By Paul Lienert
(Reuters) -General Motors’ Cadillac brand formally unveiled its all-new 2025 Escalade IQ, a full-size electric SUV that is being pitched as a companion to the $340,000 Cadillac Celestiq ultra-luxury sedan that goes into production this winter.
“We’ll have two electric flagships,” Cadillac chief John Roth said at a media briefing prior to Wednesday’s announcement.
Cadillac has not finalized a price on the Escalade IQ, which goes on sale in summer 2024 and will be built at GM’s “Factory Zero” in Detroit. It estimates a starting price of “around $130,000.”
The Escalade IQ borrows styling cues from the Celestiq, as well as its 55-inch panoramic display screen.
The big SUV shares its IQ suffix with Cadillac’s emerging portfolio of all-electric offerings, including the Celestiq and the Lyriq as well as future models for which GM has trademarked the names Symboliq and Optiq.
Roth said Cadillac plans to unveil two more EVs later this year, but provided no details.
Escalade IQ will overlap with and eventually replace the combustion-engine Escalade.
Today’s Escalade continues to dominate the premium SUV segment and, priced from $81,000 to $154,000, is one of GM’s most profitable vehicles.
The current Escalade is expected to be phased out of production in 2027, according to suppliers familiar with GM’s plans.
The dimensions of the electric Escalade are close to those of the long-wheelbase Escalade ESV. The Escalade IQ is about three inches shorter, while the wheelbase is two inches longer.
Cadillac has not provided a weight estimate for the Escalade IQ, but the current Escalade ESV weighs nearly three tons. The Escalade IQ could exceed that: Its underpinnings are shared with those of the GMC Hummer EV, including a massive 200-kilowatt-hour battery pack.
The Escalade IQ’s battery pack should provide a driving range of up to 450 miles (724 km) between charges. The pack also features vehicle-to-home bidirectional charging ability.
(Reporting by Paul Lienert in Detroit; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Jonathan Oatis)
