Cadillac's Next Crossover Won't Be Here Until 2018

It didn’t take long after the North American debut of the 2017 Cadillac XT5 for people to ask, “What’s next?” for the crossover-starved luxury brand.

At the Los Angeles Auto Show, Cadillac chief Johan de Nysschen told Automotive News that the next Caddy crossover will come in two years and would likely slot below the XT5, in terms of name — but not necessarily in terms of size.

Cadillac’s next crossover, the XT4, will likely go on sale in 2018 with a bigger, three-row crossover coming one year later to bookend the XT5. The battleship-sized Escalade will remain, and a smaller, subcompact crossover could arrive at the end of the decade to give the brand a full range to offer a crossover-crazed market.

It’s unclear if the XT4 will be a smaller four-door crossover or a “coupe” variant of the XT5.*

If it is a four-door model, the crossover could be based on General Motors’ D2XX platform, which will underpin the Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain and Buick Envision. The Delta-platform replacement is also the skeleton for the Chevrolet Volt, which could help Cadillac realize tougher fuel economy requirements by electrifying its next crossover. Cadillac has already announced that it would bring to market a plug-in hybrid version of its CT6 sedan after it goes on sale next year, so it’s clear the automaker is planning for a hybridized future.

If the XT4 is a coupe version of the XT5, that model could compete with the BMW X4 and Mercedes-Benz GLE in a ridiculous growing segment of the crossover market.

De Nysschen also told Automotive News that he saw an “obvious gap” between the XT5 and Escalade that would be approximately the size of a three-row crossover. That crossover, which could be built on the same Chi architecture that underpins the XT5, could come to market in late 2018 or early 2019, according to the report.

A smaller, Mercedes-Benz GLA- or BMW X1-sized subcompact will come later for Cadillac, possibly on GM’s G2XX platform that will underpin the second-generation Chevrolet Trax and Buick Encore. Cadillac chief marketing officer Uwe Ellinghaus told Car and Driver that the segment is too rich for the automaker to ignore.

“But that’s the ultimate range that I can envisage — far out. The first step is the smaller one, and that’s because compact SUVs are hot. Look at the X1, look at the Q3. And then the second priority is to close the gap between XT5 and Escalade,” he told Car and Driver.

Here’s hoping that five years later isn’t too late for a full range of crossovers.

* There’s no such thing as a coupe crossover.