Compare the2023 Cadillac XT6VS 2022 Toyota Highlander

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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The XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport’s optional pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Highlander doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The Highlander doesn’t offer a night vision system.

The XT6 has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Highlander LE/XLE/XSE/Limited/Platinum offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the XT6 has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Highlander LE/XLE/XSE/Limited/Platinum has a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the XT6 and the Highlander have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Cadillac XT6 is safer than the Toyota Highlander:

	XT6	Highlander
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	167	292
Neck Injury Risk	25%	38.2%
Neck Stress	187 lbs.	347 lbs.
Neck Compression	28 lbs.	55 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	161/358 lbs.	321/243 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	305	328
Chest Compression	.6 inches	.6 inches
Neck Stress	155 lbs.	179 lbs.
Neck Compression	71 lbs.	90 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	9/6 lbs.	545/323 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Cadillac XT6 is safer than the Toyota Highlander:

	XT6	Highlander
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	255 lbs.	300 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	14 inches	15 inches
HIC	292	366
Spine Acceleration	39 G’s	41 G’s

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The XT6 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck. The Highlander’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Cadillac’s powertrain warranty covers the XT6 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Highlander. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Highlander ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The XT6’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Highlander’s (6 vs. 5 years).

Engine

The XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport’s standard 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 15 more horsepower (310 vs. 295) and 8 lbs.-ft. more torque (271 vs. 263) than the Highlander’s 3.5 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport 3.6 DOHC V6 is faster than the Toyota Highlander:

	XT6	Highlander
Zero to 60 MPH	6.8 sec	7.4 sec
Quarter Mile	15.2 sec	15.7 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	93.1 MPH	90.7 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the XT6’s fuel efficiency. The Highlander doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

The XT6 FWD’s standard fuel tank has 1.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Highlander (19 vs. 17.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The XT6 AWD’s standard fuel tank has 4.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Highlander (22 vs. 17.9 gallons).

The XT6 has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Highlander doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Cadillac XT6 higher (6 to 7 out of 10) than the Toyota Highlander (5). This means the XT6 produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Highlander every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Cadillac XT6, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Highlander.

Brakes and Stopping

The XT6 stops shorter than the Highlander:

	XT6	Highlander
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	141 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Highlander (265/45R21 vs. 235/65R18).

The XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Highlander XSE/Limited/Platinum’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport offers optional 21-inch wheels. The Highlander’s largest wheels are only 20-inches.

The Cadillac XT6’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Toyota Highlander only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The XT6 has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Highlander doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The XT6 offers an optional driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Highlander’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The XT6 has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Highlander doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the XT6 is 1.1 inches wider in the front and .8 inches wider in the rear than on the Highlander.

The XT6 Sport AWD handles at .82 G’s, while the Highlander Platinum AWD pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The XT6 Sport AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Highlander Platinum AWD (27.2 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 27.7 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

Chassis

The front grille of the XT6 uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Highlander doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The XT6 uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Highlander doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The XT6 has 1.1 inches more third row headroom and 1.8 inches more third row legroom than the Highlander.

Cargo Capacity

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the XT6’s second row seats and pressing a switch automatically lowers or raises the third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Highlander doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Servicing Ease

The XT6 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Highlander uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Cadillac service is better than Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac second in service department satisfaction. With a 32% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

Ergonomics

The XT6’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Highlander doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The XT6’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Highlander offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The XT6 Premium Luxury/Sport’s optional Automatic Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting and stopping automatically, with the driver only responsible for switching from reverse to drive. The Highlander doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the XT6 is less expensive to operate than the Highlander because typical repairs cost much less on the XT6 than the Highlander, including $102 less for a starter, $21 less for fuel injection, $210 less for a fuel pump and $722 less for a timing belt/chain.