4-cyl turbo requires premium fuel and some drivers find it annoyingly buzzy. Others like the mileage and find it peppy; you might want to drive each and see what you can live with?

Welcome to the forum!

 

Depending on the Yr, there are difference as to what Luxury and Premium Luxury entail(in the early yrs, only the Base Model didn't have the Sunroof. The Premium Luxury had LED Headlights, and the better Sound System, those were Options on the Luxury). Best to locate the Brochures for the Yrs you are interested in, and the differences on the Trim Levels are at the back of it. The Luxury might have smaller Wheels(18") vs the 20s on the Premium Luxury, which to me is backwards, as the 20s make for a Harsh unCadillac ride.
Even what "Platinum" is, changed, as it used to be a entire Trim Line, now it is an Option Package...
I would avoid the 2 liter Turbo like the Plague, especially if you are in an Area that has any below Freezing Weather, as IMHO, Turbos seem to have Lubrication Issues, plus the Fuel costs will be higher, because of the need for "Premium", even if it get a couple more MPGs than the V6, which can deliver very good Mileage, if you don't mash it.
The Shift Lever is a little quicker to master on the later version, about 30 seconds quicker.

 

The Shift Lever is a little quicker to master on the later version, about 30 seconds quicker.

The OP mentioned 20 and 21. The shift lever function was improved in '20 to a straight line gear selection instead of the hokey forward/left of previous years. I am speaking from my experience with '17 and '20. No experience with '18 and '19, but they were not asked about.

 

I found this on Edmunds for the 2021 model year. I purchased a certified used 2020 Premium Luxury and most of them have the 14 speaker Bose audio and navigation. They also have ambient lighting and real wood trim. Ours also has lighted door handles and door and hatch puddle lights. Not sure if that is included with Luxury. I would absolutely go with the Premium Luxury, but realize most of them do not have HUD, ventilated seats, adaptive cruise or 3D camera which are probably mostly found on the Platinum models. I would recommend the V-6 which has plenty of power and shown to be reliable and uses regular gas. Gas mileage around town is not so great but I have seen well over 30 MPG on trips. The wife and I are very happy with our purchase. Also buying certified adds 1 year to the basic warranty so 5 years from in service date and 7 year powertrain warranty.

The base Luxury trim starts you off with:

• 18-inch alloy wheels
• LED headlights
• Remote engine start
• Keyless entry and ignition
• Dual-zone automatic climate control
• Heated front seats
• Simulated leather upholstery
• 8-inch touchscreen
• Eight-speaker Bose audio system
• Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Four USB ports (two USB-A and two USB-C)
• Wi-Fi hotspot

Standard driving aids include:

• Forward collision mitigation (warns you of an impending collision and applies the brakes in certain scenarios)
• Lane departure mitigation (warns you of a lane departure when a turn signal isn't used and can automatically steer to maintain lane position)
• Front and rear parking sensors (alert you to obstacles that may not be visible behind or in front of the vehicle when parking)
• Safety Alert Seat (vibrates the driver's seat to alert you when any of the safety systems activate)

Premium Luxury
The Premium Luxury trim adds a few features and opens the door to several notable option packages:

• Automatic wipers
• Power-folding mirrors
• Panoramic sunroof
• Hands-free liftgate
• Driver-seat memory settings
• Auto-dimming rearview mirror
• Heated, power-adjustable steering wheel
• Front-seat lumbar adjustment
• Leather upholstery
• Interior ambient lighting
• Wireless charging pad
• Blind-spot monitor (alerts you if a vehicle in the next lane over is in your blind spot)
• Rear cross-traffic alert (warns you if a vehicle behind you is about to cross your vehicle's path while you're in reverse)

Optional extras for the Premium Luxury include:

• Smart Towing package
  • V6 engine
  • Seven-pin wiring harness for trailer connection
  • Heavy-duty cooling system
• Tri-zone climate control (paired with ventilated front seats and heated rear seats)
• Navigation system (paired with 14-speaker Bose audio system)
• Enhanced Visibility and Technology package
  • Digital instrument panel
  • Digital rearview mirror (allows you to see out the back even with a fully loaded cargo area)
  • Head-up display (displays important information in your sight line onto the windshield)
  • 360-degree camera system (gives you a top-down view of the XT5 and its surroundings for tight parking situations)
  • Automated parking system (steers into a parking spot with no driver intervention)
• Driver Assist package
  • Enhanced Visibility and Technology package
  • Adaptive cruise control (maintains a driver-set distance between the Cadillac and the car in front)
  • Rear automatic braking (brakes if sensors detect an imminent collision with an object behind the vehicle)

 

I wouldn't buy the Luxury model as it's missing too many things that are available with the Premium Luxury, including the illuminated door handles which I really like.

 

Now we need feedback from @Hillgirl ...or was the post once-and-done?

 

I hope we hear back - nice to see a previous Cadillac owner considering another. A 2020/1 XT5 is a nice package. Like the others, I'd go for a PL with the 3.6.

 

2020 XT5 Sales Brochure

 

I first leased the xt5 luxury and then the xt6 premium luxury and I will say I do love the extra added items. However,cost can play a huge factor. I always go to a couple of places and see who's going to make a deal with me.