Cadillac is no longer the Standard of the World, and this controlled T-boning shows why. In the latest round of evaluations by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the newly redesigned 2026 Cadillac CT5 faced the updated, more rigorous side crash test. Instead of passing with the flying colors expected of a premium luxury brand, the sedan faltered significantly, walking away with a disappointing overall rating of Poor, the lowest possible score.

     

The revised side assessment uses a much heavier barrier—weighing 4,200 pounds, or around 1.9 tons—moving at a faster speed of 37 mph (60 kph) to better simulate a real-world collision with a modern, heavy SUV. Under older, less demanding safety metrics, earlier iterations of the Cadillac CT5 easily skated by with top scores.