• The Cadillac Escalade IQ, the upcoming electric version of the Escalade luxury SUV, will be unveiled on August 9.
To say that the Cadillac Escalade is an important vehicle for GM's luxury brand is an understatement; it is the automaker’s heart and soul. Unsurprisingly, then, it will survive the electric shift currently underway at Cadillac. For the moment, the Escalade is the only current Cadillac model set to live on into the electric era.
The company confirmed this week that the all-electric Escalade IQ, as it’s to be called, will be unveiled on August 9.
In the meantime, the brand has released a video teasing design elements of the big EV, which was first confirmed to be on the way last month.
The new images of the Escalade IQ show but bits and pieces of the three-row behemoth. Those include an extruded corner between the lights and the spoiler, as well as an animation of the LEDs at the front, spread out like a wing from the bottom of the grille. The video also shows a close-up of what look to be huge 22-inch wheels shod with Michelin Primacy LTX tires, as well as a close-up of the roof and antenna.
The Cadillac Escalade IQ's bumper features even more LEDs on the sides, with solid vertical lines and animated dashed lines. This is similar to what we saw with the Lyriq SUV.
General Motors (GM) will build the Escalade IQ at its Factory Zero plant in Detroit-Hamtramck, a plant dedicated to electric vehicles and which is currently used to build the massive GMC Hummer EV. GM said in a statement that it has invested 2.2 billion to renovate and refit the plant so that it can “serve as the launch pad” for the automaker's electric vehicle strategy.
Cadillac gave no details of the IQ's powertrain or technical specifications, but we can guess that the model is based on the Ultium platform.
Next week, we'll be taking part in a meeting with Cadillac representatives in Detroit to learn of the changes coming to the XT4 SUV for its next edition. Who knows, maybe we'll get a glimpse of the IQ. If so, we'll be taking a closer look to be able to describe it as accurately as possible once it's officially unveiled.