Compare the2024 Cadillac XT4VS 2024 GMC Terrain

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 seat shoulder belts of the Cadillac XT4 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The GMC Terrain doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

The Cadillac XT4 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Terrain doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers optional Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Terrain doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The XT4 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 and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Terrain’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the XT4 has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Rear Cross Traffic Braking automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. GMC charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Terrain and the Terrain’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.

Both the XT4 and the Terrain have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, 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 XT4 is safer than the GMC Terrain:

	XT4	Terrain
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Leg Forces (l/r)	181/231 lbs.	363/349 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 XT4 is safer than the GMC Terrain:

	XT4	Terrain
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.8 inches	1.1 inches
Abdominal Force	185 lbs.	195 lbs.
Hip Force	328 lbs.	357 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	169	288
Spine Acceleration	51 G’s	55 G’s
Hip Force	598 lbs.	630 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	13 inches
HIC	204	377
Spine Acceleration	35 G’s	40 G’s
Hip Force	522 lbs.	730 lbs.

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

Warranty

The XT4 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck. The Terrain’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Cadillac’s powertrain warranty covers the XT4 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than GMC covers the Terrain. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Terrain ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The XT4’s 6 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Terrain runs out after 100,000 miles.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Cadillac vehicles are more reliable than GMC vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac above average in long-term dependability. With 24 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, GMC is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Cadillac vehicles are more reliable than GMC vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Cadillac 8 places higher in reliability than GMC.

Engine

The XT4’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 60 more horsepower (235 vs. 175) and 55 lbs.-ft. more torque (258 vs. 203) than the Terrain’s 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the XT4’s fuel efficiency. The Terrain doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

The XT4 FWD’s standard fuel tank has a gallon more fuel capacity than the Terrain FWD’s standard fuel tank (15.9 vs. 14.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the XT4’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Terrain:

	XT4	Terrain
Front Rotors	12.6 inches	11.8 inches
Rear Rotors	12.4 inches	11.3 inches

The XT4’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Terrain are solid, not vented.

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the XT4 has larger standard tires than the Terrain (235/60R18 vs. 225/65R17). The XT4’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Terrain (245/45R20 vs. 235/50R19).

The XT4’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Terrain SLE/AT4’s standard 65 series tires. The XT4’s optional tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Terrain’s optional 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the XT4 has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Terrain SLE/AT4. The XT4’s optional 20-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels optional on the Terrain.

Suspension and Handling

The XT4 has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the XT4 flat and controlled during cornering. The Terrain’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The XT4 offers an available 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 Terrain’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the XT4’s wheelbase is 2.1 inches longer than on the Terrain (109.4 inches vs. 107.3 inches).

The XT4 Sport AWD handles at .86 G’s, while the Terrain Denali AWD pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The XT4 Sport AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.2 seconds quicker than the Terrain Denali AWD (26.3 seconds @ .66 average G’s vs. 27.5 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The XT4 has 3.2 inches more front legroom and .1 inches more front hip room than the Terrain.

Cargo Capacity

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the XT4. The Terrain doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Towing

The XT4’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Terrain’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the GMC Terrain is only 1500 pounds. The XT4 offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

The XT4 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Terrain 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 GMC. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac second in service department satisfaction. With a 27% lower rating, GMC is ranked 15th.

Ergonomics

The XT4’s front power windows 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 Terrain’s front passenger window doesn’t close automatically.

The XT4’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 Terrain’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted. The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the XT4 (except Luxury) offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Terrain doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport’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 Terrain has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Terrain.

The XT4 has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning costs extra on the Terrain.

The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport’s optional Automatic Park Assist can parallel park by itself, starting and stopping automatically, with the driver only responsible for switching from reverse to drive. The Terrain Denali’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the XT4 owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the XT4 will cost $140 less than the Terrain over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the XT4 is less expensive to operate than the Terrain because it costs $27 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the XT4 than the Terrain, including $86 less for a muffler, $115 less for front brake pads, $44 less for a starter, $36 less for fuel injection and $382 less for a fuel pump.

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