Cadillac Names its Range Topper & Reveals New Naming System

Cadillac Badge (Credit: © Cadillac)

Most car companies are secretive about upcoming models and hide every last detail. Cadillac, on the other hand, has embraced the power of the press with its upcoming, range-topping sedan. It began with confirmation of the new sedan nearly a year before it went into production, and it continues today with the luxury automaker confirming that this new sedan will carry the CT6 name.

This is not Cadillac’s first time tossing around the CT6 name. It registered it as a trademark once in 2007 but abandoned the name in December of 2008.

Cadillac went on to elaborate on the new CT6, as it claims this will be the lightest and most agile car in the large luxury sedan market. For reference, this market is currently dominated by the likes of the S-Class, the A8 and the 7 Series, so this claim of being the most agile is a bold one indeed. To honor this claim, Cadillac will build the rear-wheel-drive CT6 using lightweight materials, new body-construction techniques and an all-new architecture.

Cadillac again confirmed in its press release that the CT6 will not replace any current model in its lineup. This means the XTS will remain a part of the lineup for the time being. The CT6 will start production in the fourth quarter of 2015.

Additionally, Caddy decided this was as good a time as any to reveal its new naming scheme. All cars will carry the CT name with a number to follow that indicates the car’s position within the lineup. For example, the XTS, CTS and ATS could potentially be the CT5, CT4 and CT3, respectively. There was no mention of a naming change for SUVs, but it only makes sense for Cadillac to redo this naming system too.

Don’t expect to see these new names any time soon, as Caddy made it clear that it will only use this naming scheme on all-new or redesigned vehicles. Ironically, this is exactly the same style of naming system new Cadillac boss, Johan de Nysschen, installed at Infiniti before leaving to take the gig with Caddy. The only difference between Cadillac’s naming scheme rollout and Infiniti’s is that the latter simply plastered its new names on old vehicles instead of waiting on redesigns or new models.