Cadillac CTS (2003-2019) firing order — diagram & guide

Before the recent CT5, Cadillac’s flagship sedan was the CTS which came with some of the most iconic engines made by the US giant. Even so, you may need a guide on the Cadillac CTS (2003-2019) firing order as even the latest CTS models may slowly start requiring some checkups.

That’s why we’ll tell you everything you need to know regarding the firing order of each CTS engine, and we’ll also help you apply it by mentioning the cylinder positions to make your job a bit easier.

First-generation Cadillac CTS (2003-2007) firing order

Among the first-gen Cadillac CTS engines, there were mostly V6 options offered along with a few V8 engines. So, we’ll start with the 2.6-liter one and make our way to the 6.0L V8 to help you regardless of which engine your CTS has under the hood.

Cadillac CTS 2.6L firing order

The first V6 engine option used in the Cadillac CTS is the 2.6-liter V6 and this one had a firing order 1-2-3-4-5-6. It’s a common pattern visible through all the CTS V6 engines through the years, so that makes your task at least a bit simpler.

However, you’ll also need to know how the cylinders are arranged within the engine to apply the firing order. The first cylinder of this engine is on the passenger’s side along with cylinders 3 and 5. The driver’s side bank includes cylinders 2, 4, and 6.

Cadillac CTS 2.8L firing order

As for the 2.8-liter engine, the CTS 2.8L firing order is 1-2-3-4-5-6 as well. This engine firing pattern repeats itself through the versions of CTS V6 engines, so the cylinder layout also overlaps with the 2.6-liter engine.

So, once again you can find the first cylinder on the passenger’s side as the front-most cylinder, while cylinders 3, and 5 follow right up toward the rear. On the opposite side, you can see cylinders 2, 4, and 6 also ordered front to rear.

Cadillac CTS 3.2L firing order

Along with the other Cadillac CTS V6 engines, the CTS 3.2L firing order is 1-2-3-4-5-6. As you can see, this firing order sticks with the V6-powered models and the cylinder layout is also the same as for the previously-mentioned V6 engines.

Just to make sure you’ll properly figure it out, cylinders 1, 3, and 5 are on the passenger’s side, while cylinders 2, 4, and 6 are on the driver’s side.

Cadillac CTS 3.6L firing order

Finally, we have to mention the largest V6 engine used in the first-gen CTS, and that’s a 3.6L powertrain. It’s also one of the most common V6 engines used throughout the production of the CTS and its generations. So, the Cadillac CTS 3.6L firing order is 1-2-3-4-5-6.

As you are probably already used to, cylinders 1, 3, and 5 are on the passenger’s side, while cylinders 2, 4, and 6 are on the driver’s side.

Cadillac CTS 5.7L firing order

After all the V6 models, Cadillac decided to up the ante with the powerful V8 engines. So, the Cadillac CTS 5.7L firing order is 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2, and this engine is a regular longitudinally-placed V8. In other words, the engine consists of two separate cylinder banks with four cylinders per bank.

In other words, the driver’s side cylinders are ordered 1, 3, 5, and 7 front to rear, while the passenger’s side cylinders are laid out in 2, 4, 6, and 8 order, also front to rear.

Cadillac CTS 6.0L firing order

As the final V8 engine option, the Cadillac CTS 6.0L firing order is 1-8-7-2-6-5-4-3. As you can see, it’s a different V8-cylinder firing pattern, and that’s why it’s crucial to differentiate between these two engine options.

Overall, the firing pattern is the only major difference here, since the cylinder configuration matches. So, for the 6.0-liter CTS, the odd cylinders are numbered 1, 3, 5, and 7 on the driver’s side, with even cylinders numbered 2, 4, 6, and 8 front to rear on the passenger’s side.

Second-generation Cadillac CTS (2008-2013) firing order

There were some significant changes that Cadillac made in the transition from the first-gen to the second-gen CTS, especially keeping in mind the absence of some V6 and both V8 engines from the first-gen. So, there was a new 6.2-liter LS engine for the Blackwing version, while the regular models were ordered with different V6 variations.

Cadillac CTS 3.0L firing order

As you might have guessed by now, the Cadillac CTS 3.0L firing order is 1-2-3-4-5-6 with this engine just as it was for the previous V6s. That also means the cylinder layout matches with cylinders 1, 3, and 5 being on the passenger’s side, and cylinders 2, 4, and 6 on the driver’s side.

Cadillac CTS 6.2L firing order

Finally, we reach the Blackwing version of the CTS, so it’s crucial to note that the Cadillac CTS 6.2L firing order is 1-8-7-2-6-5-4-3. From this, you can see that the firing order is the same for this engine as for the 6.0-liter V8.

The cylinder configuration is also the same as for the previous LS engine, so odd cylinder numbers are on the driver’s side, and the passenger’s side contains even cylinder numbers. That means cylinders 1, 3, 5, and 7 are on the right side, and cylinders 2, 4, 6, and 8 are on the left side of the engine.

Third-generation Cadillac CTS (2014-2019) firing order

The final third generation of the CTS offered several engine options, with the 3.6-liter V6 being the base option, and the 6.2-liter V8 being a high-performance variation. So, these firing orders are the same for those engines as they were in the previous generation, so we’ll discuss the only addition of a four-cylinder.

Cadillac CTS 2.0L firing order

As the only remaining engine options we’ll discuss in this guide, the Cadillac CTS 2.0L firing order is 1-3-4-2. The engine’s cylinders are laid out from the left to the right side, with cylinders going in order 1, 2, 3, and 4 as the right-most cylinders.

Our take

The Cadillac CTS truly featured some of the most dependable six-cylinder and eight-cylinder Cadillac engines. So, we are hoping this guide can give you enough starting points for checking each of the engines based on your particular CTS model, and that it will help you along the way.