Compare the2023 Audi Q8VS 2023 Cadillac XT5

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Audi Q8 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Cadillac XT5 doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

Both the Q8 and XT5 have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Q8 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The XT5’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Q8’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The XT5 doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Q8 has a standard Secondary Collision Brake Assist, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The XT5 doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Q8. But it costs extra on the XT5.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Q8’s standard Hill Descent Assist allows you to creep down safely. The XT5 doesn’t offer Hill Descent Assist.

The Q8 has a standard blind spot warning system that 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 XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Q8 has standard rear cross-path warning, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport offers Rear Cross Traffic Alert.

Both the Q8 and the XT5 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, 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 night vision systems and around view monitors.

The Audi Q8 weighs 666 to 1089 pounds more than the Cadillac XT5. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Audi Q8 is safer than the Cadillac XT5:

	Q8	XT5
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	238	287
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	34%	37%
Neck Stress	120 lbs.	155 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 Audi Q8 is safer than the Cadillac XT5:

	Q8	XT5
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	60	112
Chest Movement	.7 inches	.9 inches
Abdominal Force	128 lbs.	151 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	141	183
Spine Acceleration	43 G’s	43 G’s
Hip Force	684 lbs.	825 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	282	399
Hip Force	593 lbs.	799 lbs.

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

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Q8 its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 127 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The XT5 last would have qualified as only a standard “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.

Warranty

The Q8’s corrosion warranty is 6 years longer than the XT5’s (12 vs. 6 years).

Reliability

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Cadillac vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 11 places higher in reliability than Cadillac.

Engine

The Q8’s 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid produces 100 more horsepower (335 vs. 235) and 111 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 258) than the XT5’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Q8’s 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid produces 25 more horsepower (335 vs. 310) and 98 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 271) than the XT5’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Audi Q8 is faster than the Cadillac XT5 V6:

	Q8	XT5
Zero to 60 MPH	5.9 sec	6.5 sec
Quarter Mile	14.4 sec	15.1 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97.6 MPH	92.6 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

Regenerative brakes improve the Q8’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The XT5 doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Q8 has 3.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the XT5 FWD’s standard fuel tank (22.5 vs. 19.4 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Q8 has a standard locking fuel door with a remote release located convenient to the driver. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the XT5. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Q8’s brake rotors are larger than those on the XT5:

	Q8	XT5
Front Rotors	14.8 inches	13.6 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	12.4 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Q8 has larger tires than the XT5 (285/45R21 vs. 235/65R18).

The Q8’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the XT5’s standard 65 series tires. The Q8 Premium Plus/Prestige’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the XT5’s optional 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Q8 has standard 21-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the XT5. The Q8 Premium Plus/Prestige’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels optional on the XT5.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Q8’s wheelbase is 5.4 inches longer than on the XT5 (117.9 inches vs. 112.5 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Q8 is 1.3 inches wider in the front and 2 inches wider in the rear than on the XT5.

The Q8 Prestige handles at .83 G’s, while the XT5 pulls only .81 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

Passenger Space

The Q8 has .4 inches more front legroom, 1.2 inches more front shoulder room, 1.2 inches more rear legroom and 2.2 inches more rear shoulder room than the XT5.

Cargo Capacity

The Q8 has a larger cargo volume than the XT5 with its rear seat up (30.5 vs. 30.2 cubic feet).

Towing

The Q8’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the XT5’s (7700 vs. 1000 pounds).

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Q8 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the XT5. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport, the Q8 Prestige offers an optional passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The Q8’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The XT5’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully.

If the windows are left open on the Q8 the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the XT5 can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Q8’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The XT5’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Q8’s headlights were rated “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the XT5’s headlights are rated “Marginal.”

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Q8 has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The XT5 doesn’t offer headlight washers.

A manual rear sunshade is optional in the Q8 and power rear side window sunshades are optional in the Q8 (except Premium) to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The XT5 doesn’t offer a rear or rear side window sunshades.

The Q8 Prestige offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the XT5.

The Q8 Prestige’s Park Assist Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Park Assist Plus will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.

Economic Advantages

The Q8 will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Q8 will retain 48.72% to 49.32% of its original price after five years, while the XT5 only retains 42.02% to 43.14%.

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