Just after Cadillac CEO Johan de Nysschen denied the report about the CT6 sedan’s impending death, we’re now hearing more about the long rumored three-row crossover the luxury automaker has been developing. Automotive News claims that it will arrive in mid-2019 and it won’t be called XT7 as previously assumed. Instead, XT6 is the chosen name. No reason was given for the numerical downgrade, but what’s important about the XT6 is the fact that it’ll fill the large gap between the XT5 and Escalade.
The XT6 will undoubtedly ride on the same front-wheel-drive platform as the new Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave, only it’ll have all of the typical Cadillac luxury add-ons. Its expected direct competition will be the likes of fellow luxury three-row crossovers such as the Audi Q7 and Volvo XC90. Lexus will also be joining them with the upcoming RX L. While the Escalade does offer a third-row seat, the fact that it’s a pure SUV doesn’t appeal to everyone and, not to mention, it’s not exactly cheap. The XT6 will solve both of those issues. We also hear Cadillac is planning even more crossovers, this time at the opposite end of the size spectrum, in the coming years.
Along with the already confirmed the Audi QX3 rivaling XT4, there’ll also be the XT2 and XT3. Once again, this all brings into question the future survivability factor of Cadillac sedans, specifically the ATS. Global sedan sales, as we all know, are on the decline due to the massive popularity of crossovers. The ATS hasn’t been the strong seller Cadillac had hoped it would be, so there’s a chance it won’t see a new generation if things continue going the way they are. Crossovers, however, are a different story entirely.
