Cadillac’s effort to reinvent itself in the midst of the ongoing electric car revolution makes the LYRIQ, one of the most significant product launches in the automaker’s history. As a result, the 2023 Cadillac LYRIQ has a lot riding on it.

Now, that’s not just because Cadillac’s future goal is to go all-electric by the end of the decade (2030), but also because it gives us a glimpse into Cadillac’s next chapter, in terms of the design direction, technology, and powertrains that the brand is set to undertake.

The Cadillac LYRIQ employs GM’s versatile Ultium platform. While the LYRIQ was initially only available in single motor rear-wheel drive configuration, dual motor all-wheel drive was eventually made available.

In the rear-wheel drive guise, the Cadillac LYRIQ produces 340 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque. Go for the dual motor all-wheel drive and you get up to 500 horsepower, which is an extra 160 horsepower along with 460 pound-feet of torque. Power goes to the ground via a single-speed reduction gear. Cadillac claims a 0-60 mph time of around six seconds and a top speed of 118 mph for the rear-wheel drive model and 130 mph with all-wheel drive.

The LYRIQ has a lithium-ion battery pack with a 100.4 kWh capacity and an EPA estimated range of 312 miles on a single charge. Expect that number to drop to under 300 miles on the all-wheel drive model. The LYRIQ also comes with next-generation Re-gen braking and you can control its intensity using paddles on the steering. This gives you even more control over the drivetrain.

The LYRIQ’s standard onboard charger supports 11.5 kilowatts. A level 2 (AC) charger of 50 amps will add charge at a rate of about 37 miles per hour. Upgrade to the 19.2-kilowatt level 2 (AC) charger will allow you to charge at a rate of 52 miles in an hour. This puts it in line with the likes of other EV automakers like Lucid and Rivian. That’s a significant reduction in its charging rate.

The LYRIQ also supports 190 kilowatts DC fast charging, where you get back 76 miles, just 10 minutes after plugging it in. This is still somewhat slower than the GMC Hummer EV which can receive 350 kilowatts of electricity.

Being a hefty crossover thanks to the heavy battery sitting in this Caddy’s underbelly, the rear-wheel drive LYRIQ weighs about 5,600 pounds for the rear-wheel drive version and around 300 pounds more for the all-wheel drive version. Despite its weight, with its near-ideal 50:50 weight distribution along with a low center of gravity, you can expect the LYRIQ to handle rather well.

Choose from four driving modes, which further optimize the drive train based on your requirements. The modes include:

Strangely, the LYRIQ does not feature adaptive suspension like some of its rivals. Instead, you get a multi-link setup on both front and rear axles that should offer a supple ride. Remember, this is a luxury vehicle first more than anything else and comfort takes precedence over outright pace.

The LYRIQ is the first Cadillac, designed from the ground up as an electric vehicle and it has a stunningly futuristic appearance that’s unlike anything else in the brand’s history. Designed as a Cadillac first and an EV second, the LYRIQ certainly makes a statement, regardless of whether you find it appealing or not. Let’s talk proportions the LYRIQ is about the same length and width as a BMW X5, but its roofline is considerably lower and it has a better overall stance.

Starting up front, you get a totally modern look while maintaining Cadillac’s traditional design V ethos. Although this is an EV, they decided to do a grille, but thankfully the designers have avoided it by giving it a fake one as this one illuminates and puts up a show with an animation. The most impressive feature is the grille’s ability to individually control the illumination of each of the visible lines.

The daytime running lights and headlights light up in a cascading waterfall pattern. Meanwhile, the presence of the progressive turn signals isn’t very obvious, since they’re placed between the front bumper and the hood.

On the sides, Cadillac has chosen to offer dark gray painted fenders and running boards for a more premium look. As standard, you get 20-inch wheels with the option to upgrade to bigger 22-inch rims as well as rocking unique aero blade covers for improved efficiency. The wheels feature a high-gloss chrome finish, which is characteristic of the Cadillac brand.

Finally on to the rear now and perhaps the stand-out design feature is the split rear tail light setup. The top half follows the steeply raked C Pillar with a boomerang-shaped lighting element. You’ll find the primary brake lights located within the rear bumper vertical light modules, and the third brake sits uptop in the middle of the wing. Overall, despite the futuristic design language, this is unmistakably a Cadillac.

The cabin of the LYRIQ oozes luxury and class. As soon as you step inside the LYRIQ, you’ll realize that this Cadillac’s interior is amongst the most stylish and cutting-edge efforts you’ve seen from the brand to date. Everything from the quality of materials used, the dashboard design and layout to the knurled finishes on shift knobs and switch gear is a step above the current lineup.

The high-quality surfaces and the massive 33-inch curved LED screen are fitting features of this next-gen Cadillac. This seamless screen is by far, one of the biggest continuous displays in the auto industry.

With built-in google assistant, it takes care of both the drivers’ digital display as well as infotainment duties with support for both wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. On that same panel, to the left side of the steering wheel, you have touch controls for the electronic parking brake, lane-keeping assistance, and automatic brake hold.

The three-spoked steering wheel does look a little busy given the number of capacitive touch controls. You’ve got a prominent sensor on the top half of the steering rim for GM’s supercruise hands-free driver assistance system, which will soon have support for up to 400,000 miles across the United States and Canada. With no transmission tunnel, you have a lot of space between the front seats that makes way for a cantilever-style center console.

As for the interior there, you can choose from a gray or black leather interior with open-pore wood inlays on the rear-wheel drive variant. Standard on all trims is a large fixed panoramic moon roof with a retractable cover. You can further spruce up the cabin with a 26-color ambient lighting system.

Both the driver and front passenger get 8-way adjustable ventilated and heated seats with massage function and 4-way lumbar support. Each of these headrests features built-in speakers which is part of the 19-speaker AKG premium audio system. These speakers have metal speaker grille covers as well.

With the long wheelbase, there’s ample legroom for rear seat passengers, but with a low roofline, headroom isn’t the best. The LYRIQ has a cargo capacity of 28 cubic feet along with a virtually flat cargo floor. While you do get extra storage space under the trunk floor, the raked rear profile means that the cargo room takes a hit.

Cadillac has a full order book for 2023, which means you can only get your hands on 2024 model year and you can pre-order your LYRIQ by paying a $100 refundable deposit. The 2024 Cadillac LYRIQ starts at $60,000 excluding handling and destination fees for the rear-wheel drive model. If you want all-wheel drive, that will be another $4,000 taking your total to $64,000 plus destination. Expect deliveries to begin in Spring 2023.

Lease a 2023 LYRIQ and get up to $1,500 as an installation credit from Qmerit and two years of unlimited charging sessions at the 850+ EVgo public charging stations in over 30 States.

The Cadillac LYRIQ is high on tech and GM hasn’t skimped on equipment. As standard, you then get the following safety and driver assistance features:

The LYRIQ also has support for over-the-air updates and you can expect even more features and functionality to make it over time.

Size-wise, the Cadillac LYRIQ competes with other mid-size all-electric crossovers like Audi E-tron, Tesla Model X, BMW iX. and the Rivian R1S. However, those vehicles cost significantly more than the Caddy. So price-wise, the LYRIQ competes with top trims of some compact all-electric crossovers like the Genesis GV60, Volvo XC60 Recharge, and Tesla Model Y. Here’s how it compares to some of its rivals in terms of performance and driving range.

To summarize, the 2023 LYRIQ is a stellar effort by Cadillac to showcase where the revered American brand is going next. Here’s what talk show host Jay Leno had to say about the Cadillac LYRIQ. Overall, it is a fantastic package given the level of performance, range, and kit on offer. It also significantly undercuts its rivals from other European luxury brands by a big margin. Luxury was the primary focus and the LYRIQ certainly excels at that, since this is after all a Cadillac first and an EV second.

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