here.
The Pairs
One thousand dollars separates them, and the standard engine is identical — but only Premium Luxury can be ordered with the twin-turbocharged V6. Sport gives you nineteen-inch Pearl Nickel wheels instead of eighteen-inch Bright Silver, a black mesh aero grille, rocker extensions, a rear spoiler, and Inteluxe seating surfaces with carbon fiber trim. Premium Luxury gives you heated, ventilated and massaging front seats and the option of the Radiant Package. Both carry Super Cruise, the 33-inch Horizon Display and the AKG system. The real decision is the brakes: Sport is where Cadillac offers Brembo fronts as V-Performance Brakes, and if you want them, Sport is the trim. If you do not, you are paying a thousand dollars for wheels and a spoiler, giving up the massaging seats to do it, and giving up the option of a six-cylinder engine along with them.
This is the pair that decides whether the step-up means anything, and it is the question we field from Lampasas buyers more than any other. Sport looks quick; the CT5-V is quick. Eighty-one hundred dollars buys a different engine — the twin-turbocharged V6, 360 horsepower against 237 — plus Brembo fronts as standard rather than optional, Magnetic Ride Control, and Launch Control. Super Cruise is standard on both. If the brake option is the reason you were reaching for Sport, price a CT5-V beforehand, because the hardware you were adding piecemeal comes bolted on at the next trim, along with the engine to justify it.
Forty thousand dollars and a philosophy. The CT5-V is a twin-turbo V6 with an automatic and standard hands-free driving. The Blackwing is a supercharged V8 with a manual gearbox as standard equipment, Brembo rears added to the fronts, available carbon ceramics, Line Lock and a standard performance data recorder. It also takes something away: Super Cruise is standard on the CT5-V, and on the Blackwing it is available bundled with the automatic. Choose the manual and you choose a car with no hands-free mode. The three-way comparison runs this out in full.
The Verdict
Sweet spot: CT5 Premium Luxury. It already includes Super Cruise, the 33-inch display, the AKG system and massaging front seats — and it is the single CT5 trim that can be ordered with the V6.
The trim people overpay for: CT5 Sport, bought without the brakes. A thousand dollars for wheels, a grille and a spoiler, on the same 237-horsepower engine, at the cost of the massaging seats and of the V6 option that Premium Luxury alone can be ordered with. Ticked with the Brembo option it makes sense. Ticked without, it is a lateral move sold as a step up.
| Trim | Price Delta (derived) | What the Money Buys |
|---|---|---|
| CT5 Premium Luxury | — | Entry trim. Super Cruise, 33-inch display, massaging front seats, 18-inch wheels. |
| CT5 Sport | +$1,000 | 19-inch Pearl Nickel wheels, aero grille, rocker extensions, rear spoiler, Inteluxe and carbon fiber, optional Brembo fronts. Same standard engine, and no V6 option. Lateral move — different intent, not more capability. |
| CT5-V | +$8,100 | New engine: twin-turbo V6, 360 hp. Brembo fronts standard, Magnetic Ride Control, Launch Control, AKG 15-speaker. The trim where the money starts buying speed. |
| CT5-V Blackwing | +$40,600 | Supercharged V8, 668 hp. Six-speed manual standard, Brembo rears, available carbon ceramics, Line Lock, standard performance data recorder. Super Cruise becomes an option. |
Price deltas are derived by subtracting the published starting MSRPs above; they are not separately published figures. MSRP excludes destination freight charge, tax, title, license, dealer fees, and optional equipment.
The Decision
CT5 Premium Luxury, rear-wheel drive. Check current CT5 inventory.
CT5 Premium Luxury, either drivetrain. Super Cruise is standard on Premium Luxury, and on a US 290 run at 7 a.m. that is the feature that changes your morning.
CT5 Sport with the available Brembo V-Performance Brakes. Ticked without them, price a CT5-V first.
CT5-V. Check current CT5-V inventory.
CT5-V Blackwing, understanding the Super Cruise trade. Check current Blackwing inventory.
Drive a Premium Luxury and a CT5-V back to back. Nothing on this page substitutes for that, and it takes an hour. Read the engines and performance page beforehand if you want the numbers side by side.
Buy Local
We are at 16501 Sweetwater Village Dr, Building 2, in Austin. Sales answers at (512) 900-7062. We keep both CT5 trims and the CT5-V on the ground where we can, which is what makes the Premium Luxury versus Sport question answerable in an afternoon rather than a forum thread. Customers come in from Lampasas and off Toll 130 to do exactly that. Long, hot summers make ventilated seats and a cooled cabin functional equipment rather than garnish, so weigh that against a spoiler before you decide which trim you are on. Then take the winner up Willow City Loop, or out US 290 toward the Willow City Loop turn, and see if you still agree with yourself. Schedule a test drive, or value your trade to see what the step up actually costs.
Questions
Two, plus two separate V-Series models. Cadillac sells the 2026 CT5 in Premium Luxury and Sport. The CT5-V and the CT5-V Blackwing are their own models with their own engines, and Cadillac lists them that way.
Premium Luxury starts from $49,200 and Sport starts from $50,200, a difference of $1,000. Both figures exclude destination freight charge, tax, title, license, dealer fees, and optional equipment.
Premium Luxury, for nearly every buyer. Both CT5 trims share the same standard 237-horsepower engine, so the step to Sport buys wheels, an aero package and an optional brake upgrade rather than speed. Premium Luxury already includes Super Cruise, the 33-inch Horizon Display and massaging front seats, and it is the only CT5 trim that can be ordered with the twin-turbocharged V6.
Super Cruise is standard on Premium Luxury, on Sport and on the CT5-V. On the CT5-V Blackwing it is available and Cadillac bundles it with the 10-speed automatic transmission.
Yes, as an option. Cadillac offers Brembo front brakes on the Sport as V-Performance Brakes with red or blue calipers. On the CT5-V, Brembo front brakes are standard, and the Blackwing adds Brembo rear brakes as standard equipment.
Rear-wheel drive is standard on both CT5 trims and all-wheel drive is available on both. All-wheel drive is also available on the CT5-V.
The CT5-V Blackwing, with a 6.2L supercharged V8 rated at 668 horsepower. The CT5-V uses a 3.0L twin-turbocharged V6 rated at 360 horsepower, and both CT5 trims use a 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder rated at 237 horsepower.
It depends on the trim. The two CT5 trims and the CT5-V turn over steadily on the lot. Cadillac describes Blackwing availability as limited, so ask us what is allocated before you plan an order around a specific package.
