Cadillac Escalade IQ review

It’s the Cadillac Escalade IQ, the all-electric iteration of everyone’s favorite west coast Uber XL. It’s also ‘uber’ in other ways such as range and convenience. But chiefly size and weight. This thing is a whopper.

Does this replace the standard Escalade?

Nope, the combustion-powered Escalade remains, this one’s just jumping on the electrified bandwagon. In truth, while it shares the duties and name of the OG US SUV, the IQ differs in style as well as construction. The IQ is built on the same platform as the GMC Hummer EV and the all-electric Chevrolet Silverado. As such, it’s a big rolling battery with more civility expected from it as opposed to its ostensibly rugged counterparts.

We’re guessing it’s quite powerful.

In spite of itself, sure. Two drive units sporting a motor each give the Escalade a range of power between 680 to 750hp as well as 615 to 785lb ft of torque. We say ‘range’ because the former numbers represent the car’s standard drive mode while engaging ‘velocity max’ boosts the output to the latter figures. So yes, it’s powerful, but it would have to be given its heft.

Weight seems to keep coming up.

Indeed. The Escalade has always been quite… substantial, given its mandate as a highway yacht, and the Escalade IQ is no different. In fact, it’s bigger in a number of ways, including length, weight, power and price. Cadillac puts it conservatively in the neighborhood of 9,000lb (4,100kg), but it likely pushes 10,000lb (4500kg). So yeah, that makes it a car that, like Tesla’s Cybertruck, is never going to be sold anywhere in Europe. Without a single person on board it’s hundreds of kilos heavier than the 3,500kg maximum weight for a passenger car, including occupants.

At the heart of all this heft is a 24-module 200kWh battery pack that sends power to all four wheels and endeavors to provide up to 450 miles of range. The robust power unit is capable of bi-directional charging like other large EVs such as the Ford F-150 Lightning, and Cadillac states it can recoup 100 of the spent miles in 10 minutes, so long as the opulent three-row hulk is connected to an 800-volt DC fast charger.

How’s the ride?

The standard air suspension is burdened - quite literally - with the job of achieving a high level of comfort for all riders, and given what it has to work with, it does a decent job. Cadillac states it’s tuned physically and digitally to be more comfortable than the work trucks it shares components with, but it won’t trick anyone into thinking the IQ is floating on a cloud.

Many of the bumps, rolls and head rocking are certainly mitigated, it’s just that everything else needed to haul the mattress-sized batteries is so dense, much of the road feel still manages to permeate through the cabin. Conveniently, the spacious second row, boisterous AKG sound system and seatback entertainment screens are enough to distract from the odd jolt. An executive package further ups the lux factor by providing spacious first class seats and a center console for those who desire maximum opulence.

In contrast, drivers are in the unenviable position of piloting the massive land craft around, though thankfully Cadillac has put its many years of experience with the standard Escalade to good use in making this a more manageable job.

Along with a multitude of drive assists, steering, brake and throttle response is sharp, even in the default ‘tour’ mode, allowing for quick decisive action in maneuvering, be it for lane-changing, overtaking or merely avoiding hazards throughout the city. Further assisting things along is the 7.2 degrees of rear steering the Escalade IQ engages to either stabilize the SUV at high speed or to round tight spots at a crawling pace.

There’s also ‘arrival mode’ which is the fancy version of the Hummer EV’s crab walk. This gives drivers the ability to slide diagonally in or out of tight spots, though it takes practice to master.

‘Velocity Max’ opens up the Escalade IQ’s electrified taps to deliver the full brunt of the motors at the cost of the touted range. As such, it’s engaged with a press of a handy steering wheel button to quickly switch back and forth at the driver’s convenience. In practice, every extra volt is welcome, but since it's already working overtime to motivate itself, the difference in modes is slight.

With the purported range, ample luxury and the space to showcase it, there’s no doubt Cadillac will sell hoards of Escalade IQs, it’s just too alluring a prospect for its buyer base of tech-forward status seekers used to a particular lifestyle. The jury’s out on if it’s the ‘better’ Escalade, but it’s definitively not a ‘lesser’ one by any stretch.

The question also remains if the allure of extra electric miles is enough for existing Escalade drivers to make the pricey switch, be it for family use or for their business needs. It’s easy to imagine the sticker shock of a $130,000 (£100,000) starting price would be enough to have potential buyers eyeballing the likes of the Kia EV9 or Rivian R1S instead. Nobody rocks up to the club in a Kia, though.

All told, as a more dressed-up version of the Hummer EV, its bold, upscale presence cannot be ignored, nor does it currently have an electrified equal, and that alone is likely worth the price.