The luxury crossover segment is set to lose a competitor, as one of Cadillac’s key rivals, BMW, is rumored to drop the BMW X4 in the near future. The discontinuation of the luxury crossover coupe will remove an indirect Cadillac competitor while shrinking the German make’s expansive lineup of luxury crossover offerings.
While BMW has yet to make an official discontinuation announcement for the XT4, it’s unlikely that the luxury crossover coupe will live beyond the 2025 model year. The web has been abuzz about the discontinuation over the past week or so.
The death of the X4 isn’t much of a surprise, considering the success of the recently-overhauled BMW X2. That vehicle also features a fastback-like profile similar to the X4, making the larger X4 redundant. BMW’s lineup is already saturated with crossover coupes, which tend to be niche models from a sales volume standpoint.
Sales Results - Q2 2024 - USA - BMW Automobiles
| MODEL | Q2 2024 / Q2 2023 | Q2 2024 | Q2 2023 | YTD 2024 / YTD 2023 | YTD 2024 | YTD 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 SERIES | +3.32% | 2,898 | 2,805 | +53.68% | 6,436 | 4,188 |
| 3 SERIES | -25.31% | 5,725 | 7,665 | -1.94% | 14,137 | 14,416 |
| 4 SERIES | -19.45% | 11,088 | 13,765 | -22.62% | 19,935 | 25,762 |
| 5 SERIES | +6.64% | 7,788 | 7,303 | -1.21% | 14,660 | 14,839 |
| 7 SERIES | +10.17% | 2,546 | 2,311 | -1.12% | 5,138 | 5,196 |
| 8 SERIES | -4.15% | 1,411 | 1,472 | -5.55% | 2,875 | 3,044 |
| I3 | * | 0 | * | * | 1 | 0 |
| IX | -14.27% | 3,545 | 4,135 | +0.06% | 6,490 | 6,486 |
| X1 | +39.01% | 5,605 | 4,032 | +61.28% | 11,617 | 7,203 |
| X2 | +1,325.38% | 898 | 63 | +934.04% | 1,458 | 141 |
| X3 | +43.24% | 18,101 | 12,637 | +24.67% | 34,589 | 27,745 |
| X4 | +20.23% | 2,300 | 1,913 | +7.26% | 4,686 | 4,369 |
| X5 | +0.55% | 18,677 | 18,575 | -6.38% | 33,600 | 35,890 |
| X6 | -15.81% | 2,199 | 2,612 | -23.79% | 3,733 | 4,898 |
| X7 | +3.07% | 7,394 | 7,174 | +2.92% | 14,351 | 13,944 |
| XM | -29.53% | 537 | 762 | -7.94% | 1,078 | 1,171 |
| Z4 | -27.49% | 525 | 724 | -17.29% | 928 | 1,122 |
| BMW TOTAL | +3.74% | 91,237 | 87,948 | +3.11% | 175,712 | 170,414 |
For instance, the smaller X2 is offered at a comparable price point to the X4, while while those who want a larger crossover coupe can opt for the X6. There’s also the highly popular and recently overhauled X3 – which features a more traditional, upright profile out back and – in previous generations – was the basis for the X4.
While the BMW X4 does compete with the Cadillac XT5 in the D-segment luxury crossover segment, Cadillac doesn’t offer a direct luxury crossover coupe rival, and never has, leaving German automakers like BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi to dominate the space.
As Cadillac Society recently reported, BMW is significantly outselling Cadillac – with 2.3 new BMW models sold for every Cadillac during the second quarter of 2024 in the U.S. market. A big reason for the German luxury automaker’s success is its broad product portfolio, which includes a vehicle in nearly every vehicle segment and body style. BMW’s crossover coupes, which include the X2, X4, X6 and XM, sell in low volumes that they’ve made up with extremely high profit margins due to being derived from the X1, X3, X5 and X7, respectively, which sell in substantially higher volumes.
| Cadillac Model | Cadillac Sales | BMW Sales | BMW Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| CT4 | 1,768 | 2,898 | 2 Series |
| CT5 | 3,841 | 16,813 | 3/4 Series |
| XT4 | 5,154 | 6,503 | X1/X2 |
| XT5 | 5,890 | 20,401 | X3/X4 |
| XT6 | 4,439 | 20,876 | X5/X6 |
| Lyriq | 7,294 | 3,645 | iX |
| Escalade | 10,069 | 7,394 | X7 |
| Direct segments total1 | 38,455 | 78,530 | |
| All segments total2 | 38,455 | 91,238 |
- Total includes limited models where Cadillac and BMW compete directly.
- Total includes models offered by BMW with which Cadillac does not compete.
With Cadillac having never offered a crossover coupe of its own, the closest thing that Cadillac’s parent company, General Motors, offers to a crossover coupe is the Buick Envista, which has been affectionately dubbed “the crossover coupe for the masses” by our sister publication, GM Authority.
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