The 2025 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing Le Monstre and CT4-V Blackwing Petit Petaud special editions were designed to pay homage to the luxury marque’s racing heritage, harkening back to Cadillac’s debut of the two Series 61 Coupes that competed at the 24 Hours of LeMans back in 1950. However, the special edition sedans seem to be struggling to gain traction in the marketplace as they sit on dealer lots across the country despite being ultra-exclusive.
One dealership in particular, Delaware Cadillac, currently has three Petit Petaud models in stock with a fourth one on the way. Three of the units are equipped with the six-speed manual transmission while the other has the quick-shifting 10-speed automatic. Notably, each unit has been hit with a $2,500 dealer markup. For reference, the package already adds $25,000 to the $63,590 base price, which means the Petit Pataud edition starts at $88,590.
A quick search revealed at least 16 other units of the CT4-V Blackwing Petit Petaud are currently up for grabs, making us wonder if the dealer may instead need to discount these super sedans in order to get buyers to sign on the dotted line. As a reminder, only 50 Petit Petaud models were built, which means nearly half of them, if not more, are unclaimed as of this writing.
The CT5-V Blackwing Le Monstre edition isn’t quite as limited as its smaller sibling. More than twice as many units were built for a total of 101. As we previously reported, opting for both the $32,500 Le Monstre plus the new Precision Package pushes the total vehicle price very close to the $200,000 mark. That’s more than double the 2025 CT5-V Blackwing’s starting price.
Typically there’s much higher demand for the V8-powered CT5-V Blackwing than there is for the V6-powered CT4-V Blackwing. Our search for Le Monstre edition models yielded six quick results, including an automatic unit equipped with the Precision Package at Cadillac of South San Francisco. This dealer has tacked on a $50K markup, which brings the asking price up to $210,450. Meanwhile, Lone Star Cadillac in Garland, Texas has added a $30K markup to an automatic Le Monstre equipped with several notable options, including the Super Cruise 1 Package. The total asking price for this super sedan comes to $171,109.
We also came across four CT5-V Blackwing Le Monstre sedans that haven’t been marked up and feature the much more desirable six-speed manual transmission. These units are all priced above $150K and are located at Cadillac of Novi in Novi, Michigan, Valley Cadillac in Rochester, New York, Val Ward Cadillac in Fort Meyers, Florida, and Sewel Cadillac in Dallas Texas, all of which are priced a little over $150k. Having these Blackwings readily available – in the special edition Le Monstre guise – is a stark contrast compared to a few years ago when supply was limited.
The stagnant inventory leads us to question why demand for the exclusive, heritage-rich models is currently outpaced by demand. The announcement of the two special edition Blackwing sedans seemed spot-on, following the automaker’s return to LeMans in 2023. Impressively, Cadillac Racing managed to podium in its return to LeMans at the hands of Bamber, Lynn and Westbrook, with the No. 2 V-Series.R taking third place. That said, Cadillac has had a lackluster performance in 2024 and earlier this month, with the teams missing out on podium both times.
We wouldn’t blame Cadillac Racing for the lack of hype surrounding these limited edition Blackwing models, though. If we may speculate, the most obvious answer is the lofty pricing – even before any dealer markups – along with the potentially higher desirability of the CT5-V Blackwing as opposed to its smaller relative.
Of course, given human nature, we expect demand to spike once all new inventory of collector Blackwing sedans have been sold. For now, though, perhaps there are some deals to be made.
Frank A Ricciardi
$200,000 is a lot of money !!!
Quick Silver 1
Sorry, but there is not a compact car worth $200K and that is what the CT4 and CT5 are, “special editions” or not, just not worth the money and the dealer markups are ridiculous.
Bring back the CT6 with the V6 and Blackwing.
Roger Sears
When manufacturers charge premium prices for tarted up performance models best suited for race tracks, then dealers tack on exorbitant markups, why is anyone surprised the take rate is low? I don’t think the sales of the new BMW M4 CSL will set any records either, as it is priced to the Moon!
Tony Cadillac
Clearly this reporter did not do much investigating for this piece. As of today, there are 13 of these vehicles listed as being available on Cadillac.com but, in reality that is not the case. All 4 of the manuals they listed (Novi #2…actually ordered by an engineer who worked on the Blackwing, Sewell #5…they also sold a similarly spec’d Le Monstre Edition #4, Valley #38, and Val Ward #46) have all been sold but the website doesn’t update until the vehicle rolls off the lot. In addition, two of the LMEs that were listed at the time of this supposed investigation (#55 & #68 at Sarant Cadillac) are also already sold and I have personally met both owners.
Cadillac of South San Francisco will be sitting on that loaded automatic for a LONG time. Their lunacy has caused similar acts of insanity. The relatively sparsely equipped #73 located at Lone Star Cadillac was ridiculously marked up $30,000 but was brought back down to $10,000 last week- well before this article was published. Ed Morse of Tampa Bay put a $50,000 ADM on their base, zero optioned manual Le Monstre Edition (I have an offer sheet from them with it listed). I’ve seen similarly equipped regular Blackwings with markups of $10,000. Delaware Cadillac routinely marks up Blackwings $15,000 and just sold #15- a LOADED manual with a $25,000 markup. Try to order a 2026 Blackwing with Carbon Fiber 1&2 and they will hit you with a $25,000 markup. They have four CT4-V Blackwing Petit Petaud Editions on their lot. They had 6 so they’ve already sold 4. They also are the largest volume CT4 dealer in the nation. Their ADM policy is outrageous but they sell so who is to blame them?
The bottom line is while it is an expensive, $32,500, option for basically an aesthetics package (if you don’t also get the Precision Package), when you break it down to it’s parts ($12,300 for regular CF 1&2…this is blue tinted, $8090 for the top level interior, Santorini blue seat belts…comparable to the torch red $400, blue brake rotors $600, and Magnus Metal Frost paint….comparable to the Dark Emerald Frost option offered in 2022 for $3295 adjusted for inflation to $3615) you’re really paying $7500 for a 1 of 101 car at MSRP price. And, before you say you can’t get it for MSRP I personally know of six that were sold at MSRP #2, #4, #5, #9, #44, & #66). I’m no reporter but a simple phone call could have gathered all of this information.
Christopher Stone
I wonder if Cadillac has made enough of an effort to establish its racing history to a new, younger buyer cohort. The LeMans story would be immensely rich. What did going to L M mean and why should it matter now? It’s all about building credibility. Theres nothing wrong with the CT4 except it’s just a CT4
What it needs to be is a super light coupe with enough diffentiation to make itself a convincing stand alone proposition.