Now more than ever, it's becoming clear how humans negatively impact the environment and cause dangerous climate change by burning fossil fuels and chopping down forests. One bright spot in the dark is that the world is starting to come around and bring forward eco-friendly incentives to fight climate change.
The automotive industry is also seeing the need to change the ways of the past and urgently reduce emissions. It was about time, as cars and trucks account for nearly one-fifth of all U.S. emissions. Incentives such as legislative combustion engine bans are also raising awareness and prompting car manufacturers to go electric.
In the last couple of years, we've seen many new electric cars and electric-only startups come to the market, which is all good news. Brands are now competing to become green-only before others. Jaguar has announced the big change to take place in 2025, Alfa Romeo in 2027, Lotus in 2028, and Bentley, Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Mini, and many others in 2030.
Cadillac is one of the brands that aim to switch to all-electric vehicle production by 2030. That means all the standard vehicles will cease to exist and get replaced by their greener alternatives. How is this going for Cadillac so far? Learn more in this article.
Cadillac Plans To Go All-Electric Ahead Of General Motors
Do you remember that General Motors announced a 2030-switch towards all-electric vehicles in 2019? Steve Carlisle, the president of Cadillac, supported the claim with the following statement:
“We’re going to enter that decade as an internal combustion engine brand. That’s where we are. We’ve never been better positioned as an internal combustion brand. It’s a decade we’re also going to exit as a battery-electric brand. There’s a lot that’s going to be going on for Cadillac in the ’20s.”
In 2022, we see Cadillac taking big steps to achieve this plan. The arrival of the all-electric Lyriq crossover marks the end of internal-combustion-engine production at Cadillac. But the bright future awaits, or so Cadillac suggests with its announcement that a new lineup of EVs will come over the next few years.
For now, the 2023 Cadillac Lyriq is followed by the Celestiq, a sedan we got a glimpse of just recently. The other EVs will most likely include a compact crossover, a three-row crossover, and a full-size SUV. Rumor has it that the three new EVs will bear the names “Escalade IQL,” “Vistiq,” and “Lumistiq,” but we'll have to wait and see. The nameplates most certainly match the previous two, so it's probably true.
While the 2023 Cadillac Lyriq is expected to be delivered in the fall of this year and continue over the next year, we have no specifics about the other EVs. The Celestiq will probably come sometime in 2024.
What's also interesting to note here is that not everyone at Cadillac is up for going electric. About 150 dealerships in the US (if not more so far) have decided to close up shops rather than run an upgrade for a greener future.
A Brief Look At The First Cadillac EV: The 2023 Cadillac Lyriq
We've already covered the 2023 Cadillac Lyriq in many of our previous articles, so we'll keep this overview short. The vehicle in question aims to be as modern as it gets, with dramatic styling and top-notch technology. Cadillac made its first entrant to the EV field ready to take on the other players such as the Audi e-Tron and the Jaguar I-Pace. We'll see how this goes.
The 2023 Cadillac Lyriq comes in a single-motor and rear-wheel drive and a dual-motor and all-wheel drive configuration. The driving range is set at more than 300 miles, and a unique battery platform is there to improve the performance and handling. Overall, we expect the 2023 Cadillac Lyriq to be capable, fast, and agile with its 340 or 550 horsepower delivery.
Cadillac Reveals Glimpses Of The Upcoming Celestiq EV
A couple of days ago, Cadillac released a few photos of the new Celestiq. From the details we were able to see, the EV looks to take the same modern and assertive design as the Lyriq. It will probably bear the same high-end tech and power, if not more.
The striking silhouette of the Celestiq indeed caught our interest, so we now have high hopes for this Cadillac EV. Magalie Debellis, the manager at Cadillac Branded Advanced Design, said when announcing the car:
“From its unique proportions and a new effortless, sophisticated form language, to the precision and attention to detail, CELESTIQ is unlike anything on the road today. From its inception, the CELESTIQ show car was crafted to reincarnate the ‘Standard of the World.’”
Will the Cadillac Celestiq be such a gem on the overloaded EV market, it's yet to be seen, but we know one thing — Cadillac is taking big steps toward the all-electric future, and its new lineup is coming quicker than we expected.