Compare the2025 Cadillac CT4VS 2024 Acura TLX

Both the CT4 and TLX have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The CT4 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 TLX’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.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the CT4 are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The TLX doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The CT4’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the front seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The TLX doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The CT4 Premium Luxury/Sport has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The TLX doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

Both the CT4 and the TLX have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The CT4’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the TLX’s (6 vs. 5 years).

There are over 2 times as many Cadillac dealers as there are Acura dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the CT4’s warranty.

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the CT4’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the TLX’s camshafts. If the TLX’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the CT4 second among compact premium cars in their 2024 Initial Quality Study. The TLX isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Cadillac vehicles are more reliable than Acura With 20 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Cadillac higher than Acura.

The CT4’s optional 2.7 turbo 4-cylinder produces 38 more horsepower (310 vs. 272) and 70 lbs.-ft. more torque (350 vs. 280) than the TLX’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Car and Driver the Cadillac CT4 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Acura TLX turbo 4 cyl.:

On the EPA test cycle the CT4 gets better mileage than the TLX:

The CT4 has 1.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the TLX (17.5 vs. 15.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The CT4’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the TLX are solid, not vented.

The CT4 stops much shorter than the TLX:

Having a flat tire is dangerous, inconvenient and expensive. The self-sealing tires available on the CT4 can automatically seal most punctures up to 3/16 of an inch, effectively preventing most flat tires. The TLX doesn’t offer self-sealing tires.

The CT4’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (54% to 46%) than the TLX’s (57% to 43%). This gives the CT4 more stable handling and braking.

The CT4 Premium Luxury AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the TLX A-Spec SH-AWD (26.5 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 26.9 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the CT4’s turning circle is 3.1 feet tighter than the TLX’s (37.1 feet vs. 40.2 feet). The CT4 AWD’s turning circle is 2.2 feet tighter than the TLX’s (38 feet vs. 40.2 feet).

The Cadillac CT4 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 500 pounds less than the Acura TLX.

The CT4 is 7.4 inches shorter than the TLX, making the CT4 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The front grille of the CT4 Premium Luxury uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The TLX doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The CT4 has 1.1 inches more front headroom and .2 inches more rear headroom than the TLX.

The CT4 has a 1000 lbs. towing capacity. The TLX has no towing capacity.

The engine in the CT4 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the TLX. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Cadillac service is better than Acura. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac fifth in service department satisfaction. With a 13% lower rating, Acura is ranked 9th.

The power windows standard on both the CT4 and the TLX have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the CT4 is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The TLX prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The CT4’s standard Keyless Access allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the trunk, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Smart Entry standard on the TLX doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the CT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The TLX doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The CT4 Premium Luxury/Sport/V-Series’ 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 TLX has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The CT4 Sport offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the TLX.

The CT4 will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the CT4 will retain 50.45% to 56.58% of its original price after five years, while the TLX only retains 45.75% to 49.71%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Cadillac CT4 will be $3305 to $17622 less than for the Acura TLX.