Compare the2025 Cadillac CT4VS 2024 Volkswagen Arteon

Both the CT4 and Arteon 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 Arteon’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 Arteon 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 Arteon doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Both the CT4 and the Arteon have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

Cadillac’s powertrain warranty covers the CT4 2 years and 20,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Arteon. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Arteon ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

The battery on the CT4 is in the trunk, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the CT4’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Arteon’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

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

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Cadillac vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. With 27 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Cadillac higher than Volkswagen.

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 Volkswagen With 71 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Cadillac higher than Volkswagen.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Cadillac vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Cadillac 11 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The CT4’s optional 2.7 turbo 4-cylinder produces 10 more horsepower (310 vs. 300) and 55 lbs.-ft. more torque (350 vs. 295) than the Arteon’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the CT4’s fuel efficiency. The Arteon doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

The CT4 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 Arteon doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Cadillac CT4, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the Arteon.

The CT4 stops much shorter than the Arteon:

The CT4 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 Arteon doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

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 Arteon doesn’t offer self-sealing tires.

The CT4 Premium Luxury AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Arteon SEL Premium R-Line (26.5 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 26.9 seconds @ .65 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the CT4’s turning circle is 1.9 feet tighter than the Arteon’s (37.1 feet vs. 39 feet). The CT4 AWD’s turning circle is 1 foot tighter than the Arteon’s (38 feet vs. 39 feet).

The Cadillac CT4 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 200 to 500 pounds less than the Volkswagen Arteon.

The CT4 is 4.3 inches shorter than the Arteon, 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 Arteon doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The CT4 has .4 inches more front headroom, 1.2 inches more front legroom and 6 inches more rear hip room than the Arteon.

The engine in the CT4 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Arteon. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Cadillac service is better than Volkswagen. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac fifth in service department satisfaction. With a 64% lower rating, Volkswagen is ranked 29th.

The CT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Arteon doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

Compared to the Volkswagen Arteon, the Cadillac CT4 Premium Luxury/Sport eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries with its standard integrated Homelink® universal remote controlled from the overhead console.

The CT4 is available in both rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive configurations. The Arteon doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Insurance will cost less for the CT4 owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the CT4 will cost $670 to $5300 less than the Arteon over a five-year period.

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 Arteon only retains 35.76% to 36.38%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Cadillac CT4 will be $13534 to $18135 less than for the Volkswagen Arteon.

The Cadillac CT4 outsold the Volkswagen Arteon by almost four to one during 2023.