2025 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing Review: Sublime Engine Leaves Only The Manual Question

More than just a quick and stylish luxury sedan, the CT5-V Blackwing is the ultimate hooligan's four-door muscle car. But instead of being adept at only straight-line endeavours, the CT5-V Blackwing has razor-sharp handling, and a crisp six-speed manual that combine to make it a rare commodity in its class. 

Powered by a monstrous supercharged V8, the Blackwing has tire-shredding power, and with suspension upgrades via the Precision package it harnesses that power to become a canyon carver's dream and any track-day-enthusiast's weapon. It's preposterous in the best of ways. 

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For 2025, the CT5-V Blackwing gets a series of updates: it's re-styled, updated with Cadillac's latest tech, and bathed in its newest paint colors. Up front, the CT5 gets a new vibe via a redesigned grille and new front lighting. The Blackwing gets new aero bits and a new optional carbon-fiber splitter. Inside, the CT5 gets a 33-inch touchscreen display that spans the distance between the center console and the driver's display. All part of a more modern package. 

The standard Cadillac CT5 gets a relatively-sedate turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 237 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque. An available twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 boosts output to 335 hp and 405 lb-ft. Then, the V-Series steps in, offering 360 hp and 405 lb-ft. All of those engine choices are paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission. 

Stepping into the realm of the ridiculous, the CT5-V Blackwing uses a supercharged 6.2-liter V8 that makes 668 hp and 659 lb-ft. That's more than double the displacement of the V6, more than triple the displacement of the base 2.0-liter engine, and almost three times as much power. The V8 comes standard with a 10-speed auto, but it's also available with a six-speed manual, and that's the one that I had the opportunity to test.

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One of the crown jewels of General Motors' V8 family, the supercharged 6.2-liter V8 delivers gobs of power across the entire rev range that it delivers with reckless abandon. There's virtually no responsible speed at which you can turn off traction control in the Blackwing and expect the rear tires to stick – but that's part of the fun too. Bury your foot in the throttle and the rear will dance like an extra at the Super Bowl halftime show. The Blackwing moves, scurries, and finds traction where it can before rocketing towards the horizon leaving tire smoke and glorious V8 exhaust noises behind. 

With four doors, and a decent amount of weight, it would be reasonable for you to assume that the CT5-V is a bit lumbering through corners. Maybe it's been a while since you've ridden in a Cadillac and all you remember are the wallowing suspension components that characterized Caddy's of decades past. But none of that is the case with the CT5-V Blackwing. 

Like the sonorous and satisfying V8, the CT5-V Blackwing's suspension only makes you want more seat time. This super-sedan moves better than most sports cars that punch below it by one or two weight classes. It changes direction quickly and easily through tight turns, with focused accuracy.

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According to Cadillac, the CT5-V Blackwing has a curb weight of just 4,123 lbs. Not a featherweight by sports-car standards, but up against most modern luxury sedans, that's pretty svelte – especially when you consider the weight of the big V8 up front. The optional Precision package fitted to my test car helped to manage that weight via special springs, sway bars, and various other upgraded suspension components. Massive 15.67-inch front and 14.7-inch rear cross-drilled carbon ceramic brake rotors are part of that package too, and they're clamped down on by six- and four-piston Brembo calipers, respectively. Stopping power isn't just impressive, it's shocking. Almost as stunning as the Blackwing's ability to turn tires into vanishing smoke, is its ability to stop quickly, and repeatedly, without any detectable fade in braking power.

Shifting the six-speed manual in the CT5-V Blackwing is a joy. Instead of the hardcore experience you might expect from something as performance-focused as the Blackwing, rowing gears is easy and rewarding. The clutch pedal has strong pressure, but it's light enough to press over and over again without building up any leg fatigue. The shift knob, while a bit mundane-looking for my taste, moved well, with short throws. It felt substantial in my hand and notched well into the appropriate gears.

The Blackwing's cupholders and center console storage are far enough away from the shifter that I never nudged my elbow on my extra-large coffee mug, or rubbed up against the console itself while I was shifting. The Cadillac's pedal box is grouped tightly enough for proper heel-toe shifting too. It's not a race car, but all the elements exist inside the cabin to make it one of the best luxury track-day cars that money can buy, and an excellent commuter on the way home too.

The Blackwing uses a specially-calibrated version of Cadillac's Magnetic Ride Control which performs all sorts of magic over broken roads and curving tarmac alike. On top of creating a stable and flat ride through high-speed corners, the suspension soaks up most of LA's bumpiest surfaces and calms giant dips in the roadway. Road noise from the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires was minimal and even though the Blackwing's exhaust is properly loud, it can be toned down via the various drive modes. The Blackwing is quiet, comfortable, and totally usable for even the longest commutes.

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Despite the fixed-back seats with their beefy bolsters, seat comfort was great too. With the fixed-back carbon fiber seats, however, the headrest doesn't adjust at all. As a result, I had to lean back a bit more than I would've liked, but that was a minor gripe at best. The padding was supportive and soft enough to settle in, and there was plenty of thigh support. Aggressive mountain drives, freeway jaunts, and running around town doing errands – they were all easy and comfortable experiences.

No matter how intoxicating the V8 was, or how dynamic the steering and handling characteristics were, there were a few things about the Blackwing that annoyed me every time I got in. There were a few small panel misalignments, and a few substandard stitches in the upholstery. The most glaring bit of poor alignment, though, was the off-center/crooked red stripe that indicates the top of the steering wheel. Thankfully, the steering wheel is round, and doesn't have a flat bottom like some faux-performance wheels in production today, but this offset stripe was a thorn in my side.

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A glaring mistake like that, being front and center every time you get in the car, puts a bit of a damper on the luxury nature of the experience. On top of that one particular mistake, there's also the parts-sharing issue. Many of the switches, knobs, and various physical controls, however, are shared with the less-expensive standard CT5 and various other GM products. It's not such a drawback on lower trims of the CT5, but on the pricey CT5-V Blackwing, it's more noticeable.

Much improving the interior is the CT5's new 33-inch LED touchscreen display that covers the center screen area and the driver's display. It has excellent graphics, a high-contrast display that's easy to see in direct sunlight, and it responds to inputs with lightning speed. It's an excellent addition to the 2025 CT5 and one that should help it feel modern for years to come. The CT5's dashboard is organized well also, with an easy-to-understand array of buttons. The steering wheel controls are placed sensibly, with quick access to all the major functions like stereo volume.

The CT5-V's AKG 16-speaker stereo has adequate quality and volume for the class, though it's not a stand-out amongst recent high-end stereos I've tested, especially when it comes to maximum volume. Adaptive cruise control and lane-keep assist were both well-calibrated enough to reduce highway fatigue without being over-sensitive, but there was a high-tech feature missing from this particular Cadillac: Super Cruise. Super Cruise is GM's excellent hands-free driving system and it's available on the CT5-V Blackwing, but not with the manual transmission. It's an omission that might steer some drivers towards the 10-speed auto, but I don't think the trade-off would be worth it. Stick with the manual, you won't regret it.

When the folks from Cadillac dropped off the CT5-V Blackwing at my front door, I was very happy. I knew I had an exciting week ahead of me if nothing else. Thankfully, though, I didn't have to pay full fare for my time behind the wheel. The standard CT5, with rear-wheel drive and the entry-level twin-turbo V6, has a starting price of $49,090 (including $1,495 destination fee). The V-Series, with its twin-turbo V6 has a starting price of $65,150 – a reasonable uptick considering the added performance. The CT5-V Blackwing? It has a starting price of $102,705 before adding any options, and my test car has plenty of options.

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The Precision package, with its carbon ceramic brakes and upgraded suspension components, adds $18,000 to the price tag. The gray interior color scheme with quilted leather seats and carbon fiber seatbacks is another $8,090, and the Carbon Fiber 1 package — which includes some carbon exterior pieces like the splitter, deflectors and rear spoiler — adds $5,600 to the price. 

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Add special wheels, a performance data recorder, a unique paint color, and red seat belts to the build sheet and you've got a car that costs $134,605. While that's expensive, it's notably a lot less than the lavishly equipped BMW M5 that we recently tested. The Cadillac is also pretty appealing when stacked up against the optioned-up Audi RS7 we tested last year.

There are some minor flaws with the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing. The interior quality doesn't match the high price point. There's no getting around the poor fuel economy, especially if you're prone to cosplaying as a race car on your local b-roads (the EPA estimates 15 mpg combined for the Blackwing, but single digit fuel economy isn't hard to achieve). The stereo could be a bit better, hands-free driver aids aren't available on every trim, and I'd prefer an adjustable headrest if it were my vehicle. Forget the tiny drawbacks though, because that's not what this car is about.

The CT5-V Blackwing's broad range of abilities gives it much more upside than any of the small downsides. The experience of driving a plush and modern sedan like the CT5, powered by such a wildly entertaining engine, connected to the driver via a crisp six-speed manual, is unforgettable. It's the kind of car you'll look forward to driving, no matter where you're going. 

While driving the CT5-V, there was something that piqued my curiosity. I was looking at the steering wheel and noticed the 'V' logo. I looked down and saw it again on the center console. Then, two more on the floor mats. I wondered aloud, "Okay, how many V's are on this car?" So, for a bit of fun, I counted.

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Starting with the outside, each wheel has an engraved 'V' logo. Then, each of the four brake calipers has a V logo, so we're up to eight. Both front fenders and another on the trunk lid makes 11. Pop the hood and there's two more – one on the strut-tower bar and another on the carpeted hood lining. 13.

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Inside, there's an embroidered 'V' on all four of the outboard seats, plus two more on the backside of the front seats. We're up to 19. Technically, the steering wheel has the V button and the V logo, so we'll count that as two, and the center console's V makes 22. The front floor mats and the front door sills each have a pair. That's 26 total.

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Years ago, a BMW M3 I tested had over 30 M's that I could count, so this doesn't top the list. With the CT5-V Blackwing though, if the snarling V8 doesn't remind you, all the emblems, logos, and stickers won't let you forget exactly what you're driving.