Explaining Cadillac’s New “Y” Trim Level Strategy

For the last decade, Cadillac’s vehicle lineup tendered a rather disjointed and unclear trim level hierarchy, with a nebulous amalgamation of names and monikers that included Luxury, Premium, Premium Luxury, Premium Performance, Platinum, and other trims. The structure made it rather difficult to understand what level a vehicle occupied in the pecking order, and whether a customer was looking at a base, mid-range or fully-loaded model. That’s all about to change.

The luxury automaker is completely revamping the trim level structure, along with the associated features of its vehicles, as part of a new approach it calls the “Y” trim level strategy. The all-new 2019 XT4 and refreshed 2019 CT6 are the first  models to adopt the new global trim structure. Here’s a closer look at the new formation.

The Strategy

The new “Y” trim level strategy consists of five possible trim levels.

It all starts with the new base trim level called Luxury, from which point the “Y” splits off into two branches: one emphasizes luxury and the other underscores sport and performance. Specific content, features and styling cues tailor each trim branch of the “Y” trim strategy to different customer tastes and preferences.

Besides the differentiation of exterior accents  appearance and driving experience, each trim level along the hierarchy features progressively more features and equipment, either as standard or as available. For instance, the 2019 XT4 offers the Comfort and Convenience Package on the Premium Luxury and Sport trim levels, but not on the base Luxury trim. Contents of the package differer slightly between the Premium Lux and Sport trims, as follows:

Model Availability

Not all Cadillac models will be offered in all five potential trim levels in the “Y” hierarchy. For instance, the 2019 XT4 will be offered only in the “bottom” three trims – the base Luxury and the up-level Premium Luxury and Sport. The small crossover will not be available in V-Sport or Platinum trims… at least not that we’re aware of.

Additionally, some trim levels might be available only with a specific propulsion system (engine – transmission – drive wheels combination). Take, for instance, the new Cadillac 4.2L Twin-Turbo V8 engine: the high-output version of the motor (550 hp / 627 lb-ft of torque) will be available exclusively in the 2019 CT6 V-Sport, while the standard output version (500 hp / 553 lb-ft of torque) will be included in the CT6 Platinum. Meanwhile, the 3.0L Twin-Turbo V6 in the CT6 is available more broadly, either on Luxury,  Sport, and Platinum trims.

Launch Cadence

As mentioned previously, the 2019 XT4 and CT6 will launch Cadillac’s new “Y” trim level hierarchy. The rest of the lineup will adopt the new structure as each model gets overhauled (re-designed and re-engineered), with all-new models featuring the new trims from the get-go. For instance, the most recent spy photos of the upcoming CT4 appear to show a trim level structure identical to that of the XT4, but with what seems to be even more apparent differentiation between trim levels in favor of the CT4.

The only future Cadillac that will receive the “Y” trim level hierarchy without being overhauled is the Cadillac XT5. The midsize crossover will receive a mid-cycle update, otherwise known as a refresh or mid-cycle enhancement, for the 2020 model year, at which point it will adopt Caddy’s new trim ladder.