(WWJ) - Those who still think of EV’s as green underpowered eco cars have not yet met the Cadillac Escalade IQ.
It’s the all new electric version of Cadillac's iconic full size SUV.
“It’s been a phenomenon in the market place for 20 years,” says Cadillac Marketing Director Brad Franz. “It really means something. Most iconic nameplate we have at Cadillac. What do you do with something like that. You electrify it.”
But this isn’t just an Escalade with a battery. With electrification, comes upgrades…more power, smoother, quieter. And when you spend 150 thousand dollars or so for a vehicle, you don’t want to deal with range anxiety.
”I think the biggest thing is it’s the highest range of any luxury SUV with 460 miles range,” says chief engineer Al Oppenheiser. “We do offer the DC fast charging, 850 volt DC fast charging. So, if you can find a 350 kilowatt station, you can get over a hundred miles of charge in ten minutes.
We didn’t need to worry about recharging during our first drive. In fact, we didn’t need to worry about much.
Waves crash furiously along the California coast, a steady rain falls, the wind blows, and we hardly notice as this ten thousand pound beast cruises down the Pacific Coast Highway near Half Moon Bay.
We push a button—engaging a mode called Velocity Max—and immediately have 750 horsepower. Zero to sixty time, 4.7 seconds. Push another, and we’re gliding hands free with Super Cruise.
GM is greatly expanding the number of roads where Super Cruise can be used, from 400,000 to 750,000 miles.
Cadillac bringing us to San Francisco to be among the first to drive what they call their “bookends” EV’s—the entry level OPTIQ, and the Escalade IQ. More on the OPTIQ next week.
The day after the sun shined on our northward OPTIQ drive, we took the Escalade IQ south through rain and very high winds. The sheer size helped keep the buffeting to a minimum. Rain slicked roads were no problem.
Other drive impressions include smooth acceleration, a very quiet cabin, a high end audio system and a feeling that no luxury amenity has been left out.
The four wheel steering system (not available on the gasoline powered Escalade) allows you to better navigate tight spaces. But it’s also hard to see around this large vehicle in those tight spaces. Arrival mode helps you more easily park the vehicle.
I never felt overwhelmed by the size, even in some of the narrow, hilly San Francisco streets. A hairpin turn that would have normally taken me over the curb a bit was made easily.
Turning radius is only one foot more than a Chevy Bolt.
Complaints are few (and not easily spotted in a first drive). The large center console does cut into front seat width a bit. The trim on the dash was not well attached, a quality issue that GM engineers will likely take care of quickly.
I could complain about the price. But this is truly an “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it” vehicle. GM figures Escalade IQ buyers will have a salary of $300,000 a year or more. They are targeting a slightly younger buyer than the gasoline powered Escalade, and one that’s more tech focused.
I guess that explains why they did their first drives in San Francisco.
For nearly a quarter of a century, the Escalade has been an icon of success—and excess. It’s been a staple of athletes and other celebrities.
And if Cadillac was to ever meet its dream of transitioning to an all electric brand, they needed to successfully have an electric choice for Escalade buyers. That all-electric goal had been by the end of the decade. Timing is more vague now, with Cadillac likely to be offering consumers a choice between gasoline and electric vehicles for a while.
”That’s what’s fantastic about what we’re going to deliver here at Cadillac, is you have that choice,” says Franz. “That’s something that we take and really believe it’s going to be a strength.”
To make the Escalade IQ stand out, it has to offer everything buyers expect from an Escalade, with more.
Four wheel steering for tight spaces, massaging seats, a ride that’s smoother, thanks to the low center of gravity provided by that big battery. You get a vehicle this size and the battery has to be big to move it, so you need even more battery to move that extra battery, etc. That’s how you get to a weight of around ten thousand pounds.
”We took it to another level with all of the features and functions we offer,” says Oppenheiser.
There is nothing like this on the EV market.
Remember when the original Escalade debuted in the 90’s, just after Lincoln’s Navigator, there was a big question about whether luxury buyers would be interested in a vehicle that was—at it’s essence—a truck.
Now, the Escalade IQ will help carmakers understand whether there is a market for people who are willing to pay to get the advantages of an EV in a very luxurious, very large market. Cadillac doesn’t have to sell a lot of these vehicles, but they need to sell them to the right people, so they can be a halo vehicle, and show off the brand as a technology leader.
And if the Cadillac Escalade IQ isn’t big enough for you, you don’t need to wait long. Coming soon, the longer wheelbase Escalade IQL.
DISCLAIMER: Travel and accommodations were provided by General Motors.