Cadillac’s Escalade IQ model is a full-size SUV rocketed by nothing but big fat electrons!
Cadillac is going fully electric by 2030! The Escalade IQL will take its place at the top of the brand’s hierarchy, based on the new Ultium platform shared with other GM EVs like the GMC Hummer EV and forthcoming Silverado EV. As a flagship model, one-, two, and three-motor powertrains could be utilized, with the latter generating upwards of 1,000 horsepower. Electric range will be above 300 miles. Cadillac is expected to retain the three-row layout of the Escalade.
As a three-row SUV, the Escalade IQ will have a large floorpan, which means lots of room for batteries underneath. So count on this new EV to be extremely heavy and to use at least two motors when it debuts later this year.
The Escalade IQ’s wheels are massive 24-inch-ers with a set of Michelin Primacy tires in 275/50R24. By comparison, the Celestiq’s wheels are a mere 23 inches in diameter. You can also buy 24-inch wheels on the ICE version of the Escalade, but the IQ EV will use eight-lug wheels rather than the six-lug that the gas-powered SUV will use.
So far this year, GMC has sold a measly nine Hummer pickups and not a single Hummer SUV. Meanwhile, Cadillac’s Lyriq has been slow-moving as well, with 1402 examples sold so far this year. That at least shows the production lag being addressed for Lyriq, but that volume trails behind other similar EVs such as the VW ID.4 (11,300 sales through April) and Ford Mustang Mach-E (7000 examples), according to Wards Intelligence data.
When the Escalade iQ arrives, it might be cross-shopped with the Mercedes EQS SUV, which has sold 3100 examples this year through April.
