Thoughts on 2022 CT4V BW after long test drive

[woodbot]

Love this forum. Amazing information gleaned from so many enthusiasts had me more excited for this car than any prior vehicle purchase. After scouring new and used listings for months, last night I came across a 2022 CT4V 6MT Electric Blue fully loaded ($80k sticker; bronze wheels, red calipers, CF1, CF2, Grey leather seats, etc.), delivered 10/22 to first owner with ~4200 miles. Went for a 1 mile test drive, enjoyed it, started talking numbers and got very close ($800 apart on OTD price) before walking towards the door. GSM offered a long test drive (>100 miles) so I obliged. Below are quick thoughts from someone who's been daily driving different types of MT for 25 years (95 ford ranger single cab, 95 Mustang GT, 02 Jetta 1.8T, 13 BMW 335i, 16 Ford Focus, 21 Jeep Gladiator).

External appearance (Subjective): Dislike Electric Blue. Too brash for me. I love the design but this color doesn't do it justice. CF1 and 2 was nice, but couldn't salvage the color for me. Bronze wheels helped, but not enough. Red calipers were neutral to me.

Internal appearance (Subjective): Grey leather with red seatbelt breaks up the black and looks good with Electric Blue. Buttons are nice. Screen is workable. Everything is as it should be for a $50k sedan, not an $80k one.

Seat Comfort: The seats are complete shit and a rip-off at $5400. I'm over 6'2" tall and never felt uncomfortable in the 95 ranger, 95 mustang, 02 jetta, 2013 335i or 2016 focus. After 20 minutes of highway driving my ass fell asleep and I couldn't wait to get out of the car. No amount of messing with lumbar and other settings made it comfortable. Unsure if the cheap seats are better but can't imagine them being worse. Teenage kids sat in rear for 20 minutes and hated the seats, but loved the color; go figure.

Chassis/Handling: No expectations given lack of prior GM product seat time. Played with all suspension, steering, throttle and engine noise settings. Wife hates sports cars/sedans so hated this, even on tour. However, I thought everything was sublime. Going from tour to sport to track and back was a blast. Handling was phemonenal. Turn-in great. Completely understand why reviewers and owners on this board love the car.

Engine/Transmission: Nothing to say. Great motor. Great transmission. For some reason 5th to 6th shifted wanted to gate towards 4th. Rev match good except in traffic when dropping to neutral led to revs. I noticed different levels of rev hang based on modes, with sport and v-mode a little better than tour. Much better than most/all current 6MT cars (2022 GLI/GTI, 2023 Integra, 2023 Crosstrek, 2023 Elantra N, any BMW) but still ever-so-slightly present compared with pre-2010 cars. Have never driven a p-car so can't compare. Guessing after a few weeks I'd get used to it.

Final Thoughts: Wanted to love it and mostly did, aside from the craptastic seats. Great handling. Good throttle response. Nice sound and acceleration when I got on it. At the right price I'll probably be a buyer with the standard option seats, if significantly more comfortable.

 

[PL69]

I am 6 feet and just completed 2x 3hour drive to and from the track plus a full day of track driving and I agree this car is definitely not ideal for someone more the 6ft, the steering doesn't telescope as far as other cars but I found the seats totally fine and the massage function helps to break up discomfort on long drives. I was pretty set on getting the suede cheaper ones on my new order but will probably get the full chelada, the suede headliner and door finish is also very nice.

 

[Carguyshu]

I’m 6’4” and I think the upgraded seats in mine might be the best seats out of any vehicle I’ve ever owned.

 

[woodbot]

I’m 6’4” and I think the upgraded seats in mine might be the best seats out of any vehicle I’ve ever owned.

I've read the ct5vbw upgraded seats are better than what's available in the 4vbw. I might need to glance at a 5vbw.

 

[Jim2000]

The performance seats are horrible. The ATS-V seats were much more comfortable. The side bottom bolsters are hard as a rock. GM made a huge mistake with these seats. Mercedes did it right on their AMG models. BMW also makes terrible seats. I currently own a CT4 Blackwing without the performance seats.

 

[PL69]

The performance seats are horrible. The ATS-V seats were much more comfortable. The side bottom bolsters are hard as a rock. GM made a huge mistake with these seats. Mercedes did it right on their AMG models. BMW also makes terrible seats. I currently own a CT4 Blackwing without the performance seats.

Seat appreciation is a very subjective matter and manufacturers have to work with many constraints.

 

[raptor5244]

I have 4BW with the base seats and they are noticeably more comfortable than the performance seats, they just don't look the part.

As for price, I agree. My car was $61k MSRP, M6 with red calipers, red seat belts and performance steering wheel are the only options. At $50-60k they represent a lot of car for the money, the rest of the options just inflate the price to levels that are tough to justify. I see this car as a 4 door Camaro 2SS 1LE, which costs about $50k. I figure $10k more for the Cadillac logo, longer warranty, and much improved practicality and visibility.

 

[Tms1224]

6'2 slim and the Performance seats are fine for me. I did notice the carbon backed seats squeak and make noise compared to the suede backed seats.

 

[Carguyshu]

Seat appreciation is a very subjective matter and manufacturers have to work with many constraints.

This. I ironically find the seats in my AMG to be the least comfortable lol.

 

[woodbot]

Seat appreciation is a very subjective matter and manufacturers have to work with many constraints.

Agree. Also dealing with range of uses/driving styles (city, highway, twisties, track). Have learned so much from the forum just wanted to contribute in a small way for anyone thinking about seats.

And to clarify for potential buyers trying to size the seats, I'm 6'4" 190#. Bolstering wasn't an issue at hips or shoulders, just seat base felt like concrete. Looking forward to finding a base seat to test.

 

[Barstoolman1127]

Sounds like a Blackwing isn’t for you, move on! Find something you like

 

[Jameson's Viggen]

Agree. Also dealing with range of uses/driving styles (city, highway, twisties, track). Have learned so much from the forum just wanted to contribute in a small way for anyone thinking about seats.

And to clarify for potential buyers trying to size the seats, I'm 6'4" 190#. Bolstering wasn't an issue at hips or shoulders, just seat base felt like concrete. Looking forward to finding a base seat to test.

Seats are designed to hit the largest ergonomic range as possible. That runs from about the 5th percentile female to 95th percentile male. So maybe 5ft to 6ft'5. As happens with my wife at 5ft tall, the bottom of the ergonomics scale, it's not quite a fit for her to reach the clutch pedal at full extend. So for you at 6'4, its pushing it for your comfort as well.

This being my daily, I had experience with the base seats and never had a comfort issue. It was too much of a risk to order the better seats. I prefer them aesthetically though.

 

[PL69]

The only little thing I would do to the seats is a bit better shoulder support for high G cornering like BMW or other brand seats but with the ratchet seatbelts pretty tight I have nothing else to complain and when you put them back to comfort setup they are like any other regular car seats for long rides.

 

[strohw]

If you don't mind black seats then try finding an example with either the base or leather/suede mid tier seats. There is a very good chance you'll be perfectly happy with one of those options. The performance leather seats are noticeably firmer and I would personally never own them. I was constantly having to move around in my seat at Spring Mountain because their firmness.

 

[ukcats12]

Everything is as it should be for a $50k sedan, not an $80k one.

I've never quite understood this criticism. You can say the same for the M3, C63, or RS5. These are performance cars based on entry level luxury sedans, so they'll have entry level luxury interiors with maybe some nicer materials or carbon pieces. You're paying for the performance modifications, not the interior.

 

[savethemanual]

Everything is as it should be for a $50k sedan, not an $80k one.

I like how you have such problems with the price of the car but were within 800$ of making a deal.

50k gets you a Honda civic, gr corolla, golf r, a mustang GT premium with a shitty non tremec manual, a Camaro ss 1le.

I think a lot of people are living 5 years back when cars were a good bit cheaper. 50k doesn’t get you as good new cars as you think it does.

Having said that, 80k is high for the ct4 blackwings tho. I feel high 60s is the sweet spot for the car.

 

[savethemanual]

I see this car as a 4 door Camaro 2SS 1LE, which costs about $50k.

Actually almost 54k
So the ct4 v blackwing is just 7k more.

Better warranty, newer alpha platform and newer mag ride shocks.

This is without going into better visibility, less shouty, additional practicality, quality etc.

 

[woodbot]

I like how you have such problems with the price of the car but were within 800$ of making a deal.

50k gets you a Honda civic, gr corolla, golf r, a mustang GT premium with a shitty non tremec manual, a Camaro ss 1le.

I think a lot of people are living 5 years back when cars were a good bit cheaper. 50k doesn’t get you as good new cars as you think it does.

Having said that, 80k is high for the ct4 blackwings tho. I feel high 60s is the sweet spot for the car.

Correct. Almost made the deal BEFORE an extended drive. If anything, I learned I'll never buy a car without an extended test drive regardless of how much online research I do.

Like I said above, love everything about the car except the seats. I'm a buyer at high 50s/low 60s because I personally don't think the value exists with options. Hell, I probably make this deal at $65k out the door.

 

[savethemanual]

low 60s

At low 60s I would just get a new one with the mid tier seats as an option.

 

[Neveready]

IDK, being at 6'2, and you have grown teenagers I think the 4 is too small for your family. Sounds like your wife hates it, and you want to love it too but it may not be the right fit. I think the base seats will help ease your frustrations and maybe your wife will come around. Maybe extended test drive or rent a regular ct4 which comes with base seats then you'll know if it's the seats or the car itself.

I had a 4 with the 4 cyl turbo as a rental for over a week and I'm 5'8, my wife's 5'5 and my kids are under the age of 4 and while we fit fine in the car, there's definitely less space than I would have liked. I really liked it, even my wife took the keys to it a few times and she never does that. There is something fun, small and practical about the ct4.
I have a 5BW in 6spd with the mid tier seats, and I can attest to the bottom cushion being like wood. They break in eventually, reason I know is I had a 6 hour trip to SM in the driver seat and was fine, the way home the passenger seat was significantly harder.

These BWs in tour mode ride extremely well considering how well it corners, but it's not nearly as comfirtable as a Lexus GSF or an AMG. If you absolutely have to have manual and it's got it be a modern car then you're left with a handful of options M3 g80, M5 E60/F10 Chevy SS, BW4/5 or Honda CTR/Integra Type S.

It's your car though, but with that respect you gotta live with your wife and the consequences. Keep us posted on what you decide to go with.