It's time to move on from the small block V8. Or is it?
Welcome to 2020. SUVs are still alive and selling extremely well, as are pickup trucks. Hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and EVs are more abundant than ever, but America will always be America when it comes to loving its trucks and SUVs. Fortunately, automakers learned years prior how to make these once gas guzzlers more efficient with technologies like downsizing and turbocharging, and electrification.
But it was only in 2018 when the fourth generation Cadillac Escalade came with only one engine: a thirsty 6.2-liter small block V8. What was Cadillac thinking only six years prior when the now previous generation Escalade launched? Only one engine option and it’s naturally aspirated?
Wow, glad we’re living in 2020, right? Jump back in time now to 2018 and a report from Cadillac Society claims GM is planning to offer the next generation Cadillac Escalade, due for 2020, with at least three engine options. What could they be? Cadillac isn’t talking details, but Cadillac Society learned of the three engine approach from unnamed sources, but the rumor doesn’t sound too farfetched. A few engine possibilities include the current 6.2-liter V8 with 420 hp remaining the base option, though it’d likely receive a few upgrades.
Another possibility is Cadillac’s new 4.2-liter twin-turbo V8, making its debut right now in the refreshed 2019 CT6 sedan. It’s rated up to 550 hp and would likely be paired up with a 10-speed automatic transmission. The third option is, of course, a plug-in hybrid setup with the powertrain also coming from the CT6, specifically the PHEV version.
For now, Cadillac won’t confirm details, but we’ll likely have some answers in the coming months because the 2020 Escalade will likely debut sometime in 2019. Detroit is one possibility, but we think the New York Auto Show in April will be the chosen venue. After all, New York City is also home to Cadillac’s global headquarters.
