The Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing is an absolutely epic car. Not only is it the last manual V8 sports sedan on sale, it’s a thundering testament to American ingenuity. It’s your favorite car journalist’s favorite sedan, a high water mark in more than two decades of fast Cadillacs. However, there’s always room to improve upon a good thing, and that’s where the 2025 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing Precision Package comes in. It’s here to make GM’s sabretooth sedan even sharper.
The Precision Package gets all the expected handling tweaks you’d expect from a German brand’s Competition or S packages, but it’s not just an option box you’d buy to flex, because there are few visual indicators that distinguish it from a standard CT5-V Blackwing. Take it from Cadillac executive chief engineer Brandon Vivian, who made it clear what the car’s purpose is: “We built this vehicle to set records on some of the toughest tracks around the world.” Porsche Panamera, BMW M5, you two are on notice.
To build the CT5-V Blackwing Precision Package, Cadillac started with all the goodness of a standard CT5-V Blackwing — a 668-horsepower supercharged 6.2-liter V8 engine, the choice of a 10-speed automatic or an honest-to-god six-speed manual transmission, an electronically variable limited-slip rear differential, and magnetorheological dampers. From there, Cadillac’s thrown the trackday blueprint at its most potent sports sedan with the goal of improving the breed.
Let’s start with the most important part of staying out for lap after lap — brakes. While pad compound largely determines friction, heat capacity usually determines how long a session is. So, Cadillac’s ditched iron discs in favor of some carbon ceramic hotness. We’re talking 400 mm by 38 mm front discs, 370 mm by 34 mm rear discs, and brand new rear calipers compared to CT5-V Blackwings with iron discs. Brakes out of the way, let’s move on to suspension, where it seems like Cadillac has been concentrating heavily on the front axle of the CT5-V Blackwing Precision Package. Stiffer front springs by the tune of 70 percent complement a 0.9 mm-thicker, 11 percent stiffer front anti-roll bar and stiffer bushings with the goal of a sharper front end, better feel, and yes, faster lap times.
Not stopping at tweaking spring and anti-roll bar rates, Cadillac has changed the actual suspension geometry using new steering knuckles in the front and new toe arms at the back. Since the CT5-V Blackwing uses MacPherson struts up front, a new knuckle design is a sturdy way to add negative camber without altering the strut hats or divorced lower control arms. We’re talking 2.8 degrees of negative front camber, which is huge for a MacPherson Strut setup. Out back, the new rear toe arms dial in two degrees of negative camber, although like some trick speed parts of the past, these toe links come in a trunk kit and need to be installed after the car rolls out of the factory.
Of course, in the age of electronically augmented chassis setups in performance cars, stiffer effective spring rates, different alignment settings, and different brakes call for some calibration tweaks, and Cadillac claims to have altered its electric power steering mapping, digital chassis control systems, magnetorheological damper programming, and electronically-controlled limited-slip rear differential locking aggressiveness to gel with the new hardware. In the words of Cadillac regarding the differential tuning:
We retuned the calibrations to enable the nimbleness and lively hood this package has on corner entry, this typically means less coupling when off the throttle in certain turns which helps aid the car to dive into the corner with eagerness, but still retains the confident stability. We also returned the coupling calibrations when on throttle to maximize for corner exit traction and driver yaw control. This typically means more coupling on corner exit. This helps the driver dig out of corners while giving them a stable platform.
Dialing back the locking on deceleration and ramping it up on acceleration is blueprint performance car stuff, and combined with the changes in suspension geometry, should make the Precision Package car surprisingly nimble for a luxury sedan.
The result should make one of the most visceral sedans on the market even more engaging. Needless to say, we can’t wait to try it out, although we’ll be waiting a few months at the minimum. Production of the 2025 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing Precision Package is expected to kick off in early 2025, so you have a little bit of time to save up for a downpayment. I don’t know about you, but this seems a whole lot more tempting than a new BMW M5, yeah?
(Photo credits: Cadillac)
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This is fantastic but out of my price range. If they could get e 6MT on the non-Blackwing V models that would be the business.
“Lively hood?”
Ack.
Car’s awesome though.
The rear toe links were a weak point, at least on the 6th gen Camaro, in that they didn’t like to hold the rear toe setting. Wonder if that issue carried over to the Alpha 2 platform?
Looks like the rear toe links are longer, which allows for more negative camber in the rear.
I love the CT5-V and CT4-V. As I cannot justify the price at the moment, I need a lot of people that can to buy these things so I can hope to splurge a little on one Grandpa did not hoon at all.
Next job, next job…. As soon as I’m out of a 7 month unemployment/money pit, it’s go time
Sounds like a fun car. Too bad it looks like every other Cadillac sedan released in the last 15 years – are the designers taking notes from Audi for some reason?
See, designers can do beautiful + futuristic. Can we show this car to BMW and Mercedes design teams?
I mean, why not just go ahead with the 666 horsepower?
Special edition Sedan DeVill
I just cannot get over the side profile of the CT5 in general. Why does it recall—in equal measures—a 2011 Chevy Cruze and a 2004 Saturn Ion.
Have you seen them in person? Of course YMMV, but to me they have some real heavy duty presence.
The non-precision version is my forever car. To me, this is not a daily. But, I would daily this car till my left leg could no longer shift. I’m borderline weeping at the beauty.
It’s baffling to me that anyone is buying new M cars instead of these. I don’t have the funds for either but clearly someone does.
I had a friend give my serious side eye when I said next car, with 95% certainty, is a Cadillac, not an M3/M4 or Porsche.
(I don’t need any more two seaters at this time)
Sounds like you’re doing it right at least!
Could you imagine this car with the Corvette ZO6 5.5L flatplane crank engine in here with a manual.
I’d settle for the LT1 in a CT4V BW. The boosted 6 is cool, but it’s two cylinders short.
Well if we are going to loose 2 cylinder than be it. A 5.5L flatplane crank V8 and knock off 2 cylinders. Make it a 4.1L, V6 with 500 hp.
With a manual.
A frozen image of DT in the CRT vid looking like he just ate Taco Bell and is looking for a bathroom, stat, is the cherry on top of this article.
Anyway, whooo boy! The ZR1 is great and all that, but what we have here is THE car to not only run for fun, but the most “chest-out” valet ride at any price. The real deal, “I know what I got”, in the best possible way.
The only dilemma here is what to nickname it after you own it…
The Bowler has a nice ring to it
I love these, but they are so expensive! If only there was a Chevy version, maybe a coupe, one that could be had with or without the supercharger. Oh wait…
There is. It’s called the V-16 Metro.
This will be a classic before they even finish making them. In fact, it might be a classic right now. It’s a “those who know…” car even as it sits on the showroom floor. Little Autopians in years to come will walk up to the window to look for the shifter every time they see one, and start prattling off to their friends about the manual super-sedan with magic handling and a 20th-century V8.
Fun facts that will be shared by future car nerds:
General Motors had to make a secret deal with Max Eisenhardt, also known as Magneto from the X-Men in order to make MagneRide possible. They can’t credit him due to Disney/Fox copyright issues, but he does receive royalties every time a full-size luxury sedan out-handles a sports car.
The supercharged LS under the hood runs on necromancy, and actually brings the dinosaurs in the gasoline to life before burning them. The T-Rex roar-like sounds you hear are real T-Rex roars.
If you bought one of these new, you’d receive a personal letter from German Chancellor Olaf Schulz formally apologizing for his national industry’s inability to make a sedan this cool.
Be still, my heart….
I’m sure this will cost a hefty, hefty premium over the regular CT5V BW. Adding carbon ceramic brakes alone is usually a 5 figure option, and they cost an absurd amount to run. If you aren’t going to do serious track work they’re definitely not worth it. But if you are and money doesn’t matter, they’re fantastic.
I’m sure all the other stuff will be great as well. All the options will likely make it a lot less civil to live with on a day to day basis, but if you want something civil you can go get an S class. I can’t wait to see how it laps. The ZL1 is an absolute weapon and this has similar hardware to a 1LE. If you have the means I highly recommend acquiring one, because we’ll never see anything like this again.
And the new M5? Compared to a Blackwing? That’s a good one. The German super sedans are obese and clinical. The yee haw super sedans took the torch from them years ago. I hope Cadillac keeps making these and the CT4V BW (which I am going to look at for myself next go around) until the death of ICE. This type of experience just doesn’t exist anymore and it’s worth keeping around.
“All the options will likely make it a lot less civil to live with on a day to day basis,…”
It’s not like they are going to suddenly delete the Touring mode. Right?
99.9% agreed. I just can’t get over the styling and arrow-slit visibility of Camaros.
In my particular case, I’m look for fours of doors, too.
They are beyond miserable to live with. I’ve had two as rentals. They’re atrocious daily drivers. Which is a shame because the driving experience is transcendent. Thus why I find the Blackwings so intriguing…it’s the same brilliant platform without the compromises.
I recommended a CT4V BW to a friend of mine last year when she was car shopping and lamenting the general lack of American V6/V8 sedans. I got a funny look before I explained, but sadly there were none in her budget.
Maybe in a couple years when she’s making that doctor money she’ll buy a new CT5.
It’s a shame this package comes only with the carbon brakes.
Even people who track their cars generally prefer iron brakes for their lower running costs.
Putting an $8500 brake package on a luxury sedan is for people who want to flex at car shows, not for actual track drivers.
This. In my (albeit limited) track experience almost no one runs carbon ceramics. They’re cool, but they’re too goddamn expensive. And when you’re spending entire Saturdays driving your car at the limit the odds of something going wrong are much higher. If you kill a ceramic rotor you’re looking at $2,000+ for the part alone.
Serious track driving is expensive enough as it is. Adding boutique consumables to the equation is a big ask even for the people that can afford these. And if you’re going to be doing a lot of track days and have this much disposable income it may be wiser to just get a dedicated track car and a boring daily for the same money.
THAT BEING SAID….god bless anyone who takes one of these to the track and drives it as god intended. They deserve to be driven within an inch of their lives, and often.
A surprising number of these are specced with the carbon brakes already. Other than looks and I guess brake dust reduction (who cares with ubiquitous dark wheels these days) I can’t figure it out.
It’s a flex too. You can talk about how you sprung for the carbon ceramics at Cars and Coffee and whatnot. They also look cool as hell. That being said they’re really not practical outside of dedicated race/track cars. The costs drastically outweigh the benefits unless you’re absolutely beating the piss out of them.
Pretty much every new performance car review notes how the iron brakes held up just fine and didn’t fade at all, across multiple brands and cars. Carbon ceramics are just a flex 99.99% of the time.
It’s also worth noting, even if you are beating the piss out of them, that F1 cars – pretty much the most piss-beaten cars on the planet – used iron brake rotors last I checked.
Id say WRC cars are the most piss beaten and they can use ceramic pads, but yeah iron is good enough for 99.9% of drivers of normal cars
I mean one can always swap out the pads and rotors
Sure, but the carbon brake option alone is currently $8495 or something so I assume this package is $10K+. That’s a lot to pay for a stiffer anti-roll bar and some steering calibrations.
I also think you’re probably good to track the Blackwings as is. They’ve got serious hardware in base spec and lots of cooling. You might have to do pads and brake fluid but that’s just the cost of doing business.
I bet you could option them out if you go to the right dealer that knows the right people. For the price you’re paying either way, where there is a will (you know the rest).
I’d be shocked if “knowing the right people” could actually get you a build combination that isn’t available in the order guide on what is really a mass-market car.
Shipping a car that doesn’t match its Moroney sticker is a big no-no.
This isn’t 1970 and a Blackwing isn’t a Bugatti.
Maybe. Although, If it’s not done at the factory, it can be done at the dealership. I know it’s different, but the Caddy dealer in White Plains swapped out something (I forget what it was, but I didn’t want it. Might have been wheels), they were gonna recoup the labor on the service side, and put in remote start at no cost.
They’ll make their money back on the parts anyway.
It’s way more than just a roll bar and steering calibration, the ability to jump up to -2.8 degrees of camber up front and -2 out back is massive
I was being a bit glib but you’re right.
It’s the reason the package appeals to me in the first place. I’d just prefer not to waste money on the brakes.
Well, use them up and then call Alcon
I meant this reply for you, so I’ll fly in the face of decorum and double-down, lol…
I bet you could option them out if you go to the right dealer that knows the right people. For the price you’re paying either way, where there is a will (you know the rest).
That’s OK, I just got done replying to the first one lol.
Loved you in Reality Bites by the way.
Thanks! It was a great time filming it, even considering avoiding Andy Dick at all the pressers was quite the chore.
NO WAY!!
Man, it would be an incredible testament to the efficacy of modern psychiatry if I had to deal with Andy Dick and was able to resist hitting him.
Do the irons still fit? If so, just shelf the fancy ones until either track day or resale. You’ve got the money if you’re buying this car.
I’ve never said this about a modern Cadillac, but… I don’t hate it? How did this happen?
Cadillac got gud.
Man, I love Hot Rod Cadillacs.
The Blackwing Cadillacs are the only remaining cars from the big 3 that interest me at all.
After I typed that I remembered the Regal TourX exists. Of course there’s also the C8. I guess there are a few decent American cars scattered among the sea of crossovers and SUVs if you stop and think about it.
The Regal TourX hasn’t been made since 2020.
No wonder I forgot about it.