The good folks over at General Motors would probably rather we call Cadillac's new electric car, the Lyriq, a crossover or SUV. Well, we're sorry; we've got to speak the truth, and to our eyes, this new EV looks more like a station wagon on tiptoes than any sort of cute ute. And for the record, we're into it.
The new Lyriq, Cadillac's first shot in an EV fusillade that will define the brand going forward, is set to reach production in two years' time, but the brand revealed it in concept car form in order to stoke excitement about the company's plans. And the specs are, indeed, exciting, if not quite revolutionary: the Lyriq will offer a choice of rear- and all-wheel-drive, with the latter being spun as a performance option. Near-50/50 weight distribution and its low-riding battery pack should help it handle with more verve than most gas-powered crossover-type machines, as well.
As for that battery pack: it's one of GM's new Ultium systems, rated at around 100-kWh of power — right in line with top-shelf Teslas. That, according to General Motors, is enough for more than 300 miles of range (though as we've seen with many an EV, real-world range can often be very different than what the carmaker and EPA say). When it comes time to recharge, the Lyriq will be able to slurp up electrons at rates of more than 150 kW.
On the tech front, Cadillac's excellent Super Cruise hands-free highway driving assistance technology will be offered, leaving drivers' fingers free to pick their nose on more than 200,000 miles of roads across North America. A 33-inch LED screen stretching across the dash in front of the driver serves up needed information; Cadillac says this screen can display more than one billion colors, 64 times more than any other car's setup. (And yes, by law, you have to say that fact in a Dr. Evil voice.) It'll even offer automated parking, enabling the Lyriq to slide itself into a parallel or perpendicular spot even if the driver isn't in the car.
Cadillac's press release made no mention of price, which isn't surprising, given that it's still a concept car (along those lines, expect the styling to be toned down a bit for production, those the basic shape and many details will likely stick around) and that the new battery tech is still being worked on. But given the vehicle's size and feature set, we'd guess the Lyriq will land somewhere between $50,000 and $75,000 to start. With those looks and tech specs, we're guessing it'll find plenty of interested buyers, too...assuming they can get past the name.
