Compare the2023 Ford Bronco SportVS 2023 Cadillac XT5

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

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Ford Bronco Sport 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.

The Bronco Sport has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply 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 Bronco Sport. But it costs extra on the XT5.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Bronco Sport’s standard Trail Control allows you to creep down safely. The XT5 doesn’t offer Trail Control.

The Bronco Sport 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 XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Bronco Sport 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 XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport has a rear cross-path warning system.

The Bronco Sport’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The XT5 doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Bronco Sport and the XT5 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee 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 and available rear parking sensors.

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

	Bronco Sport	XT5
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	140	147
Neck Stress	178 lbs.	188 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	123/237 lbs.	213/542 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	153	287
Chest Compression	.6 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	37%	37%

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 Ford Bronco Sport is safer than the Cadillac XT5:

	Bronco Sport	XT5
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	80	112
Chest Movement	.9 inches	.9 inches
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	144	183
Spine Acceleration	33 G’s	43 G’s
Hip Force	689 lbs.	825 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	255	399
Spine Acceleration	35 G’s	39 G’s
Hip Force	512 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 “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Bronco Sport its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 112 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The XT5 last would have qualified as only a standard “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.

Warranty

There are over 5 times as many Ford dealers as there are Cadillac dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Bronco Sport’s warranty.

Reliability

The Bronco Sport has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The XT5 doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Bronco Sport has a standard 760-amp battery. The XT5’s 730-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

Engine

The Bronco Sport Badlands’ standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 6 lbs.-ft. more torque (277 vs. 271) than the XT5’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6.

As tested in Car and Driver the Bronco Sport Badlands 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Cadillac XT5 V6:

	Bronco Sport	XT5
Zero to 30 MPH	2 sec	2.3 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	5.9 sec	6.6 sec
Zero to 100 MPH	17.3 sec	17.8 sec
5 to 60 MPH Rolling Start	6.5 sec	7 sec
Passing 30 to 50 MPH	3.3 sec	3.4 sec
Passing 50 to 70 MPH	4.3 sec	4.7 sec
Quarter Mile	14.5 sec	15.2 sec

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Bronco Sport gets better mileage than the XT5:

			MPG
Bronco Sport
	AWD	1.5 turbo 3-cyl.	25 city/28 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/26 hwy
XT5
	FWD	3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/29 hwy
	AWD	3.6 DOHC V6	18 city/25 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/27 hwy

Brakes and Stopping

The Bronco Sport stops much shorter than the XT5:

	Bronco Sport	XT5
70 to 0 MPH	163 feet	174 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	123 feet	128 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The Bronco Sport offers an optional full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the XT5; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which has mileage and speed limitations, or roadside assistance and a tow-truck.

Suspension and Handling

For better maneuverability, the Bronco Sport’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the XT5’s (37.4 feet vs. 38.7 feet). The Bronco Sport’s turning circle is 1.6 feet tighter than the XT5 w/20” wheels’ (37.4 feet vs. 39 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Bronco Sport has a greater minimum ground clearance than the XT5 (8.8 vs. 7.8 inches), allowing the Bronco Sport to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Chassis

The Ford Bronco Sport may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 450 to 600 pounds less than the Cadillac XT5.

The Bronco Sport is 1 foot, 4.9 inches shorter than the XT5, making the Bronco Sport easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Bronco Sport Badlands is quieter than the XT5 AWD:

	Bronco Sport	XT5
At idle	38 dB	44 dB
Full-Throttle	73 dB	77 dB

Passenger Space

The Bronco Sport has 1.8 inches more front headroom, 1.2 inches more front legroom and 3.3 inches more rear headroom than the XT5.

Cargo Capacity

The Bronco Sport has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the XT5 with its rear seat up (32.5 vs. 30.2 cubic feet). The Bronco Sport has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the XT5 with its rear seat folded (65.2 vs. 63 cubic feet).

The Bronco Sport’s rear cargo window opens separately from the rest of the liftgate door to allow quicker loading of small packages. The XT5’s rear cargo window doesn’t open.

Ergonomics

The Bronco Sport Outer Banks/Badlands’ front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches. 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 Bronco Sport the driver can close them all from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the XT5 can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Bronco Sport’s available exterior PIN entry system. The XT5 doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its OnStar® can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

The Bronco Sport’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of 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 Bronco Sport’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the XT5’s headlights are rated “Marginal.”

The Bronco Sport Outer Banks/Badlands/First Edition has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The XT5 doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Economic Advantages

The Bronco Sport will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Bronco Sport will retain 59.2% to 61.37% of its original price after five years, while the XT5 only retains 42.02% to 43.14%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Ford Bronco Sport will be $19117 to $22347 less than for the Cadillac XT5.

Recommendations

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Bronco Sport first among small SUVs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The XT5 was rated second in its category.

The Ford Bronco Sport outsold the Cadillac XT5 by almost four to one during 2022.