The Escalade IQ is the next item in GM's playbook to go electric. Does that mean it's any less of an Escalade?
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00:00 The big daddy Cadillac is going electric.
00:03 Oh yes, you heard that right.
00:04 This is the 2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ.
00:07 It's all new, all electric, and invites the question,
00:10 is this still a legitimate Escalade?
00:13 (upbeat music)
00:16 If there was anything in the General Motors portfolio
00:25 that needed, nay, demanded an EV version,
00:28 it was the Escalade.
00:30 Massive in size and with great on-road presence,
00:33 an electric powertrain would only add
00:35 to the blend of power and luxury
00:36 the Escalade has always been known for.
00:38 So, here it is in all its glory.
00:41 Take a second, absorb it with your eyeballs.
00:43 Okay, got it?
00:45 Let's talk about it.
00:46 First things first, because of that sloped roofline,
00:49 it sort of looks like a big Lyric.
00:51 It's way more cab-back in design
00:53 than the gas-driven Escalade,
00:55 and actually, Cadillac says its coefficient of drag
00:57 is 15% better.
00:59 It rides on 24-inch wheels and 35-inch tires,
01:02 so that part, very, very Escalade-esque.
01:05 The front is a grill-less take on the Escalade's fascia
01:08 that looks like Mob Boss pinstriping,
01:10 so I'm here for that.
01:11 We gotta talk about this rear, though.
01:14 Okay, so, the best thing I'll say about it
01:17 is the taillights look like a piano keyboard,
01:19 so I dare you to look at this
01:20 and not immediately wanna bust out some Rachmaninoff.
01:23 (upbeat music)
01:25 The rest of it, though, I don't know, man.
01:27 There's a lot going on.
01:29 Why are there two sets of taillights?
01:31 Why is that weird break in the D pillar there?
01:34 The back of the Escalade IQ looks like an SUV
01:36 that's wearing another SUV as a hat.
01:38 I'm sorry, it must be said.
01:40 It's a badass SUV with a bad ass.
01:43 That's okay, though, because if you own this car,
01:46 you're spending most of your time inside it anyway.
01:49 The inside of the Escalade IQ
01:50 is a combination of opulent touches
01:52 and state-of-the-art technology,
01:53 which is to be expected from Cadillac.
01:56 Absolutely dominating the front dash
01:58 is the 55-inch diagonally measured screen.
02:01 Front seat passengers can use it
02:02 for web browsing and streaming,
02:03 but that third of the screen has been polarized
02:06 so the driver can't see it and get distracted.
02:09 Underneath that is another screen
02:10 called the front command center.
02:12 Second row passengers are treated
02:14 to a couple of captain's chairs,
02:15 no bench seats will be offered,
02:16 and 12-plus inch seat back screens.
02:19 The optional executive package
02:20 gets you a 40-speaker stereo system
02:23 and a separate command center
02:24 and massaging seats for the second row.
02:27 And the third row has power fold-down seats.
02:29 To really drive home that feeling of upscale quality,
02:32 the cabin features laser-etched ash wood
02:34 and ambient lighting.
02:36 Finally, if you were wondering
02:37 whether or not there's a front trunk, there is.
02:39 Called the Cadillac e-trunk, it's about 12 cubic feet
02:43 and is said to be able to hold a stroller
02:45 or two golf bags.
02:46 So, what's powering the next generation
02:49 of Cadillac's land yacht?
02:51 The Escalade IQ uses GM's Ultium EV technology
02:54 and platform, meaning it has a 200-kilowatt battery
02:57 that's good for 750 horsepower
03:01 and 785 pound-feet of torque.
03:04 With its dual-motor setup, it'll hit 60 from zero
03:07 in less than five seconds
03:09 and it'll return an estimated 450 miles of range.
03:14 If you want to tow, the IQ will do that too,
03:16 up to 8,000 pounds of it.
03:18 Some other goodies include height-adjustable
03:20 air suspension and four-wheel steering
03:21 that gives the SUV a 6.5-foot reduction
03:24 in turning diameter.
03:26 Look, when you're driving something this big,
03:28 anything helps.
03:29 Cadillac's very excellent, hands-free,
03:32 advanced driver-assistance tech Super Cruise
03:34 comes as a standard feature,
03:36 but you can also option up for Ultra Cruise,
03:39 which is driveway-to-driveway capability.
03:41 Finally, the Escalade IQ will have the crab walk feature
03:44 we first saw on the GMC Hummer EV,
03:46 but here it's called Cadillac Arrival Mode.
03:49 The new Cadillac Escalade IQ will have a starting price
03:52 of around $130,000, which is par for the course
03:55 for a hyper-luxury vehicle such as this.
03:57 As for the question of whether the electric IQ
03:59 is still a proper Escalade,
04:02 well, it never really mattered what powered the Escalade.
04:05 So when the IQ comes out, probably next year,
04:08 the Escalade lineup will include
04:09 both a battery-electric powertrain
04:11 as well as a supercharged V8
04:13 in the form of the Escalade V.
04:15 You couldn't get two more opposing ideas
04:19 on one spectrum, and I think that's beautiful.
04:21 Much like the late Heath Ledger,
04:23 it proves the Escalade's got range, man.
04:26 Ultimately, what makes an Escalade an Escalade
04:28 is its overwhelming size, presence, and luxury touches,
04:32 all of which this IQ has.
04:35 It wasn't simply Escalade styling
04:36 grafted onto something as big as a Traverse,
04:38 which would have failed pretty spectacularly.
04:40 This is large, in-charge,
04:43 and as legit an Escalade as they come.
04:45 (upbeat music)
04:48 (upbeat music)