Cadillac chooses the name CT6 for its new luxury flagship

By Stephen Edelstein Published September 25, 2014

Cadillac Elmiraj concept — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Cadillac is getting serious about reclaiming its “Standard of the World” title with a new flagship luxury sedan, but every flagship needs a compelling name.

It was originally thought that Cadillac was reserving the LTS name for its new top model, but the carmaker just announced that it will be called CT6.

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The name, Cadillac explained in a statement, derives from the CTS. Now in its third generation, the CTS is Cadillac’s most successful modern car, garnering praise from the automotive press and setting the tone for the rest of the lineup.

This nomenclature is also part of a new hierarchical naming system Cadillac plans to start using. Under the scheme, all car models will get a “CT” prefix, while the following number will indicate their place in family.

Related: Cadillac moves its headquarters to New York City

With the CT6 presumably at the top, does that mean the next CTS will be the CT5?

That could be construed as a shot across the BMW 5 Series bow, and it will help customers who may not know the difference between a CTS, ATS, or XTS, but whatever happened to actual names?

While names like Fleetwood or Sedan de Ville don’t have as much cache as they used to, at least there’s no chance of someone mistaking either of them for a Lexus hybrid.

The CT6’s name may not be that exciting, but at least the car itself will be. A proper full-size, rear-wheel drive sedan, it will compete against luxury-car standards like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Audi A8.

Cadillac says the CT6 will be the “lightest and most agile” car in its class, and it’s also expected to borrow styling cues from recent concept cars like the stunning Elmiraj.

The CT6 will be built in Detroit at the same Detroit-Hamtramck plant that builds the Chevrolet Volt. It will debut next April at the 2015 New York Auto Show, with production slated to follow in the fourth quarter of 2015.

Stephen Edelstein

Contributing Editor

Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…

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