The crossover vehicle segment is hot right now and within the premium and luxury area of such a growing segment, Cadillac has gained some new footing with their compact-sized XT4. This week I had the chance to revisit the Cadillac XT4 in the mid-level Premium Luxury front-wheel-drive trim.
The 2021 model year Cadillac XT4 remains mostly the same from the last couple of years with the exception of the notable addition of wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration as standard features across all trim levels, in addition to the power liftgate being a welcomed standard amenity.
See Also: 2020 Cadillac XT4 Sport Review & Test Drive
Powering all Cadillac XT4 vehicles is left to the duty of the brand’s pleasing 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine with 235 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque that gets mated to a 9-speed automatic transmission. Cadillac does well to offer such a powertrain that can be had in either the standard front-wheel drive configuration or an all-wheel-drive setup that enables the ability to switch between front or all-wheel-drive through the drive modes.
The smaller size of the XT4 permits decent fuel consumption at 24 mpg city and 31 mpg highway.
Out of the three trim offerings, the XT4 Premium Luxury trim of my test vehicle makes several features available through an assortment of option packages, similar to that of the Sport trim that I reviewed last year. The Premium Luxury and Sport trims have virtually the same pricing, but the Sport trim seems to be more of a favorite mostly due to the darkened exterior trim and availability of the larger 20-inch wheels, which do a lot to add to the aesthetic appeal of the smallish XT4.
My XT4 Premium Luxury test vehicle did come adorned in a unique Autumn Metallic exterior paint color but with smaller 18-inch wheels. Otherwise, the exterior looks the proper part of Cadillac’s newest signature look.
Stepping inside of the XT4 is a welcoming space that does a neat play on space where it feels larger than it looks from the outside. Here the XT4 shines as a compact luxury crossover with several soft-touch surfaces where they count and a good fit and finished cabin with heated, ventilated, and massaging front seats. As stated in my previous reviews of the current XT4, there’s a long list of missing features that should otherwise be included in a luxury crossover. However, many of those features can be easily added through the offered option packages, as equipped on my test vehicle loading it to an as-tested price of $48,935, which is slightly more than the last XT4 Sport that I reviewed.
Cadillac has done their due diligence in crafting something special in the XT4, even more special in some ways than the larger 3-row XT6 because you can get massaging seats in the XT4 – something that’s not even offered on the XT6. One could get used to the XT4 being a small luxury crossover for even a young family due to its unexpected versatility and decent cargo room for a small-looking vehicle. The pricing is where some may get a little lost in translation where it can creep up to $50K and you still have a compact-sized vehicle. There’s a lot of other offerings out there with additional space for the same pricing. However, the XT4 is a unique proposition that adds the sporty appeal and nimbleness of its compact size versus larger crossovers in the same segment and price range.
