(WWJ) The OPTIQ is the vehicle that Cadillac needs if it’s to become a real player in the electric vehicle field.
“It’s our fun gateway luxury vehicle into the brand,” said OPTIQ Chief Engineer John Cockburn. “It’s all about precision, craftsmanship.”
That precision was very noticeable as I took the OPTIQ through some extremely windy roads along the California coast. This is where that heavy EV battery helps, giving the vehicle a low center of gravity, making the feel more like a nimble sedan, and less like an SUV.
Cadillac bringing us to San Francisco to drive and learn about the OPTIQ, and the larger Escalade IQ.
The OPTIQ puts Cadillac in the heart of the luxury EV market. It will go up against the best seller among all EV’s, the Tesla Model Y. BMW and Mercedes also have entries in the segment, and this is also where mass market EV’s play.
In other words, it’s a gateway to Cadillac’s growing EV portfolio.
“This is a very very competitive space, in terms of what we call lux-2, lux-3,” said Cadillac Marketing Manager Brad Franz. “That segment of customers, big big piece of the business, represents 12 to 13% of the lux space.”
Sit in the driver's seat, and there’s no question you’re in a luxury vehicle. It doesn’t have the wrap around screen of the top-of-the-line Escalade, but its 33 inch LED screen is still impressive, and is the same as the slightly larger LYRIQ.
All wheel drive is standard, so is hands-free Super Cruise, with three years of connected service.
The safety features–more than twenty of them–are all standard. Not a bad package for $54,000; at least in the luxury segment. Still my test car stickered in the lower sixties.
Acceleration is strong at 300 horsepower. Range is 320 miles. You have several drive modes; Touring, sport, snow-ice and a custom mode you can set yourself.
Cadillac is particularly proud of the Dolby Atmos sound experience. The OPTIQ is the first vehicle to feature the system that separates the sound in a way that it seems to come from several different spaces in the vehicle.
We went to Dolby headquarters in San Francisco, into a studio to learn how this sound is mixed.
“The decisions I make in here translate to that space in a meaningful way,” said Nick Rives, the director of audio engineering for the Universal Group. He showed how each music track could be manipulated to come out of the speakers in a way that turns the inside of the OPTIQ into a sound studio.
Dolby has remixed a number of tracks to emphasize the Atmos experience.
“A Dolby Atmos mix experience is a meticulously curated creative expression, said Rives. “This is something we labor over intensely.”
The music sounded awesome. Now in some cases it was almost like the music equivalent of a 3-D movie gimmick, where sounds game from interesting places, but not from the direction you would expect if you were in a concert. Also, you need to stream the music from specific sources that are optimized for the format. So, you need a little more technical expertise than just pairing your smart phone, or turning on the radio.
For Chief Engineer John Cockburn, this type of system was a must have, after he listened to it in a theatre.
“We allow music to be 3-D elements. Whether it’s vocals, or whether it’s a drum or it’s a guitar, what it does is it allows all the instruments to compliment one another.”
Still, even the non-Atmos music sounded great. And this is one EV that still has AM radio.
I wish it still had Apple Car Play, which GM has pulled from its EVs. GM claims its Google based system works better. It’s not really in my comfort zone, but the change is not too shocking.
There were, however, a few times when we were out of range of cell service that our directions disappeared. That could be an issue.
The OPTIQ comes as Cadillac is a brand in transition. The original plan of being all-EV by 2030 is pretty much out the window, but they do have a full lineup of electrics. Lead by the OPTIQ at the entry level, that could attract those who hadn’t considered the brand before.
“We were looking at a younger…older millennial, 29 to 40-year-old that really values technology, that really values exceptional audio, exceptional driving experience,” said Cockburn.
Marketing Chief Brad Franz is ready to take the OPTIQ into dealerships to compete with other compact luxury utilities, both electric and gasoline powered.
“We believe very strongly in the design of the vehicle, the presence, the immersive technologies.”
DISCLOSURE: Travel and accommodations provided by General Motors.